Biloxi communications efforts recognized

The City of Biloxi has received 11 statewide awards for its efforts in keeping the public informed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The awards were presented during the Public Relations Association of Mississippi state conference Friday in Meridian. PRAM is a 475-member statewide association of public relations professionals.

Biloxi received six Awards of Excellence and five Certificates of Achievement during the conference.

“This is unprecedented,” Mayor A.J. Holloway said, “but it’s like we said in the immediate aftermath of the storm: We were going to meet this unprecedented disaster with an unprecedented response. These awards recognize not only the job we’re doing, but the inspirational story we have to tell, which is a credit to the people of Biloxi.”

The city’s six Awards of Excellence were for the Katrina & Biloxi section of the city web site, the Storm Recovery News e-mail campaign, the overall city web site, the one-year anniversary observance of Hurricane Katrina, and for two advertisements, “Help Protect our Waterways,” which promoted the city’s storm-water management plan, and “We’re Reviving the Renaissance,” an advertisement about the city’s long-term recovery efforts.

The five Certificates of Achievement recognized the “Katrina & Biloxi” photo album and DVD effort, the “State of the City: One Year Later” report and direct mail piece, and advertisements for the city web site, employee recruitment and one-year anniversary ceremony.