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Funworld November 2011
PEOPLECONGRATULATIONS: Michael Withers, vice president of ride engineering at Walt Disney Imagineering, has received the ASTM International Award of Merit and the title of “fellow” from ASTM Committee F24 on Amusement Rides and Devices. The Award of Merit is the highest organizational recognition for individual contributions to ASTM standards activities. As a member of ASTM International since 2000, Withers was honored for outstanding leadership in the development of ASTM safety standards for the global amusement industry and for his efforts in promoting the worldwide adoption of Committee F24 standards. He is vice chairman of Subcommittee F24.24 on Design and Manufacture. PRODUCTS
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TIME TO SAY GOODBYE: After 30 years of service to The Walt Disney Company, Dave Herbst, print managing editor for the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, announced his retirement effective Oct. 31, 2011. Herbst has been an invaluable source of information about Walt Disney World, having built up remarkable knowledge of everything Disney over the past three decades. After spending several years as a newspaper sports writer and editor in Pittsburgh, Herbst joined Walt Disney World in 1981 and served 14 years as a publicist for the resort. He then became manager of sports information for the complex before assuming his present post in 1998. The Funworld editorial staff extends its warmest thanks to Dave for his impeccable service to the magazine over the past several years. He will be missed.
MOVING UP: Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana, named Kris Kamp, the great-grandson of park founder Louis J. Koch, as director of admissions and cash control at the park. The University of Southern Indiana graduate was employed seasonally at Holiday World for more than 10 years before spending three years in accounting at SeaWorld Orlando. Kamp replaces Eric Snow, who has assumed the newly created position of director of special events and projects. Another new position at the park, director of accounting and finance, has been filled by Alison Montee, who worked in accounting at Nike headquarters in Oregon and at Kimball International in Indiana. 
NEW LEADER OF THE PACK: The Oregon Zoo Foundation named Jani Iverson its new director. Iverson is a 15-year veteran of leading and executing programs for nonprofits as a volunteer, staff member, executive, and board member. She holds a bachelor’s degree in speech communications from the University of Washington in Seattle and a master’s degree in organizational development from Central Washington University. Iverson joins the organization as it prepares to create and execute a major development plan in support of the zoo’s master plan over the next 20 years. 
PRIZES REPLACE TICKETS: LAI Games has rolled out a new prize capsule dispensing version of its Mega Stacker for locations without ticket redemption. The company says it’s responding to strong demand from operators who want the revenue earning power of the Mega Stacker, but who don’t have a redemption counter. Unlike the game’s original version, which features major prizes delivered from the cabinet and tickets delivered for minor prizes, the new version replaces the tickets with prize capsules of either two inches or three inches in size. 
LET THERE BE EFFICIENT LIGHT: Lamar Lighting introduced a new line of one-inch-deep high-efficiency LED Undercabinet Luminaires. They utilize high-quality Nichia LEDs, which have a rated life of 50,000 hours. The units can be either plugged in or direct wired, and up to 32 fixtures can be linked together with connector cords or double- ended connectors for continuous mounting. Available in 12-inch, 18-inch, and 24-inch sizes, each fixture has a rocker switch, power cord, connector cord, and die-cast coupler.