StratCommRx July 2019

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Friends,

Much has happened both personally and professionally since I last wrote. First, let me start by thanking all of you for your ongoing care and support during my husband’s valiant battle with cancer. I was gone from the office far longer than I anticipated, yet also as long as was necessary. The kids and I are doing well, and I am thrilled with the positive energy around this company of ours.

We completed our ninth year in June, and celebrated with three new clients (more on them below). These past few months saw Heather help host the spring conference of the Midwest Chapter of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2), and Kennedy is now involved with the local chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. She was even the featured new member recently.

There are many things to be grateful for as I look around. Each of you reading this letter has had some role in getting us to where we are. Our clients continue to seek our counsel; our friends and family continue to support us. Yet I’m particularly grateful to having more than five years with Heather, and now one full year with Kennedy on my team as full-time employees. Lana continues as our creative director and designer extraordinaire, supporting me every day of these past nine years in whatever has been needed. We also benefit from Libby Wilson's digital marketing prowess, and the skills of our many partners. Their steadiness, attention to detail, and commitment to our shared goals make stepping off our tenth year a happy journey, for sure.

Cheers,

Kelly Ferrara, President

New Client Alert

StratCommRx is pleased to welcome three new clients to our firm!

Wyman is “Transforming Teens and Changing Communities” every day through the various programs, leadership, and team building experiences they offer to enrich the futures of teens in the St. Louis region. Wyman’s national network serves more than 22,700 youth across 30 states.

Logos is a therapeutic school located in St. Louis for 6th - 12th grade students. Building on their more than 40 years, Logos seeks to educate and provide therapy services to students across the region. Logos has built a strong community that includes teachers, therapists, parents, and guardians to ensure a bright future for Logos students.

Our third new client is a nonprofit organization headquartered in St. Charles County using our employee engagement services. Kelly will lead staff through the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator(R) and team-building activities.

Staff News

Kennedy's Year One Lessons and Tips

Developing writing skills improves over time, and Grammarly is my best friend! Before sending my work over to Kelly or Heather, I import it into the app to check for spelling or grammatical errors. Not only does it give you suggestions for correcting your grammar, but Grammarly aids in forming tone, suggesting better word choice, and checking for plagiarism. If you haven’t checked out Grammarly you can learn more and download it here.
Each client may have a different set of rules when it comes to writing; with one of the most common debates being to use or not use the Oxford comma. When writing for a specific client, you must prioritize the needs and traditions of that client.
Take advantage of professional development opportunities. Just because you are done with college doesn’t mean you are done with learning. Meeting with mentors over coffee, attending PRSA and IAP2 events, joining Heather in her Community Engagement Action Group, and watching webinars are just a few activities that have allowed me to network and continue learning about PR and public engagement beyond Mizzou.
Proposals may be a dreadful task to many, but proposals are important to the livelihood of any firm.
During my first month of working at StratCommRx, Kelly handed me an official Myers-Briggs Type Indicator^® assessment to take at home. To my surprise, I found out that Kelly and I have the same personality type (ENFJ). The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator^® helped me understand that everyone has a preferred way of communicating. I now pay a significant amount of attention to how people talk and how I communicate with people, and not just at work. This assessment has made me think about how people in my personal life prefer to communicate as well.
Coming from an advocacy background at Mizzou, I thought that entering into PR and public engagement would cause my advocacy side to disappear. To my surprise, many of our clients at StratCommRx are community, social justice, or advocacy-oriented organizations. I didn’t have to choose between being an advocate for social causes and being a consultant; at StratCommRx I can be who I am, which is both.

Client Spotlight on MSD Project Clear:

Pine Lawn Rain Garden

In partnership with StandPoint Public Affairs, StratCommRx provides public engagement consulting for MSD Project Clear. The new rain garden in Pine Lawn is a collaboration between MSD Project Clear and Beyond Housing, and features signage designed by our team.

MSD Project Clear rain gardens are part of an effective stormwater management system, and focus on native plants and retention features to manage excess rainfall. This project gave our team the opportunity to educate and inform the students of Barack Obama Elementary, and the residents of Pine Lawn, about the beauty and positive community impacts of rain gardens. You can learn more about rain gardens at MSDProjectClear on Facebook or online at ProjectClearSTL.org.

Visit us! Our office address is:
333 S Kirkwood Rd.
Suite 310
Kirkwood, MO 63122

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