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A BAHRAINI teenager born with sickle cell anaemia has made a full recovery after undergoing pioneering surgery in Singapore.

Abdulhameed Sogra, 13, is now completely free of the condition and looking forward to going back to school after his sister donated bone marrow required for the procedure.

Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) consultant haematologist Dr Najat Madhi said the youngster, whose trip and procedure were funded by the Health Ministry, is one of four people to have completely recovered from the condition.

He said Abdulhameed underwent a successful transplant which resulted in full remission of his disease.

Prior to the surgery, the teenager was frequently hospitalised after suffering from severe pain.

"Four youngsters were sent over the last 18 months to the same facility in Singapore, the Children’s Haematology and Cancer Centre, ParkwayHealth,Charm pendant, but unfortunately one of them died of complications during the treatment," said Dr Madhi.

"The other three, including Abdulhameed, have completely recovered."

Dr Madhi said two more children had been lined up to make the trip and several others were now in the process of being tested.

"We can only proceed with the process after we are satisfied a perfect bone marrow match exists," she said.

"This is generally bone marrow from a sibling.

"Very exhaustive tests are then carried out to determine full and exact compatibility so as to avoid any complications later."

Dr Madhi said the chances of complications from undergoing such surgery were very high, but fortunately the procedures had gone very well in all but one of the cases.

"Complications can, however, happen even with the most perfect match," she said.

Dr Madhi said Abdulhameed had been doing well, although he studied at home for his examinations.

"He will go to school in the new term," she said.

Abdulhameed’s father, Jalal said the family were relieved everything had gone smoothly in his son’s case.

"It’s good to see him up and about and free of pain,money clips," he said.

He did not wish to discuss the case, but thanked all those involved.

"God has been kind," he added.

The number of Middle East medical tourists travelling to Singapore has witnessed average annual increases of 20 per cent from 2006 to 2008,watches, according to figures from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

They show approximately 1,000 healthcare tourists from the region arrived in Singapore in 2008,Charm bracelet, around the same number as US medical care travellers — putting both destinations among the top markets for overall number of healthcare tourists visiting the country. STB said common procedures and treatments undertaken by visitors included live donor liver transplants, in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), heart procedures, stem cell transplantations and cancer treatments.

"Middle East populations are realising the benefits of travelling to Singapore for a wide range of medical procedures, which has resulted in year-on-year double-digit growth in the number of regional healthcare tourists opting for Singapore," said STB Middle East and Africa area director Jason Ong.

He said Singapore had 13 hospitals and speciality centres catering for medical travellers that have received international accreditation from the Joint Commission International (JCI), which certifies international standards of care.

"Middle East patients can be certain that they will receive the highest quality of treatment and follow-up care in Singapore, which has repeatedly shown to be on par with the best in the world," said Mr Ong.

"They can be certain that their cultural and religious needs are attended to with Arabic-speaking service personnel,rings, halal food and even Arabic TV channels during their hospital stay."

mandeep@gdn.com.bh

Performers who make a name for themselves in the guise of an alter ego usually have a short shelf life. They tend to become camp curiosities within minutes of achieving cultural saturation. But Paul Reubens avoided the fate of Carrot Top, Andrew "Dice" Clay, Larry the Cable Guy,cuff Links, and their ilk,Bead bracelet, who, if they remain familiar, do so in the manner of a mortifying ex. Reubens survived on his own terms because his Pee-wee Herman was a much savvier invention, utterly specific visually (snug glen-plaid suit, red bow tie, white loafers) but otherwise built on a series of childlike ambiguities (hostile or silly? gay or straight? wise or innocent?) that he steadfastly refused to resolve or even acknowledge. In his first decade of fame–from The Pee-wee Herman Show, which played Hollywood’s Roxy Theatre in 1981, to the 1985 hit movie Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (directed by the neophyte Tim Burton) to Pee-wee’s Playhouse, the Saturday morning kids’ show that ran on CBS from 1986 to 1991–Reubens rarely appeared as himself in public. And then, in the wake of his 1991 arrest for indecent exposure (he was supposedly masturbating in a porn theater), he stopped appearing in public altogether, except rather brilliantly to ask the audience at that year’s MTV Video Music Awards if they’d "heard any good jokes lately."

The taint of the overblown scandal–exacerbated in 2001 when he was falsely charged with possessing child pornography–may have stuck like glue to Reubens, but it bounced right off Pee-wee. So while the actor went on to take small, dark roles (he played a suicide in Todd Solondz’s recent Life During Wartime), his alter ego lived on, Peter Pan-like, and has reemerged unscathed. A new Pee-wee movie, to be directed by Judd Apatow, is in development, and in what feels like a kind of homecoming (though he’s never appeared in a Broadway house) Reubens is bringing The Pee-wee Herman Show to the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, in a production that starts previews on October 26 and runs through January 2. It is perhaps a sign of the breadth of his rehabilitation that on the day he spoke to New York, Reubens had just returned from (of all places) a series of promotional appearances among the hog-heads at the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota.

Yours is the first show in the former Henry Miller’s Theater since it was renamed for Stephen Sondheim. Some people might find that ironic–do you? I don’t know what you mean. I love Sondheim’s work. Well, he’s the writer of the darkest,money clips, most serious musicals around … I guess the fact you had to explain it to me is the answer. I hate to come off as such a hick here–it’s not like I’m totally unfamiliar with Broadway. I almost took over for Alan Cumming for Cabaret, and almost went into How to Succeed … after Matthew Broderick. I’ve been offered stuff, but always to replace somebody, and it’s always too long of a commitment. This is a long commitment, too, but it’s a commitment to my own story. How similar is the Broadway show to the version you did in the early eighties, or to the television series? It has the same plot, in which Pee-wee has this dream to fly. But I spent five months rewriting it because it didn’t have all the characters from the CBS series, and I thought people would wonder where they were. So we’ll see Chairry and Miss Yvonne and Cowboy Curtis and all the rest? Right. It’s amazing what you were able to get away with on TV. Did CBS ever censor you? There was no interference. I’ve been in many situations where people promise to leave you alone, but you write a script and the next day they have fifteen notes for you: "Change the dog to a cat." Instead, in five seasons of my show, I probably had a total of five notes. They never even saw the show until it was finished, two hours before it aired. Could Pee-wee’s Playhouse get made today? It would be difficult in one sense: There isn’t even Saturday morning anymore! Now there are so many more outlets, and they’re 24/7. But in terms of content, I would argue it was tamer than you think. Everything is–even the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Pee-wee’s Playhouse was sort of what Johnny Carson used to be: always titillating, but not more than that. A dirty joke that wasn’t explained. I mean, a line like "You know what they say, Pee-wee: ‘Big shoes, big feet!’" isn’t very blue. And no one wanted it to be. They were kids! But the tone suggested the existence of another world children might someday gain access to. Did you actively try to shape kids, or was that a by-product of entertaining them? I took it seriously, 150 billion percent. It may sound corny and stupid, but I had an opportunity to come in under the radar and do something important. Sesame Street was already on, but it was very corporate in a certain way, and I just felt I had this opportunity to be entertaining, less "we’re going to learn the letter Q today." They had that covered. I was going to be lighter and more specific, more like: All your friends got invited to a party, and you didn’t. I was so lucky–I was presented with such an opportunity. And if I can pat myself a teeny-tiny amount on the back, I delivered. I was in a position to shape a certain percentage of kids who watched, teach them things that I think are important in life, like the golden rule, and wrap it up in colorful eye candy and make it seem like fun. It would be hard to do that at all today–and I got to do it for five years. And not only that,necklaces, I can feel the effects still. I’m meeting people who say they are an artist because of my show. It’s staggering. People say, "Do you have any idea what a difference you made?" No, but I’m starting to. Do you think that’s your signal achievement? I’m not trying to be coy or facetious, but I don’t know the answer to that, and I don’t think I should. Because (a) I’m afraid it’ll dry me up and I won’t be able to do what I want to do,tiffany, and (b) I don’t feel the need. I leave that to others. For me, it would be like Samson cutting his hair. Speaking of transformations, is it hard, twenty years along, to fit into Pee-wee’s suit? I still fit into the same size suit–but I don’t know what size it is. I don’t know what size suit I wear, either. Does Pee-wee appear when you put it on? Is he a character you switch into, or one you release, like from prison? Well, I don’t give it too much thought. It’s more like … riding a bike. You’re about to have a birthday. Yes, I’ll be 39. Right, 58. And how old is Pee-wee? I don’t know the answer to that.

If one must be stuck in a dark alley outside a Toronto nightclub while Chinese mobsters and government assassins hover in the shadows, it might as well be with Maggie Q. She is,necklaces, after all, an action star, though to look at her is to question her ass-kicking ability. She is unfathomably thin; her toned arms are marginally bigger around than a Canadian two-dollar coin. She also has the unintimidating habit of cracking herself up, loudly and with knee slaps.

We’re on a location shoot for her new show, Nikita, the third reinterpretation of Luc Besson’s 1990 film La Femme Nikita, about a young junkie and convicted murderer trained to be a killer by a nefarious organization. The CW’s version picks up three years after Nikita, played by Q, has gone rogue. She’s determined to bring down Divison, the agency that conscripted her, and to that end she must infiltrate this nightclub, decked out in theoretically unsuitable assassin-chic gear: black mesh, leather,watches, bra, and not much else.

The show’s executive producer, Craig Silverstein, says they cast her because–unlike the other equally beautiful and talented actresses they auditioned–when you put a gun in Q’s hand, "it didn’t all fall apart." It’s a risk, anchoring a TV show with a relative unknown–you’d get more Americans acknowledging Q as the hot Asian chick in Mission: Impossible III than by name–except that unknown is relative to where you are standing. In Asia, Maggie Q inspires Justin Bieber-like frenzy, give or take a couple million more fans and even crazier paparazzi. When I get into a Toronto cab with a driver who happens to be from Hong Kong, I ask if he’s ever heard of Maggie Q. "Oh, yes!" he says. "She is very famous in Hong Kong!" I tell him she’s living in Toronto. "Wow!" And that I met her. "Really? Wow! Is she tall? I think she’s maybe five seven." Almost. "She’s getting up there, isn’t she?" I guess, I say, if he considers 31 old. "Thirty-one?! No! Wow! I thought for sure she is 40. She’s been around a long, long time."

Margaret Denise Quigley was born and raised in Hawaii by a Polish-Irish father and a Vietnamese mother who met during the Vietnam War. She started modeling in Tokyo at age 17, eventually ending up in Taipei. Bad move: Q, whose mixed-race looks read "Asian" in America and "weird" in Asia,earrings, was summarily rejected. "At the time,tiffany, they wanted blonde hair and blue eyes. Or Asian celebrities,money clips," she says. After her daily round of rejections, she’d go to Taipei’s night market to buy "my dollar box of food, then go back to my danky hotel that was literally a love motel–I paid by the night–and cry and eat my dinner." A woman suggested she try Hong Kong. "They’ll probably get you there," she told Q, and they certainly did. Or, rather, Jackie Chan did. He recruited her as one of the next generation of Hong Kong action stars: In all, she did eleven films. "I had never done a day of martial arts in my life when I started in the business," she says. "I couldn’t even touch my toes."

Q finally left Hong Kong because she was feeling like a hunted animal, "like I was suffocating." Turns out celebrity weeklies in Asia far outnumber those here. That, coupled with fewer celebrities, means "you’re incredibly recognizable wherever you go," she says. "I could never have a boyfriend. I couldn’t grocery shop for myself. I got very depressed by it." So Toronto is a relative haven. Q does her own laundry, goes to the farmers’ market, and drives herself to work–which is why the first time I see her, she’s running, flustered and sweaty, her Chihuahua, Pedro, peering out of her bag. The car’s GPS directed her not to the downtown location but to a suburb off a freeway twelve miles away. She’s hustled into the makeup trailer, where the mirrors are lined with pictures of her dogs (she has three, all rescues). There are no fight scenes tonight, but Q’s covered in bruises from a scene earlier in the week with co-star Shane West (ER).

Jackie Chan’s intensive training stressed professionalism and a certain code: Q always does her own stunts. "I owe it to my audience. And I’m not 70, so I might as well while I can." Her moves might be faked, but that doesn’t mean she can’t take care of herself. She gave a six-foot-four dude a black eye while shooting the Nikita pilot. And Bruce Willis made the mistake of underestimating her strength during a Live Free or Die Hard fight scene. He told her to try her best move, and she put him in an armbar, which hyperextends the elbow. "He kept hitting my leg. I said, ‘What are you doing?’ And he goes, ‘Tap out! Tap out!’"

The closest Q has come to an offscreen fight was in L.A. Her dog startled a sleeping buck, which knocked it over on its belly then lowered its antlers to charge. "The only thing I could think to do to get in between the deer’s horns and my dog was to jump on the deer," she says. It threw her into a bush, splitting her leg and side open. Q was due, two days later, on the set of an "awful movie that hasn’t been released yet, thank God!" She showed up completely "mummified" in gauze. But she showed up.

Peirce College announced a tuition discount program for all qualified employees of the City of Philadelphia, as well as their spouses and dependents.

The tuition program was officially announced by Mayor Michael A. Nutter today at a press conference in the Mayor’s Reception Room at City Hall. Peirce College was the first of five higher education institutions in the region to partner with the City of Philadelphia as part of the Mayor’s Returning to Learning Partnership program.

"We are delighted to provide an exceptional education package for City employees," said James J. Mergiotti, Peirce president and chief executive officer. "This program will enable more Philadelphians to pursue and complete a career-related degree. This tuition program comes at a time when the need for professional skills and career development are key factors. By securing this program with Peirce, Mayor Nutter and his administration have, once again, shown extraordinary leadership in driving toward their degree attainment goals for Philadelphia residents."

"I hope City employees who have thought about earning a college degree will look at the Returning to Learning Program as a pathway for reaching their goals and consider one of the many wonderful degree programs being offered at Peirce College," said Mayor Nutter. "As one of the largest employers in Philadelphia, it’s important that we support our employees to reach their postsecondary education goals in a cost-effective way during these tough economic times,money clips, and we value Peirce College’s partnership in helping to better educate our workforce."

In only a few weeks, 46 City of Philadelphia employees have enrolled in Peirce’s program,cuff Links, an excellent beginning to what is a long-term commitment by the College.

The tuition discount program is part of an expansive effort by Peirce College to provide more Philadelphians with access to higher education and the associated benefits. According to Graduate Philadelphia!,watches, on average, "college graduates make about $1 million more over their lifetimes than those who do not have a degree, rebound faster from downsizing, unemployment, and stepping out of the workforce, and are less likely to be unemployed and if unemployed, they tend to find jobs faster."

Through the Peirce College/City of Philadelphia tuition discount program students can earn a bachelor’s or associate degree in Business Administration, Information Technology, Paralegal Studies, or one of the College’s upcoming new programs.

The program offers:

– 25% Tuition Discount. Peirce provides a 25% discount off tuition for City of Philadelphia employees, their spouses and dependents, who meet all requirements for admission to Peirce and who enroll in a degree program at Peirce.

– Application Fee Waiver. City of Philadelphia employees are not required to pay the Peirce College application fee – a savings of $50.

Working with Peirce on the tuition discount program have been Dr. Lori Shorr, Chief Education Officer for the City of Philadelphia and Sharon Tucker Gaskins, Deputy Education Officer.

"We thank Peirce College for their ongoing support in helping our City’s young people and adults to reach higher and get their college degrees," Dr. Shorr said. "As we have stated before, the need to improve educational attainment is clear and breaking down obstacles is one of our key goals. Anytime we can help level the playing field and provide opportunities to those who may not have a chance to attend college, we have made a big difference. Peirce’s tuition discount program helps make that possible."

Peirce College is an active participant in Mayor Nutter’s new citywide initiative to increase the number of Philadelphians going to college. "We are pleased to be able to contribute to the City’s education goals and play an active role,pendants," said Rita J. Toliver-Roberts, Ed.D., Peirce Dean of Students. "Peirce is committed to help more individuals go back to school,tiffany, earn their degree and build a successful future. Our partnership with the City makes the opportunity that much more feasible."

As part of its commitment to the City’s education initiative, Peirce recently introduced its City of Philadelphia Scholarship program. Peirce will award two scholarships for full tuition and fees each year to a City of Philadelphia employee and a City resident. The recipients of the 2010 scholarships are Phyllis Chase and Gregory Harris, who both plan on majoring in Business Administration.

In February, Peirce also joined Philadelphia Mayor Nutter and other City government leaders at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the official opening of the PhillyGoes2College offices in City Hall. Peirce donated and installed computer equipment and provided technical support to the PG2C team to implement the initiative, which helps Philadelphians understand and navigate the college application process.

About Peirce College

Peirce College offers bachelor’s and associate degree programs in Business Administration, Information Technology and Paralegal Studies. Peirce College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104 (phone: 267-284-5000). The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs accredits the College’s business program and the Paralegal Studies program is approved by the American Bar Association.

For more information about Peirce College, call 888.GO.PEIRCE, or visit www.peirce.edu.

Visit Peirce’s blog, Peirce Connections, at http://blog.peirce.edu.

Become a fan of Peirce on Facebook.

Follow @PeirceCollege on Twitter.

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections,Atlas charm bracelet, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

   DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before October 22, 2010.

   ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Diana Hynek, Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at dHynek@doc.gov).

   FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should be directed to Kevin Werner, (801) 524-5130 or kevin.werner@noaa.gov.

   SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a proposed new information collection.

   As part of the NOAA mission: "To understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment and conserve and manage coastal and marine resources to meet our Nation’s economic,bangles, social,bracelets, and environmental needs", the proposed survey will be part of a stakeholder engagement effort to more clearly define what those needs are. The proposed survey will be used to engage with and assess the science and forecasting needs of stakeholders in the water resources sector. The water resources sector includes agencies and companies operating reservoirs, and private and public interests in regulating rivers. The survey is designed to (1) assess the accessibility and utility of water and climate information and data, (2) assess participants’ perceptions and knowledge about water and climate, and (3) evaluate user needs and the gaps in existing water and climate information. Participation in the survey will be entirely voluntary and will usually be in conjunction with workshops related to water resources and/or climate. This information collection will be conducted by the National Weather Service.

II. Method of Collection

   Respondents will have a choice of either electronic or paper forms. Methods of submittal include electronic forms, and mail and facsimile transmission of paper forms.

III. Data

   OMB Control Number: None.

   Form Number: None.

   Type of Review: Regular submission (new collection).

   Affected Public: Non-profit institutions; State, local,money clips, or tribal government; business or other for-profit organizations; Federal Government.

   Estimated Number of Respondents: 90.

   Estimated Time Per Response: 30 minutes.

   Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 45.

   Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $100 in recordkeeping/reporting costs.

IV. Request for Comments

   Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden (including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

   Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

   Dated: August 18, 2010.

Gwellnar Banks,

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.

DSS Research, the leader in market research for the health insurance industry,money clips, developed a proprietary set of metrics that gauge the level of engagement in health care on the part of the consumer. This quarter we added extra questions to further test the relationship between different literacy measures and the level of engagement amongst commercial and Medicare populations and the uninsured (see also <http://www.newsrx.com/library/topics/DSS-Research.html> DSS Research).

Consumer engagement is at the forefront of many initiatives to get individuals to take responsibility for their care and health literacy is a critical component of getting these consumers engaged. Even well-educated individuals lack confidence when it comes to understanding medical information and filling out medical forms. Those who are able to follow detailed directions and correctly distill information found on nutrition labels still admit seeking help or lacking confidence when it comes to medical information.

Literacy is highly correlated with demographic characteristics such as education, income and ethnicity, as well as, attitudes about health care and current health status. However, engagement is more correlated with medical claims,tiffany, health care knowledge and healthy behaviors than is literacy alone. Consumer engagement is more correlated with measures of confidence in reading and understanding health related information than it is with more typical literacy measures related to reported problems or difficulties using health information and materials. Household income is a better predictor of self-reported problems with health information and level of confidence in filling out medical forms than is level of education. Hispanics are much more likely than other ethnic groups to report problems with health information,necklaces, but are comparable to other ethnic groups regarding their level of confidence in filling our medical forms and the frequency with which they need someone to help them read instructions or other written materials

There is a difference between having the ability to read and understand complex instructions and having confidence that you have correctly filled out a medical form or correctly interpreted medical instructions. Having the skills to read labels,pendants, interpret charts and make mathematical calculations does not ensure that an individual is capable and comfortable interpreting verbal and written communications from health care providers and health insurance organizations. Only the most engaged consumers exhibit the levels of health literacy and health care knowledge necessary to navigate the complex health care system and follow all the recommended healthy behaviors. Health literacy is a necessary building block, but not sufficient in itself to ensure consumer engagement. Confidence level and household income appear to be better estimators of an individual’s likelihood of successfully obtaining needed medical care than more typical measures of literacy and education level.

Girls’ night out in Denver just got a whole lot more exciting thanks to the JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek hotel and spa packages in Denver, CO. Ladies will delight in the luxurious accommodations and non-stop pampering they’ll get with the Girlfriend Getaway – Ladies’ Night Out Package which includes:

Deluxe accommodations

Rates from $280 double occupancy (a 25% savings)

Two $50 gift cards to the Spa at Cherry Creek for two girlfriends

Two complimentary drinks or appetizers in Second Home Bar

Two complimentary breakfasts in Second Home Restaurant

One welcome amenity of decadent European-style chocolates (one per room)

Valid Friday through Sunday based on availability

When not getting spoiled at the spa, the ladies can explore the picturesque neighborhood that this Cherry Creek hotel is nestled in. With the mountains providing a breathtaking backdrop, the Cherry Creek area boasts 300 unique shops and restaurants, and is just minutes from downtown Denver.

There’s no better reason to grab the girls and indulge in an unforgettable girlfriend getaway at the elegant and chic JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek.

About JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek

Encounter a Denver hotel unlike any other at the JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek and discover an exceptional location, personalized service, and distinguished comforts. Nestled in the picturesque Cherry Creek neighborhood, this AAA, Four-Diamond luxury hotel provides easy access to over 300 unique shops, restaurants and is within minutes of the cultural and sporting venues in downtown Denver. Revitalize body and mind in each of the 196 spacious Denver luxury hotel rooms, many offering stunning mountain and downtown views. Guest room amenities include complimentary wired and wireless internet, 37" high-definition TV, DVD/CD player,bracelets, and exquisite marble and granite bathrooms with separate glass shower. Indulge the senses at Second Home Kitchen + Bar,Charm bracelet, an award-winning restaurant featuring artisan dishes served amidst the ambiance of an outdoor stone fire pit. From the stunning grand staircase to the complimentary 24-hour fitness center and Spa,money clips, the JW Marriott Hotel in Denver epitomizes refined elegance.

For more information or to make a reservation, call 303-316-2700,Charm pendant, or visit http://marriott.com/denjw.

SOURCE JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek

The Greenwood volleyball team got the season-opening win it was looking for Tuesday night, even if it wasn’t as crisp as it might have liked.

The Lady Gators (1-0) trailed in both sets but rallied to win 2-0 (25-19, 25-14) over Region 4 contender Logan County in the season opening match for both teams.

"Well, we played with some nerves," said GHS coach Holly Whittinghill, whose program honored several former players from the past decade prior to the match. "We had a few girls out there that this is their first time on a varsity court. So, I think overall we did pretty good."

Greenwood,cuff Links, ranked 12th in the Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association preseason poll, used a balanced attack against an LCHS squad (0-1) that faded late after hanging around early.

Five different Lady Gators recorded kills while setter Shelby Worthington dished out 12 assists.

"Yes, it’s a lot better," Worthington said of her arsenal of weapons. "(Samantha) Mosher was strong last year,bracelets, but offseason club really helped her out, she’s gotten a lot better — it’s nice."

With junior star Courtney Smith on one side and the sophomore Mosher on the other,money clips, GHS hasn’t quite mastered its plan of attack just yet, but was good enough on day one.

Greenwood reeled off five straight points to start the match — including two Smith kills from Worthington and two Mosher aces — before LC was forced to call timeout.

The stoppage settled the Lady Cougars down and they slowly climbed back even at 11-all on a Mosher attack error. The Lady Cougars then took leads of 13-12 and 14-13 on two GHS violations, but Smith and Julia Reed blocked a Taylor Oates kill to regain the advantage at 15-14.

The Gators built an 18-15 lead from there, only to see LCHS come back and tie it at 18 before a Smith kill from Worthington gave GHS the lead for good. Natalie Geis came off the bench and curved an untouched ace down the near sideline to make it 20-18 and Kelsey Srygler finished off the set with an ace for a 25-19 win.

In the second set, Logan again rallied from an early hole to take a small lead. Jennifer Bryant placed a tip to cut the deficit to 5-4 and a soft punch shot from Jessica Anderson that rolled along the net and dropped made it 5-5.

Hannah Hudnall followed that with an ace and Bryant put home a kill from a Kate Brooks set to make it 7-5. But that’s where the LCHS momentum would end.

Greenwood went on a 7-0 run from there, getting kills from Smith and Hannah Duckett, a Worthington push shot and a Geis ace.

The Lady Cougars never recovered, getting as close as four the rest of the way as GHS won its fifth straight match and 10th straight set over LCHS since losing the 2008 region title game.

"Well, we didn’t play as good as we wanted," Worthington laughed. "We had some first-game jitters, but we got that out of the way I think."

The Lady Gators will take part in the Kentucky Play Day on Saturday, facing three of the state’s top teams in Presentation,Charm pendant, Henry Clay and Owensboro Catholic. Logan County travels to the Summer Slam at Apollo on Friday.

On-Sale Information

Tickets may be purchased in person at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace Box Office, by calling 1-800-745-3000 or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com, keyword "Caesars Palace". (All Ticketmaster orders may be subject to additional service charges and fees).

About Luis Miguel

Luis Miguel’s career began in 1982 when he recorded his first album at the age of 12. Since then his career has catapulted to the top of the Latin Music charts and to International fame establishing Luis Miguel as one of the most successful Latin American artists in history. Luis Miguel set world records that go unrivaled in Latin Music including being the first to have a Spanish-language album (Romances, 1997) debut in the top positions of the Billboard Top 200. Over the span of his successful 27 year career, Luis Miguel has broken numerous box-office records, has received an extensive number of awards and honors and has sold over 60 million albums worldwide.

About Caesars Palace

Caesars Palace is the world’s best known resort-casino, celebrating the glory that was Greece and the grandeur that was Rome, in an 85-acre destination location that sets the standard for entertainment, dining and luxury. Reigning at the heart of the Las Vegas Strip, Caesars Palace ranks among the world’s top luxury resorts known for their originality and beauty and features 3,tiffany,300 hotel guest rooms and suites, 23 diverse restaurants and cafes, five-acre Garden of the Gods pools and gardens, 50,000 square foot Qua Baths & Spa and 300,000 square feet of premium meeting and convention space. The 4,money clips,300-seat Colosseum sits just steps from celebrity chef restaurants and the acclaimed Forum Shops at Caesars and spotlights world class entertainers such as Jerry Seinfeld and Cher. Journalists may access media materials and request high-resolution images at media.harrahs.com. Find Caesars Palace on Facebook at www.facebook.com/caesarspalace and follow www.twitter.com/caesarspalace (@caesarspalace).

About AEG Live

AEG Live, the live-entertainment division of Los Angeles-based AEG, is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performance. AEG Live is comprised of touring, festival,pendants, exhibition, broadcast, merchandise and special event divisions, fifteen regional offices, and thirty state-of-the-art venues. The company is currently producing tours and productions including Cher at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Supernatural Santana: A Trip Through the Hits at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Barry Manilow at Paris Las Vegas and Celine Dion who will return to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in March 2011. The concert tour roster includes artists such as Taylor Swift, The Black Eyed Peas,necklaces, Bon Jovi, Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, Justin Bieber Leonard Cohen, Miley Cyrus, Kelly Clarkson, Wisin & Yandel, Britney Spears, Kenny Chesney, P!nk, Paul McCartney and KISS. AEG Live is the largest producer of music festivals in North America from the critically acclaimed Coachella Music & Arts Festival to Stagecoach and New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. For more information, go to www.aeglive.com/.

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Music aficionados generally associate handbell choirs with tiffany jewellery churches and sacred music, and that’s certainly a part of The Raleigh Ringers’ repertoire. In concert Saturday at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall they’ll play 75 percent holiday music, a classical piece and some original music.

But they’ll also ring one rock song: “Don’t Stop Believing,” a Journey song re-popularized in recent years by the TV shows “The Sopranos” and “Glee.”

“As something experimental we tried ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and it worked and people liked it,” said director David Harris. “Now every year we take a classic rock piece and play it on this instrument.”

The instrument is made up of dozens of hand-held bells with the choir ringing as many as 90 bells in the average 7-octave piece of music.

The Raleigh Ringers

Where: Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall.

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

Tickets: $10-$15 at www.johndaniel.com/rr or 1-800-514-3849. Advance cufflinks sales only; no service charge when ordering online.

“What sets us apart and makes us unique is we have people playing one instrument,” said Harris, whose full-time job is in software development. “If you think of a set of bells as an instrument, like a piano keyboard, we have people responsible for a few notes of that instrument. Although there are solo ringers who [play] things quickly off the table, you cannot really play a melody without involving many people playing that music line. We have to work together to make that melody and that presents challenges.”

Among them: Listening to one another and every ringer hitting the same, correct dynamics (soft, loud, crescendos) as written in the music.

“We have to bring the group together and have a lot of teamwork,” Harris said.

A native of Lockhaven and a 1982 graduate of Penn State where he majored in computer science and minored in music, Harris first brought The Raleigh Ringers to Pittsburgh in 2007 at the behest of college friend Dan Volitich, president and co-founder of John Daniel Associates, a local IT company that’s also presenting Saturday’s concert.

Harris formed the group in 1990 after ringing in a church choir that attempted more money clips secular music.

“This instrument can do more than enhance worship kind of situations, and that’s where it kicked off into having a community-based group,” he said.

Each year all 17 members of the handbell choir must re-audition for the group and sometimes people who have been in the choir do get bumped.

“It’s the least fun part of my job,” Harris said. “Because [handbells are] mainly played in churches, people say, ‘How cruel,’ but take other professional music outlets like orchestras and this is how it works. You have to do your best and beat out the other guy.”

Harris said some members who win a spot pick up their lives and move to Raleigh, N.C., to pendants become part of the choir. The group rehearses for three-and-a-half hours every Thursday and begins practicing Christmas music in August.

Harris said in the beginning, before their two PBS specials, The Raleigh Ringers mostly drew other handbell ringers, but in more recent years the group has generated interest among general audiences.

“We have our home Christmas concerts and we now have close to 4,000 people who come,” he said. “Our goal is to be more accepted on the concert stages where you would have a choral group or an orchestra, a band or other more common groups.”