ASI Competes for New Guinness World Record in Twisting

Benefited Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International

ORLANDO, Fla., Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Monday, nearly 2,000 people went round and round and up and down dancing the twist in a Guinness World Record-breaking attempt that benefited the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International.

The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) hosted the world's biggest dance party at its national trade show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Chart-topper Joey Dee led the crowd in twisting to his signature song, "Peppermint Twist."

Guinness World Records officials will audit the event and determine within two weeks if the record was broken. The Peppermint Twist-off needs to break the previous world record of 1,692 people dancing.

Sydney and Mackenzie Cohn, Philadelphia sisters who were diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at age 7, co-chaired the twist-off. Over the past four years the girls have raised over a million dollars for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International. Monday, their efforts raised thousands more.

"We're so happy so many people turned out to dance with us and to learn about the importance of research into our disease," said Sydney Cohn, age 11. "We had so much fun," said Mackenzie Cohn, age 9. "The twist is really cool!"

"I thought I'd break a leg but I got out there and danced the twist – something I haven't done since the '60s," said ASI President and Chief Executive Officer Timothy M. Andrews. "It's a great feeling doing something that's so much fun – and means so much. ASI is delighted to help raise money toward such an important cause. Like the song says, we went bop shoo-op, a bop bop shoo-op, round and round and up and down."

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's immune system attacks and destroys certain cells in the pancreas, an organ about the size of a hand that is located behind the lower part of the stomach. People with type 1 diabetes must take insulin in order to stay alive. Type 1 diabetes is generally diagnosed in children, teenagers or young adults. Scientists do not yet know exactly what causes the disease. While progress toward finding a cure has been substantial, there is still no cure for diabetes. As many as 3 million Americans may have the disease and each year, more than 15,000 children and 15,000 adults – approximately 80 people per day – are diagnosed in the U.S.

About ASI
The Advertising Specialty Institute is the largest education, media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, with a membership of over 26,000 distributor firms (sellers) and supplier firms (manufacturers) of advertising specialties. Supplier firms use ASI print and electronic resources to market products to over 22,000 ASI distributor firms.  Distributor firms use ASI print and electronic resources, which contain nearly every product in the industry from more than 3,500 reputable suppliers, to locate supplier firms and to market services to buyers. ASI provides catalogs, information directories, newsletters, magazines, websites and databases, and offers e-commerce, marketing and selling tools. Visit ASI and The ASI Show at asishow.com, and on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and the CEO's blog.

SOURCE Advertising Specialty Institute