Randy Fordice accepting the Edgar F. Chestnutt Award for Best Total Communication Program in May.

And now Great River Energy’s Randy Fordice gets another award, the announcement just came into the inbox: A Silver Quill Award from Pacific Plains IABC (International Ass. of Business Communicators). Here’s the blurb:

IABC Minnesota Members Honored at Pacific Plains Silver Quill Awards

And here’s the Chestnutt:

Great River Energy Honored for Communication Efforts on Major Electric Transmission Project

Are we talking about the same CapX? The one that sent notice to a couple thousand landowners a year or more late? The Chestnutt article noted their pre-plan plan:

As an early step, Great River Energy conducted phone surveys to gauge public attitudes toward new transmission lines. The results showed projects would likely be well received if local governments and the public could provide significant input. In response, the communication team developed a comprehensive plan that incorporated tools that each of the other 10 utilities involved could use to reach out to all stakeholders, including tens of thousands of landowners living along project corridors. The plan included briefings for elected officials, media updates, a comprehensive Web site and more than a dozen fact sheets.

And while googling this most recent award, I found this real chesnut, a Christian Science Monitor article about Randy’s self-promotional efforts, here’s a snippet:

Still single, in the city

He made his own opportunities

Randy Fordice did just that when he moved to Minneapolis in 2003. “I knew people weren’t just going to come up to me and say, ‘Hey, you look like you’re new in town.’ I knew I would have to make an effort to be included in things, and I was fine with that.”

Mr. Fordice did know two people in Minneapolis when he moved there, and he made new friends by buying a Minnesota Twins season ticket and chatting with other fans in the stands.

Those friends have introduced him to their friends, but Fordice, who works in public relations, doesn’t rely on others to help him meet potential dates. He makes a point to smile and make eye contact with women he sees, whether he’s walking his dog or shopping for groceries.

“What’s the worst thing that is going to happen?” he says. “The best-case scenario is that you end up dating someone or have a new friend.”

His efforts have paid off, he says. “I have definitely dated more [here] than I ever could have hoped to in Iowa,” his home state.

Still, Fordice acknowledges that urban dating does present challenges, starting with the most obvious: Where can people go to meet? “People say they’re sick of meeting in bars,” he says, “but you can’t go to the museum because you’re not supposed to talk in museums.”

Then there’s the fear factor. “Sometimes women are intimidated by any kind of attention from a strange man,” he says. That causes some women to appear unfriendly, which men find unappealing.

Well, he could always join the “No New Coal Plants” list…