Secretary Perdue Names FSA Administrator
(Washington, D.C., May 11, 2018) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today the appointment of Richard Fordyce to serve as Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA). In his role, Fordyce will provide leadership for FSA and its mission to support agricultural production across America through a network of over 2,100 county and 50 state offices.
“As a fourth-generation farmer, Richard brings firsthand knowledge and experience to this role,” Secretary Sonny Perdue said. “I am confident that he will continue to help USDA become the most efficient, effective customer focused agency in the federal government as he leads this customer focused mission area.”
Richard Fordyce most recently served as State Executive Director for FSA in Missouri. Prior to his appointment by the Trump Administration, Fordyce served as the director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture from 2013 to 2017. In 2015, Fordyce was awarded the Missouri Farm Bureau Distinguished Service Award and the Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow Alumnus of the Year. He and his wife, Renee, have two children and grow soybeans, corn and beef cattle on the family farm.
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Judicial Watch: Emails Show FBI Advised Comey to Consult with Mueller’s Office Prior to June 2017 Testimony
Source: Judicial Watch
Judicial Watch today released new emails from the Department of Justice (DOJ) showing that former FBI Director James Comey was advised by FBI officials in May 2017 to consult with Special Counsel Robert Mueller prior to testifying before any congressional committees regarding Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election and his firing as FBI director.
Who: Guide dogs, disability assistance dogs, detection dogs, search & rescue dogs, and other service and working animals, including horses and therapy animals.
What: Members of the media are invited to take photos and/or video as local service and working animals receive free screening eye exams from board certified veterinary ophthalmologists in Salt Lake City. The 11th Annual ACVO/StokesRx National Service Animal Eye Exam Event provides free screening eye exams to thousands of service animals throughout the U.S., as well as Canada and Puerto Rico. Participating veterinary ophthalmologists can also discuss eye health tips for all pets.
When/Where: Exam appointments take place throughout this month with a board certified veterinary ophthalmologist at the below participating clinics:
BluePearl Veterinary Partners Midvale - The entire month of May
Eye Care for Animals (Salt Lake City) - The entire month of May
1021 E. 3300 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84106
Eye Care for Animals (Sunset) - The entire month of May
Why: Service animals selflessly serve the public. As such, the ACVO is hosting the 11th Annual ACVO/StokesRx National Service Animal Eye Exam Event as a thank you for their hard work and dedication. This year, more than 300 (a record number) of board certified veterinary ophthalmologists throughout the world will provide free sight-saving eye exams to thousands of service and working animals. Since the event launched in 2008, ophthalmologists have performed more than 60,000 free eye exam screenings – 7,500 in 2017 alone. To learn more about this event, please visit www.ACVOeyeexam.org.
About the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists®:
The American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists® (ACVO®) is an approved veterinary specialty organization of the American Board of Veterinary Specialties, and is recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association. Its mission is “to advance the quality of veterinary medicine through certification of veterinarians who demonstrate excellence as specialists in veterinary ophthalmology.” To become board certified, a candidate must successfully complete a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, a one-year internship, a three-year ACVO® approved residency and pass a series of credentials and examinations. For more information, please visit www.ACVO.org.
About Stokes Pharmacy:
Stokes Pharmacy is a national, full-service compounding pharmacy specializing in the art and science of the custom formulation of prescription medicines for humans and animals. Leading the way in innovation, Stokes invites veterinarians to prescribe compounded medications online securely, quickly, and accurately via iFill, a cloud-based prescription management system. For more information, visit stokesrx.com.
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Secretary Perdue Names FSA Administrator
(Washington, D.C., May 11, 2018) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today the appointment of Richard Fordyce to serve as Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA). In his role, Fordyce will provide leadership for FSA and its mission to support agricultural production across America through a network of over 2,100 county and 50 state offices.
“As a fourth-generation farmer, Richard brings firsthand knowledge and experience to this role,” Secretary Sonny Perdue said. “I am confident that he will continue to help USDA become the most efficient, effective customer focused agency in the federal government as he leads this customer focused mission area.”
Richard Fordyce most recently served as State Executive Director for FSA in Missouri. Prior to his appointment by the Trump Administration, Fordyce served as the director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture from 2013 to 2017. In 2015, Fordyce was awarded the Missouri Farm Bureau Distinguished Service Award and the Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow Alumnus of the Year. He and his wife, Renee, have two children and grow soybeans, corn and beef cattle on the family farm.
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USDA is an equal opportunity employer, provider and lender.
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May 14, 2018 Minor League Baseball and Satisfi Labs Partner to Enhance Fan Experience Bilingual artificial intelligence solution amplifies league - wide multicultural initiative
ST. PETERSBURG, Florida — Minor League Baseball™ (MiLB™) today announced a new collaboration with Satisfi Labs, a leading artificial intelligence engagement platform, to create a bilingual customer service AI conversation platform for more than 30 MiLB teams. This unique partnership marks the first time a sports league will communicate with its fans in both English and Spanish by leveraging Satisfi Labs’ AI capabilities.
This new product solution will amplify MiLB’s national multicultural initiative “Es Divertido Ser Un Fan®” (It’s Fun to Be a Fan®”) and its new “Copa de la Diversión™” (“Fun Cup™”) season-long event series specifically designed to embrace the culture and values that resonate most with participating teams’ local U.S. Hispanic/Latino communities. The interface will initially be made available to the participating “Copa” teams to support their respective fan engagement efforts.
The AI platform will operate within individual teams’ Facebook Messenger pages and serve to answer fans’ questions pertaining to aspects of the gameday experience such as ticketing, parking, and other common inquiries surrounding the venue, game, and teams, while providing unique answers based on the users’ locations. The platform’s bilingual capability allows each team to effectively connect and engage with their fans in the language of their choice to provide the right information, at the right place, in real-time.
“Our new partnership with Satisfi Labs reinforces our tech-infused strategy specifically designed to improve the fan experience any time they engage with MiLB,” said David Wright, Minor League Baseball Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer. “This cutting-edge technology will better our ability to understand the fan journey by providing a platform for our teams to engage a more diverse audience and turn data into intelligent action.”
“We’ve developed several unique platforms for brands across entertainment, retail, and sports, but this is the first tool we’ve created that can communicate as efficiently in Spanish as in English. We’re excited to expand our offerings in AI conversation platforms to the Hispanic community and support one of the largest sports leagues in the U.S. in its effort to better connect with all of its fans,” said Don White, CEO and Co-Founder of Satisfi Labs.
MiLB and Satisfi Labs plan to roll out an expanded AI conversation platform and league-wide fan engagement tool for the 2019 season.
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About Minor League Baseball Minor League Baseball, headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, is the governing body for all professional baseball teams in the United States, Canada and the Dominican Republic that are affiliated with Major League Baseball® clubs through their farm systems. Fans are coming out in unprecedented numbers to this one-of-a-kind experience that can only be found at Minor League Baseball ballparks. In 2017, Minor League Baseball attracted 41.8 million fans to its ballparks to see the future stars of the sport hone their skills. From the electricity in the stands to the excitement on the field, Minor League Baseball has provided affordable family-friendly entertainment to people of all ages since its founding in 1901. For more information visit MiLB.com.
Follow Minor League Baseball on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About Satisfi Labs Satisfi Labs is an intelligent engagement platform that combines the speed and accuracy of artificial intelligence with the ease of real conversation. Satisfi Labs offers a unique location-based solution which enhances the in and out of venue & retail experience by customers 24/7, on any device and platform. More information can be found at https://www.satis.fi.
