WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Tickets are on sale for the annual Krannert Leadership Speaker Series dinner, which raises money for scholarships.

Elaine Chao, labor secretary in President George W. Bush’s administration, will be the keynote speaker at the Oct. 1 event, the ninth in the series.

Elaine Chao, labor secretary in G. W. Bush administration, will keynote the October 1 Krannert Leadership Speaker Series dinner.

The series has raised more than $125,000 in scholarship money for undergraduate and graduate students in the Krannert School of Management.

Chao, labor secretary for the eight years of the Bush administration, was the first Asian Pacific American woman to serve in a president’s cabinet.

She focused her tenure on increasing the competitiveness of the work force in the 21st century workplace. The U.S. Department of Labor updated regulations to provide millions of low-wage, white-collar workers with strengthened overtime protection. In 2002, the department led the effort to resolve a West Coast ports dispute that was costing up to $1 billion a day. In 2003, union financial disclosure regulations were updated to give rank-and-file members more information about how dues are spent. In 2006, the Pension Protection Act was signed into law, benefiting 44 million Americans who are under defined benefit plans. In 2008, the department updated the Family and Medical Leave Act to give military families job-protected rights to care for wounded service men and women.

Chao previously held positions in government and the private sector, among them director of the Peace Corps, deputy secretary of the Department of Transportation, president and CEO of United Way of America, and distinguished fellow at the Heritage Foundation.

Chao, who immigrated to the United States at age 8, has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Mount Holyoke College. She is married to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

The dinner will be at 6:30 p.m. in Purdue Memorial Union. Deadline for reserving tickets is Sept. 11. For information and to reserve tickets, contact Tim Newton, Krannert director of external relations, at 765-496-7271 or e-mail tnewton@purdue.edu

Sponsors for the leadership series are Boston Scientific, Saint-Gobain Containers, Air Products, Accenture, WellPoint, Lafayette Printing, Grow Indiana Media Ventures and Purdue alumni.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office will host its fourth annual “Fish Fry for the Red Cross” and for the first time, a car show, to benefit the local Chapter of the American Red Cross. The food and festivities, including face painting, hair coloring, ring toss and bean bag toss, and the inaugural car show are scheduled for Friday, June 5, 2009 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds on Teal Road in Lafayette.

The Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office is no stranger to the services that the American Red Cross provides. The Red Cross routinely provides assistance to victims affected by disasters, notably the flooding that most recently impacted Greater Lafayette, and also administers care to local emergency personnel who are called to duty during those times.

“It has somewhat surprised me, over the past four years that this particular community event continues to grow and the enthusiasm has never waned. Every year we seem to come up with new and more innovative ideas to make that year’s event bigger and better than in previous years. It is a fun and rewarding way to give back to an organization that serves us and the community we serve. I commend the men and women of the Sheriff’s Office and all the other volunteers, they do a great job,” said Tippecanoe County Sheriff Tracy Brown.

American Red Cross Executive Director Bob Wollenburg agrees.

“Our partnership with the Sheriff’s Office is a great example of how much good can come about when we work together for a common cause. We appreciate the support of the Sheriff’s Office, the sponsors, volunteers, and the entire community. It is through all of their efforts that the annual Sheriff’s Fish Fry is such a huge success,” Wollenburg said.

Tickets are priced at Eight dollars ($8.00) for adults and Five dollars ($5.00) for children age twelve and under. Pre-event tickets may be purchased during regular business hours at the Sheriff’s Office at 2640 Duncan Road, or at the Red Cross Chapter House located 615 North 18th Street, Suite 101 in Lafayette. People wishing to order tickets by phone can call the Red Cross chapter at 765-742-6975, pay by credit or debit card and have tickets either mailed to them or held on reserve at the fairgrounds. Tickets will be sold at the fairgrounds on June 5th and carry-out dinners will also be available.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Lafayette-Online) — The Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office hosts its third annual “Community Fish Fry” benefiting the local Chapter of the American Red Cross. This year’s event kicks off the “Heroes of the American Red Cross Campaign” and is scheduled for Friday, June 6, 2008 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds on Teal Road in Lafayette.

Interaction between the two agencies is not uncommon. “We often work with the American Red Cross to provide assistance and disaster relief to those affected by flooding or other disasters that impact our community. Over the past three years this has allowed members of the Sheriff’s Office an excellent opportunity to work with the Red Cross in a different capacity” said Tippecanoe County Sheriff Tracy Brown.

American Red Cross Executive Director Debbie Elsner agrees. “This collaborative effort with the Sheriff’s Department is a great example that we work well together for a common cause. We are very appreciative that the members of our local Sheriff’s Office volunteer their time in support of the American Red Cross,” Elsner said.

Tickets are priced at eight dollars ($8.00) for adults and five dollars ($5.00) for children age twelve and under. Tickets may be purchased during regular business hours at the Sheriff’s Office at 2640 Duncan Road, or at the Red Cross Chapter House located 615 N. 18th Street, Suite 101 in Lafayette. Tickets will also be on sale at the event on June 6th.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Lafayette-Online) — The Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office hosts its third annual “Community Fish Fry” benefiting the local Chapter of the American Red Cross. This year’s event kicks off the “Heroes of the American Red Cross Campaign” and is scheduled for Friday, June 6, 2008 from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds on Teal Road in Lafayette.

Interaction between the two agencies is not uncommon. “We often work with the American Red Cross to provide assistance and disaster relief to those affected by flooding or other disasters that impact our community. Over the past three years this has allowed members of the Sheriff’s Office an excellent opportunity to work with the Red Cross in a different capacity” said Tippecanoe County Sheriff Tracy Brown.

American Red Cross Executive Director Debbie Elsner agrees. “This collaborative effort with the Sheriff’s Department is a great example that we work well together for a common cause. We are very appreciative that the members of our local Sheriff’s Office volunteer their time in support of the American Red Cross,” Elsner said.

Tickets are priced at eight dollars ($8.00) for adults and five dollars ($5.00) for children age twelve and under. Tickets may be purchased during regular business hours at the Sheriff’s Office at 2640 Duncan Road, or at the Red Cross Chapter House located 615 N. 18th Street, Suite 101 in Lafayette. Tickets will also be on sale at the event on June 6th.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Lafayette Symphony Orchestra will offer a Mother’s Day Champagne Brunch at 1 p.m. Sunday (May 11) to raise money for programming and education and outreach efforts. The LSO also will hold a raffle on a handmade quilt and baskets of wine valued at more than $1,000 each in conjunction with the event.

Tickets for adults are $25 for the outdoor event, which will be held at the 10-acre home of LSO supporters Cy and Pris Gerde, 8303 Tyler Road near Battle Ground. Tickets are $5 for children, who will sit in a supervised area. Rain date is Sunday, May 18. Only a few reservations slots are still available.

“Scrumptious breakfast casseroles, pancake bar, mid-afternoon mimosas and champagne are on the menu, and live music will be provided by the Wabash Valley Youth Symphony,” said Melissa Boeckman, general manager of the Lafayette Symphony. “Guests will learn a real Maypole Dance, and supervised activities for children also are on tap.”

During the event, the LSO will auction a handmade, one-of-a-kind quilt featuring 10 signature squares personally autographed by 2007-08 LSO guest artists and conductors. Surrounding the signatures are large and small stars in purple, blue, orange and gold batik fabrics. The prize includes a decorated wooden hanger for the quilt, which measures 45-by-60 inches. Tickets for the quilt raffle are $25 each.
In addition, a raffle will be held for three baskets of unique wine personally chosen from vineyards around the world — from South Africa to France, Italy and China. Each basket of the donated wine is valued at more than $1,000. Raffle tickets are $100 each, but only 100 tickets will be sold.

Launched in 1950 as a non-profit organization, the 70-person Lafayette Symphony Orchestra is focused on enriching the cultural life of the West Central Indiana community and 14 surrounding counties through excellence in orchestral music and educational experience.