For More Information Contact:
Tisha Spreng
Travel Talk Radio
760 753 1114
tisha@traveltalkradio.com
For Immediate Release
Homeland
Education Resource Organization, LLC (HERO)
Hosts "Gambling with Security: Hospitality and Gaming Face High
Stakes" Flagship Conference will be held June 17 & 18
at the Las Vegas Convention Center
Las Vegas–May
27, 2003– The Homeland Education Resource Organization, (HERO), a
limited liability company with offices in Washington, D.C., and
Manhattan, will host a conference entitled "Gambling with
Security: Hospitality and Gaming Face High Stakes" on June 17
& 18 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. HERO’s flagship
conference, aimed at top-level executives from casinos and hotels as
well as the insurance and security sectors, will address the pertinent
security issues facing the gaming industry.
With the
support of the Department of Homeland Security and the Risk and
Insurance Management Society, Inc. (RIMS), HERO seeks to establish a
major public-private alliance to increase the security of the gaming
industry. HERO will provide the platform for prominent experts in many
fields including high-ranking government officials, seasoned security
professionals, terrorist profilers, leading architects, and insurance
experts, who will offer concrete advice on disaster preparedness and
managing the risk of terrorism.
"HERO
believes that government, insurers, risk management and security
professionals must work hand-in-hand to educate American businesses
about the threat of terrorism and the preventative measures that will
enhance safety, while helping their bottom line," said Marcus
Cohen, HERO’s managing director.
The
organization, founded by two young attorneys, will assemble experts from
disparate backgrounds in one forum to educate the gaming industry about
the risks of terrorism, crucial security measures and the need for
adequate terrorism insurance coverage. HERO’s ultimate goal is to help
the gaming industry create an advisory board and a list of "Best
Practices" to help combat the terrorist threat.
The
Department of Homeland Security is sending Alfonso Martinez-Fonts, Jr.,
Special Assistant to Secretary Tom Ridge for the Private Sector, to
discuss ways the Department can work with the gaming industry to help
increase security. The Federal Government is also sending the Treasury
Department’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Financial
Institutions Policy, Greg Zerzan, to discuss Treasury's role in the
implementation of the newly enacted Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of
2002. The purpose of the Act is to provide a transitional, transparent
system of shared public and private compensation for insured losses
resulting from acts of terrorism.
"The
President's National Strategy for Homeland Security clearly states that
protecting our country is a national effort, not just a federal effort.
What we mean by National is federal, state and local governments, and
private sector entities working together. We can provide the
information, intelligence, and resources, but ultimately you know the
intricacies of your business better than anyone," said U.S.
Department of Homeland Security's Martinez-Fonts Jr., on how the Private
Sector should take a more proactive role in homeland security. "It
is your duty to take many things, such as vulnerability assessments,
strategic communications, conducting drills and war games, and
allocating money, to better secure your personnel and your assets.
Better security equals better business."
In addition
to key officials from the highest echelons of government, HERO’s
flagship conference has scheduled a thorough list of experts to speak,
including:
•
Peter E. Tarlow, Ph.D, Founder and President of Tourism & More
Inc. (T&M), Head Advisor on tourism security for the Bureau of
Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior, Author of Event
Risk Management and Safety
•
Steve Emerson, Director of the Investigative Project, Author of American
Jihad: The Terrorists Living Among Us (Special Invited Guest
Speaker)
•
Donald T. Ahl, CPP, Director of Safety & Security, Las Vegas
Convention and Visitors Authority
• Derk
Boss, Director of Surveillance for Stratosphere and Arizona Charlie’s
East and West, Chairman of Gaming and Wagering Protection Council
for the American Society of Industrial Security (ASIS)
•
Patrice Svendsen, Risk Manager, Harrah’s Las Vegas, and Risk
Insurance Management Society (RIMS) Nevada Chapter President
(Moderator)
• David
Howyrla, Vice President of Architecture, Marnell Corrao Associates
The U.S.
Secret Service, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Nevada’s
Homeland Security Bureau, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, McCarran
International Airport, Los Alamos Federal Laboratories, Hoover Dam, and
the Red Cross will also be represented at the event.
The
"Gambling with Security: Hospitality and Gaming Face High
Stakes" conference is the first in a series of
conferences HERO is organizing that will focus on a wide variety of
business sectors, tailoring each conference to the specific security
requirements of each individual industry.
Homeland
Education Resource Organization, LLC, has office locations in New York
and Washington D.C. at: 225 West 86th Street, Suite PHU, NY,
NY, 10024: and 1954 Columbia Road, NW, Suite 702, Washington D.C.,
20009. HERO can be reached via phone at 917-475-7787 in NY or via the
Internet at www.homelandeducation.org.
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