Leadership award

Kiana Moore, of Finneytown, was awarded the national "I Dare You Leadership Award" by the American Youth Foundation.

Emily Rempe of Hyde Park, a past Leadership Award recipient, presented the award. She has been Kiana's Big Sister for six years through Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Cincinnati.

Kiana, a junior at Finneytown High School, hopes to study medicine in college.

Tourism honors

The Warren County Convention & Visitors Bureau was awarded two RUBY (Recognizing Uncommon Brilliance) Awards by the Ohio Travel Association. The winning campaigns were the bureau's Web site and 2002 summer radio promotion.

The Ohio Association of Conventions and Visitors Bureaus also honored the Convention & Visitors Bureau with an award for a regional cooperative effort brochure which promotes the Little Miami Scenic Bike trail.

First solo flight

Paul Drake, of Oregonia, took his first flight as a student pilot without his instructor, soloing in a single-engine aircraft.

He is enrolled in the Professional Pilot program at the University of Cincinnati Clermont College.

Honor society

Emily Merkel, a senior English and integrated language arts major at Hiram College, Ohio, has been inducted into Kappa Delta Pi International Education Honorary.

The Walnut Hills High School graduate is the daughter of Debbie and Larry Merkel of Amberley Village.

Audition pays off

Amy Miller, a McAuley High School graduate, completed a successful audition and is performing with the national Broadway touring company of 42nd Street.