JCK Industry Fund Names Grant Winners

-- JCK-Jewelers Circular Keystone, 1/31/2008 7:32:00 AM

JCK Events and JCK magazine have announced the winners of grant monies from the annual JCK Jewelry Industry Fund. A total of $325,312 was awarded to five organizations.

The 2008 Industry Fund Winners and their awards are:

* The Jewelers’ Security Alliance was awarded $75,000 for training seminars for law enforcement.

* The American Gem Society was awarded $75,000 to support the educational program at the AGS International Conclave 2008.

* Jewelers Vigilance Committee was awarded $125,000 for an Industry Protection Program. 

* The Women’s Jewelry Association was awarded $24,000 for their Women in the Know Conference.

* The Diamond Development Initiative was given $26,312 to develop programs to help alluvial diamond diggers in Africa.

Now in its tenth year, the fund was established to enhance the image of the jewelry industry and to foster development and research of programs that would benefit the industry. Since 1998, more than $4.9 million has been awarded in grants from the Industry Fund.

Each year, the Fund looks to award grants to exemplify one or more of the main objectives of the program:

* To improve the image of the jewelry industry in the eyes of the consumer;

* To aid jewelry industry organizations in addressing serious problems faced within the industry; and/or

* To assist internal organizations and associations in developing training materials. 

"We're proud of the impact these grants have made over the years, and we're proud to be unique by giving on such a significant scale this year to these five organizations," said Mark Smelzer, publisher of the JCK Publishing Group

“We are thrilled to award grants to these wonderful industry organizations who needed the funding to properly implement the terrific programs they have developed,” added Dave Bonaparte, Group vice president for JCK Events.