FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 12, 2005 Omaha, Nebraska Omaha, NE (8/12) – The City of Omaha is experiencing a rare occurrence in a short 10-day period. Three major conferences are underway now until August 20th. “Two of the conferences being held in Omaha can be directly attributed to the help we receive from our local Hometown Heroes,” says Dana Markel, GOCVB Executive Director. “Both the AMCIS and Paralyzed Veterans of America conferences came to Omaha because local people made the time and effort to promote Omaha as a great place to visit and hold meetings to their colleagues across the country. Our current ‘Know the O!’ and ‘Hometown Heroes’ concepts have been put in place to bring about these kinds of results. The best people to promote Omaha are the people who work and live here everyday. They are the perfect ambassadors.” Such internal promotion can have a positive impact economically on the city. The three conferences are estimated to bring in nearly $3 million to the local economy. The conferences in Omaha from August 11th – 20th include: Americas Conference of Information Systems (AMCIS) 2005 August 11th – 14th This is the largest gathering of information systems academics and researchers from around the world. Expected attendance is approximately 1,000 guests. Meeting Locations: Qwest Center and Hilton Paralyzed Veterans of America Annual Convention August 15th – 20th The Paralyzed Veterans of America is a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the needs of its members – all of whom have paralysis caused by spinal cord injury or disease and all of whom are veterans. Expected attendance is approximately 250 guests. Meeting Location: Embassy Suites American Coalition of Ethanol -18th Annual Conference August 16th – 18th The American Coalition for Ethanol is a nationwide, non-profit association that promotes the increased production and use of ethanol. Expected attendance is approximately 1,300. Meeting locations: Qwest Center and Hilton