PANDORA Jewelry Announces "PANDORA Hearts of Today" 20 Semi-Finalists

COLUMBIA, Md., Oct. 15, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- PANDORA Jewelry, one of the world's leading jewelry brands, today announced the 20 semi-finalists in its Hearts of Today initiative celebrating the selfless work women do within their communities and around the world to improve the livelihood of women and children. PANDORA received more than 700 nominations for the inaugural PANDORA Hearts of Today program and, through an esteemed panel of judges, narrowed the nominations to 20 semi-finalists. Beginning today, PANDORA Jewelry invites the public to vote for the woman they feel is the most deserving semi-finalist at www.pandoraheartsoftoday.com.

Public voting for PANDORA Hearts of Today closes on Sunday, October 26 at midnight, ET. The eight finalists/honorees, each receiving $25,000 for her cause, will be announced in early November as well as honored at a luncheon in Los Angeles on November 15, 2014.

"PANDORA has always been very committed to charitable efforts such as breast cancer awareness, but through PANDORA Hearts of Today, we are now able to financially support other causes and issues that are equally important to women and also mean a lot to our consumers," explained Andrea Alvey, member of PANDORA A/S Board of Directors. "As part of the jury panel that helped select the 20 semi-finalists, I know it will be hard for the voting public to select who they feel is most deserving because they are all extraordinary women doing amazing work."

To help identify the women with the strongest and most inspiring stories, PANDORA assembled a board of five inspirational women leaders whose individual resumes also boast an impressive list of philanthropic work: human rights advocate, Penny Abeywardena; Emmy Award-winning journalist, Shaun Robinson; philanthropist, June Sarpong; sociologist and author, Dr. Pepper Schwartz; and Andrea Alvey, member of PANDORA A/S Board of Directors. 

"I love the PANDORA brand. It's all about empowering women and helping them to live their best lives," commented Emmy Award-winning journalist, Shaun Robinson. "Being a part of this panel and seeing all the fantastic women who are really changing their communities was just an incredible experience."

Nominations were received in the following categories; health and well-being, community development, and professional and social empowerment. For more information, visit www.pandoraheartsoftoday.com.

The full list of semi-finalists includes:

Adriane Gillis, AG Butterflies, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland
Annette Roque, La Nueva Esperanza, Brooklyn, New York
Ardath Francke, DAYMARK, Incorporated, Charleston, West Virginia
Carol Hardemon, Metro-Dade Track Club, Miami, Florida
Danielle Gletow, One Simple Wish, Trenton, New Jersey
Diane Penza, imPOSSIBLE Dream, Warwick, Rhode Island
Donna Peel, Pro-Bono Network, Springhouse, Pennsylvania
Haley Kilpatrick, Girl Talk, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia
Jennifer Lutes, 4 Paws for Ability, Xenia, Ohio
Jo Ann Young, Out of the Woods, Olympia, Washington
Kandee Lewis, The Positive Results Corporation, Los Angeles, California
Kathleen Higgins, Rainbow House, Chicago, Illinois
Krista Jones, Sparrow's Nest, Hopewell Junction, New York
Lisa Gaeta, Impact Personal Safety, Los Angeles, California
Lisa Yue, Children's Cardiomyopathy Foundation, Tenafly, New Jersey
Lorna Owens, Footprint Foundation, Coral Gables, Florida
Robyn Young, The Relief Boutique, New York, New York
Ruby Bright, Women's Foundation for a Greater Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee
Sydney Lister, SIDES, Weston, Florida
Terri Stagi, Women Giving Back, Sterling, Virginia

About PANDORA:
PANDORA designs, manufactures and markets hand-finished and modern jewelry made from genuine materials at affordable prices. PANDORA jewelry is sold in more than 80 countries on six continents through approximately 10,000 points of sale, including approximately 1,200 Concept stores.

Founded in 1982 and headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, PANDORA employs over 9,000 people worldwide of which 7,000 are located in Gemopolis, Thailand, where the company manufactures its jewelry. PANDORA is publicly listed on the NASDAQ OMX Copenhagen stock exchange in Denmark. In 2013, PANDORA's total revenue was DKK 9.0 billion (approximately EUR 1.2 billion).

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SOURCE PANDORA Jewelry

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http://www.pandoraheartsoftoday.com/

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