THE RESULTS ARE IN!
MAC AND CHEESE WINS OVER VOTERS IN A LANDSLIDE VICTORY
A new survey from Noodles & Company finds that four in five Americans find more comfort in their favorite comfort food than in any presidential candidate
Broomfield, CO (Oct. 20, 2016) – In times of unsettled uncertainty, nothing brings greater comfort than our great nation’s favorite comfort foods. In a new nationwide survey* from Noodles & Company, Americans overwhelmingly agreed (85 percent) – regardless of political party affiliation – that curling up with a bowl of their favorite comfort food, macaroni and cheese, brings them a greater sense of security this election season than Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump becoming the next President of the United States. Hearing the voice of the people, Noodles & Company today announced the limited time return of three of its most popular mac and cheese dishes from its globally inspired World Kitchen, Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese, Bacon Mac & Cheeseburger and BBQ Pork Mac & Cheese.
In addition to mac and cheese winning bipartisan approval, the survey also found that nearly half of Americans (45 percent) say they’ll “dine with her” and would rather share a bowl of mac and cheese with Hillary Clinton than any other presidential candidate this year. And, while traditional mac and cheese reigns supreme, 22 million Americans favor a spicier variety, such as with hot sauce, with 17 million claiming that a more savory addition, such as beef, wins their vote.
The returning favorites feature a grown up twist on the Company’s signature Wisconsin Mac & Cheese. Noodles & Company invites all Americans to hop off the fence and into a chair at their nearest restaurant and try:
· Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese: This spicy take on Noodles & Company’s signature dish starts with Wisconsin Mac & Cheese, then adds parmesan chicken, Frank’s RedHot® Buffalo Wings Sauce, parmesan cheese and green onions.
· Bacon Mac & Cheeseburger: A savory spin on the classic, this standout dish includes crumbled, oven-roasted meatballs; crispy, naturally-raised bacon; Roma tomatoes and green onions.
· BBQ Pork Mac & Cheese: Creamy, traditional mac gets a smoky-sweet takeover complements of tender, slow-braised, naturally-raised pork; crispy jalapeños and a sweet, tangy barbecue sauce.
“The people have spoken – all 216 million Americans who consider mac and cheese their most beloved comfort food – and we hear them, loud and clear,” said Jonathan Tress, vice president of marketing for Noodles & Company. “That’s why Noodles & Company is giving our guests from sea to shining sea exactly what they want this fall with the return of their all-time favorite mac and cheese dishes of election cycles past. There’s been a lot of talk about this being the year of the ‘change’ candidate, but when it comes to mac and cheese, there’s no changing a winning recipe; our three returning dishes are all grown up and sure to provide delicious comfort to all.”
Noodles & Company is looking to further unite this great country over its love for the ultimate comfort food by inviting voters of all ages to cast their ballot for America’s favorite mac and cheese at www.noodles.com/adultmac. Those who vote in the second most hotly contested showdown of the year will be rewarded with a buy-one-get-one-free coupon good for any of the globally-inspired offerings at Noodles & Company on their next visit between now and Wednesday, Nov. 16.
For more information on Noodles & Company or to find a location nearest you to dine in, order online for carryout or group catering, please visit www.noodles.com or www.noodles.com/catering.
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Utah Board of Juvenile Justice to recognize juvenile defenders
SALT LAKE CITY (Oct. 20, 2016) – In recognition of the second Utah Youth Justice Awareness Month, the Utah Board of Juvenile Justice (UBJJ) will highlight Utah’s dedication to youth within the juvenile justice system. The event will spotlight the landmark 1967 US Supreme Court decision In re Gault, which guarantees a child’s right to counsel in juvenile court. UBJJ will recognize juvenile defenders who have shown zealous advocacy and dedication by giving youth a clear and powerful voice in the courtroom.
2016 Youth Advocate of the Year recognitions will be awarded to Benjamin D. Gordon, P.C., 5th Judicial District; Jeffry K. Ross, Stowell & Crayk, 8th Judicial District; Erik G. Jacobson, Utah County Juvenile Public Defender, 4th Judicial District; Tasha M. Williams and William R. Russell, Utah Juvenile Defender Attorneys, 3rd Judicial District.
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Utah school DISTRICTS CAN NOW APPLY to receive A grant to implement BREAKFAST IN THE CLASSROOM
Utah selected as one of 10 states to receive free nutritious morning meals for local students
Salt Lake City, UTAH–Utah school districts can now apply for grant funds from Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom (the Partners) to provide a much-needed healthy and nutritious morning meal to local students and help increase participation of the federally funded School Breakfast Program. School districts will be selected based on the number of students that qualify for free or reduced priced meals, average daily participation in the school breakfast program, and district and school-level support.
The Partners, a consortium of national education and nutrition organizations, includes the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), the National Association of Elementary School Principals Foundation (NAESPF), the School Nutrition Foundation (SNF), and The NEA Foundation. The Partners selected 10 states to participate in the program based on need and potential for success, including: Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah. Across these states, the Partners have a goal of increasing access to a nutritious morning meal for 30,000 students.
Through a $7.5 million grant from the Walmart Foundation, the Partners will work with state affiliates and rework how school breakfast is delivered, by offering it to all students at no charge and moving it from the cafeteria to the classroom. This is an effort intended to improve participation in the School Breakfast Program and boost learning and health.
While most U.S. schools participate in the School Breakfast Program, barriers, including school bus schedules, late arrivals to school, pressure to go directly to class, and reluctance to be labeled “low-income,” have caused school breakfast participation rates to be low. Nearly half of low-income children who are eligible for a free or reduced-price breakfast through the federal School Breakfast Program are not eating it, according to a 2015 FRAC analysis.
“Grant funding from the Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom would help bring healthy morning meals into the classroom which would have an invaluable impact on students. We encourage school districts across the state to learn more about the grant opportunity and apply,” said Heidi Matthews, Utah Education Association President.
“The proven benefits of moving breakfast from the cafeteria to the classroom include better attendance records, less tardiness, fewer behavioral and discipline problems and that’s just to name a few. Those benefits are what the students in Utah deserve,” stated Jerad Reay, Utah School Employees Association President.
Since 2010, 35 school districts in 18 states have been awarded a grant by the Partners to implement the Breakfast in the Classroom programs resulting in more than 63,000 students starting their day off with a healthy breakfast. The Partners’ grant will provide funding to school districts to assist with the upfront costs typically associated with starting a breakfast in the classroom program. That includes assisting schools with purchasing large and small equipment, marketing and communication needs, training for school building staff, and short-term school food and nutrition services staffing.
The application is now open in Utah. For more information, to find out if a district is eligible, and review the application, visit www.BreakfastintheClassroom.org.
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About Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom
The Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom (the Partners) came together in 2010 in response to their shared passion for childhood nutrition and its potential for improving educational outcomes and child health. The Partners is a consortium of national education and nutrition organizations including the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Foundation, the School Nutrition Foundation (SNF), and The NEA Foundation. The Partners provide technical assistance and support to school districts to implement the Breakfast in the Classroom programs.
The mission of the Partners is to increase breakfast consumption among schoolchildren and spark the academic and nutritional gains associated with the morning meal through the implementation of Breakfast in the Classroom programs.
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Better Business Bureau Sees a Huge Drop in Reports of IRS Scam Since Raid in India
Mumbai police shut down call center, arrest 70 suspects
Arlington, VA (October 20, 2016) – The top scam reported to the Better Business Bureau is the tax scam (also known as the IRS scam), which has accounted for about one in four reports to BBB Scam Tracker during its first year of operation. But BBB has seen a dramatic drop in new reports on this scam since police in Mumbai, India, raided a call center earlier this month.
The tax scam involves call center con artists posing as IRS agents in the U.S. and Canadian Revenue agents in Canada. They threaten their targets with financial penalties, lawsuits, and even arrest if they don’t pay the back taxes they supposedly owe. In a typical week, BBB Scam Tracker receives approximately 200 reports on tax scams. That number has dropped to just 11 reports of this scam in the past week, nearly a 95% decline.
[Go to bbb.org/taxscam for BBB’s tips and a recording of a tax scam robocall]
“We are delighted with this news,” said Mary E. Power, president and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, which manages BBB Scam Tracker with support from local BBBs across North America. “We appreciate the efforts of the Mumbai police and the law enforcement agencies they worked with to close down this operation that has cost American and Canadian consumers millions of dollars.”
“To immediately see the success of this raid reflected in our BBB Scam Tracker data is really remarkable, and validates our belief in the importance of using reports from the public to better understand the scam landscape” notes Emma Fletcher, manager of BBB Scam Tracker. “But we know from past experience that scammers are opportunists. Hopefully this crew won’t be stealing from anyone again for a long while. But we will be keeping an eye on incoming scam reports so we can alert consumers what the ‘next big thing’ in scams turns out to be.”
According to news reports, there were 770 employees working at the Mumbai call center when the midnight raid was conducted; 70 were charged with fraud and other crimes as a result of the raid.
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ABOUT BBB: For more than 100 years, Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands and charities they can trust. In 2015, people turned to BBB more than 172 million times for BBB Business Reviews on more than 5.3 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at bbb.org. The Council of Better Business Bureaus is the umbrella organization for the local, independent BBBs in the United States, Canada and Mexico, as well as home to its national programs on dispute resolution, advertising review, and industry self-regulation.
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Farmers Insurance® Launches ‘Suits for Soldiers’ Campaign to Help Provide Suits for Transitioning Veterans to the Civilian Workforce
The national program will help ease the transition for veterans to civilian work
WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. (Oct. 20, 2016) – Farmers Insurance®, an organization with a longstanding commitment to helping the military that was founded by two World War I veterans, today announced the launch of its nationwide Suits for Soldiers program to help active duty military personnel transition to civilian work and life.
Starting today through November 30, Americans across the country can support veterans transitioning into the civilian workforce by donating gently used and dry cleaned suits or professional attire for men and women at more than 13,000 Farmers® agencies.
“Suits for Soldiers is representative of our organization’s commitment to veterans,” said Jeff Dailey, CEO of Farmers Insurance. “We believe in the value veterans can bring to the workplace through their experience and training, as well as their values.”
More than one million military personnel will be making the transition from the military in the next couple of years, according to the Department of Defense office of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, and many of these veterans may not own appropriate business attire to go to networking events, interviews or even to work. Each piece of clothing donated brings Suits for Soldiers closer to its goal of collecting 50,000 suits that can help create an easier transition for veterans into the civilian workforce.
Named a top 150 military employer and one of the top 50 military spouse employers by MilitaryFriendly.com, Farmers® is collaborating with Team Rubicon, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to uniting teams of veterans and first responders, to aid in already robust catastrophe response efforts. In 2014, Farmers signed a statement of support with the Department of Defense office of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), committing to seek ways to increase opportunities for guardsmen, reservists and veterans. Farmers also has an active veteran employee resource group, which helps provide important networking and career development opportunities for its employees.
At a special campaign kick-off event today, Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti announced that October 18 is proclaimed “Suits for Soldiers Day.”
“Veterans fought to secure our liberty — now it's our turn to fight for them,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. “When a veteran lands a job interview, nothing should stand in their way of getting hired — especially the clothes on their backs. Suits for Soldiers is giving our veterans a new uniform that will help restore dignity, confidence, and hope for those who put everything on the line to protect our freedoms.”
Visit www.agents.farmers.com to find your nearest agent. We also encourage veterans to visit www.farmers.com/careers/veterans-resources/ for additional resources to aid in the transition to the civilian workforce.
About Farmers Insurance
“Farmers Insurance®” and “Farmers®” are tradenames for a group of affiliated insurers providing insurance for automobiles, homes and small businesses and a wide range of other insurance and financial services and products. Farmers Insurance is proud to serve more than 10 million households with over 19 million individual policies, across all 50 states, through the efforts of more than 48,000 exclusive and independent agents and approximately 21,000 employees. Farmers Insurance Exchange®, the largest of the three primary insurance insurers that make up Farmers Insurance, is recognized as one of the largest U.S. companies on the 2016 Fortune 500 list.
For more information about Farmers Insurance, visit Farmers.com, Twitter and Instagram, @WeAreFarmers, or Facebook.com/FarmersInsurance.
