HARDYSTON, N.J., Sept. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- THE CANNATA REPORT announced a total of nearly $1.4 million raised for charity since 1997.  Frank G. Cannata, founder, president and editor-in-chief of THE CANNATA REPORT, acknowledges generous Business Technology Industry clients and colleagues as responsible.

THE CANNATA REPORT 29th Annual Awards and Charities Dinner raised $172,000 for new beneficiary St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago at press time. The event was hosted last Thursday, September 18, at Meadow Wood Manor in Randolph, N.J. by father-son-wife team Frank G. Cannata; CJ Cannata, SVP, brand strategy and development; and Carol C. Cannata; SVP, client and creative services. $86,000 was pledged by a guest list of 181 industry heavyweights. St. Ignatius, which matched that amount, already provides $3.5 million in aid annually.

"We are honored to have Saint Ignatius College Prep as our beneficiary this year.  The $172,000 we have raised will go far towards helping those unable to pay for all or part of the cost of attendance.  When you consider that for a student, a gift of $250 covers lunches, $1,000 covers books, $2,500 fills the gap between tuition and the true cost to educate and a gift of $10,000 helps cover technology upgrades in classrooms," Frank G. Cannata said.  "Of the 1,400 students who attend the school, 360 receive financial aid as the tuition is $15,300." 

Father Michael Caruso, SJ, president of St. Ignatius College Prep, said, "On behalf the of the 1,400 students and our entire school community, I wish to express our profound gratitude to Frank, Carol, CJ and all the good people who contributed to this most generous gift.  Frank learned about our nearly 150 year old Jesuit High School through his good friend and our alumnus, Tony Fornelli, [1951].  Tony has distinguished himself as an outstanding lawyer, highly sought mentor, and leader in the civic community.  He is a family man who embodies all the best in our school tradition, which builds upon faith, family, and friends.  It costs a lot of money to run a great private school and one-third of our families depend upon scholarships.  Our school is making a difference in educating 'Men and Women for Others.'  I am grateful to the Cannatas and their many friends for supporting this great educational project.  I assure all of you of our good prayers!"

THE CANNATA REPORT's annual event has raised the nearly $1.4 million for a range of charities including the V Foundation for Cancer Research; the Glide Foundation for the homeless, Child Help USA for battered women and children and the 9/11 charity, Windows of Hope. The dinner also raised $150,000 for an endowed scholarship at Cal Tech and established a cancer research grant with Hackensack University Medical Center.

The annual event itself recognizes the best products from Business Technology Industry manufacturers. THE CANNATA REPORT's Annual Dealer Survey — now also its 29th year — determines the winners.

"The survey ranks the best products and solutions among manufacturers leading the independent dealer's transition to a services orientation," said CJ Cannata, SVP, brand strategy and development, THE CANNATA REPORT, "and it does much more. When Frank launched the survey in 1985, he gave the dealer community a voice. The survey and resulting awards is effectively a social media concept nearly 25 years ahead of its time."

2014's winners are: Ricoh Company, Ltd. for "MFP Manufacturer of the Year," Lexmark International, Inc. for "Printer Manufacturer of the Year," Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc. for "Best-in-Class Manufacturer of the Year," Rick Taylor, COO of Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc., for "Executive of the Year" and Carol C. Cannata, SVP, client services, THE CANNATA REPORT, in new category "Women Executive of the Year."

THE CANNATA REPORT UPDATES AWARD IN HONOR OF LAUDED INDUSTRY LEADER AND CHAMPION

THE CANNATA REPORT rebranded its award from a plaque to a statuette entitled the "Frank" in honor of revered founder, Frank G. Cannata. This award was introduced live to a resoundingly receptive audience last Thursday.

"Frank is an industry icon.  He bridges the manufacturer, the dealer and the end user.  He is a one-of-a-kind analyst and a one-of-a-kind human being.  I congratulate all of the winners of the inaugural 'Frank,' a most appropriate award for a meaningful industry achievement," said Jerry Blaine, CEO of LDI Color ToolBox.

Rick Taylor added, "The new award bearing Frank's name has as much style and class as the man himself.  Frank deserves the recognition for all of his contributions to our industry and the many charities THE CANNATA REPORT Awards and Charities Dinner has helped over the years."

The donations, causes, new award category and updated award are but a few signs of the affair's increasing vitality.  This can't-miss event also continues to evolve in size, scope and stature. Through 2013, Frank G. Cannata absorbed all hard event costs so 100% of proceeds would benefit the designated charities — a gesture almost unheard of, particularly by the owner of a private family-owned and operated business.

Mike Stramaglio, CEO of MWA Intelligence, recently learned of Frank's personal investment and jumped at the chance to do his part. He also brought Graphtec Digital Solutions, Inc. onboard to officially co-sponsor the event.

"MWAi is extremely grateful for the opportunity to sponsor the premier industry event of the year. THE CANNATA REPORT Annual Awards and Charities Dinner attracts the leading movers and shakers across our industry.  While our exposure at the event was significant, we most value the opportunity to paint ourselves as good corporate citizens — a group of people who truly care about giving back," said Stramaglio. "This year's dinner was an evening to remember and we look forward to attending next year's milestone 30th anniversary event."

Ichiro Mitsunari, president of Graphtec Digital Solutions, Inc. said, "Thanks to THE CANNATA REPORT Awards and Charities Dinner, Graphtec now has recognition within the business technology dealer channel. While their numbers are limited, they are clearly the leaders within the imaging industry. It is now our responsibility to make the necessary efforts to establish a strong partnership with them. We realize it will take time, but we need to do it."

MWAi will be hosting it's own event, the Executive Connection Summit (ECS) in Scottsdale, AZ, from October 27-30th. Boasting big names across the industry, this summit is one of the few vendor agnostic events where independent dealers can educate themselves about today's challenges and opportunities. As such, ECS could very likely evolve into the industry's next big thing. Visit ecs.mwaintel.com for more information and to register.

About THE CANNATA REPORT
Since its launch in 1982, THE CANNATA REPORT (whose portfolio now includes a magazine, website, blog and social media platforms) quickly became a leading domestic and international management resource for the Business Technology Industry.  Our primary focus and audience are independent dealers and related businesses, including hardware manufacturers, software providers and more.  With subscribers in nine countries THE CANNATA REPORT has enjoyed a reputation for providing renowned editorial, analyses, and opinion for over 30 years.  As this channel continues to evolve and expand into a comprehensive managed services provider, IT management, production print and beyond, we remain at the forefront of the transition.  THE CANNATA REPORT is owned and operated by Marketing Research Consultants LLC. In the 34 years that MRC has been in business, it has provided consultative services for every major copier and multifunction printer manufacturer in the world.

About MWA Intelligence
MWA Intelligence Inc. (MWAi), a SAP Business One Gold Partner, delivers enterprise-class and leading edge Machine-to-Machine (M2M) and Machine-to-People (M2P) solutions to better serve the imaging industry. MWAi's intelligent service, workforce, assets and GPS solution suites deliver mission-critical information in real time to the hands of customer-facing employees and into companies' back-end ERP systems including the powerful SAP Business One solution. The MWAi solution automates all of the business intelligence management, meter collection, consumables and service alerts and also offers an integrated pre-sale MPS tool for easy auditing of end-user networks. MWAi literally connects the people who service and sell the assets with the actual machines and ERP systems.

About Graphtec Digital Solutions, Inc.
Graphtec Digital Solutions, Inc. the American subsidiary of Graphtec Corporation – headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, which has developed an innovative and new digital label creation system, LABELROBO LCX1000. LABELROBO LCX1000 is a comprehensive digital label creation system developed for high productivity, low cost, free design, full color, and easy creation of labels on demand. The LABELROBO LCX1000 is built in combination with the cutting-edge technology of Graphtec, a leading company in the plotter market and offers high-speed vivid printing quality with the capability of handling a variety of substrates, superior weather resistance, and newly developed electophotography printing technology with competitive cost of ownership.

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