Alexandria, Va., Oct. 24, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As Major League Baseball fans all over the country and across the world celebrated the start of the 2013 World Series last night, the first of two winners of the Responsibility Has Its Rewards™ (RHIR) sweepstakes got to be a part of the action thanks to Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM) Coalition and Hillard Heintze, one of the leading private strategic security advisory and management companies in the United States.
Nancy Sullivan and Christine Keene were selected as the grand prize winners of the sweepstakes, and their eligibility was confirmed by Hillard Heintze. Nancy Sullivan, a Red Sox fan from Needham, MA attended Game One at Fenway Park in Boston, and Christine Keene, a Cardinals fan from Wentzville, MO will attend Game Three at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. They were randomly chosen from over 511,000 fans all over the United States and Canada who pledged to be designated drivers, ensuring a safe ride home for their friends and family.
For the tenth consecutive season, Major League Baseball (MLB) and Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM) Coalition have joined together to make more fans aware of the designated driver programs offered at all MLB ballparks. The designated driver programs and the "Responsibility Has Its Rewards" sweepstakes promote traffic safety by encouraging responsible drinking and positive fan behavior.
"This promotion is an opportunity for MLB to show support for the Clubs' efforts in coordination with the concessionaires, the brewers and the local beer wholesalers to encourage responsible fan behavior," said Jill Pepper, executive director of TEAM Coalition. "For fans, it's a great reminder that responsibility really does have its rewards."
As the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals Designated Drivers for the Season, each sweepstakes winner receives two tickets to a World Series® Game. They will be recognized on the video scoreboards and they will meet MLB and Club officials.
"As we have been for many years," Arnette Heintze, CEO of Hillard Heintze said, "we are proud to be partnering with TEAM Coalition in keeping fans and their families - and other people on our roads safe." Hillard Heintze conducts the background checks for the winners using the technology and services of S2Verify, LLC, one of the fastest growing companies in the employee screening market and the leading screening industry process innovator.
About TEAM Coalition
TEAM Coalition is an alliance of professional and collegiate sports, entertainment facilities, concessionaries, stadium service providers, the beer industry, distillers, broadcasters, traffic safety experts and others working together to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior at sports and entertainment facilities. TEAM Coalition members and supporters include Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, National Collegiate Athletic Association, ARAMARK, Delaware North Companies - Sportservice, Ovations Food Services, Beer Institute, National Beer Wholesalers Association, Anheuser-Busch Companies, MillerCoors, Live Nation, National Association of Broadcasters, Contemporary Services Corporation, Elite, International Association of Venue Managers, Stadium Managers Association and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
For more information, go to www.TEAMCoalition.org , www.RHIR.org or www.FansDontLetFansDriveDrunk.org .
About Hillard Heintze
Hillard Heintze provides the strategic thought leadership, trusted counsel and end-to-end services that help leading public and private corporations as well as government agencies and major public service organizations advance best-in-class security strategies and investigations to protect and preserve the safety of their people, property, performance and reputation. For the last three years, Hillard Heintze has been recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of America's fastest-growing private companies - and ranked on the annual Inc. 500/5000 list as No. 242 in 2009, No. 583 in 2010, and No. 764 in 2011. The company has also been acknowledged by the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) as #6 on its 2011 list of the 100 fastest-growing inner city firms in the United States.
For more information, go to www.hillardheintze.com .
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Jill Pepper, TEAM Coalition: 703-647-7430,
