National Search Contest the Brainchild of Music Artist Laura Bryna and Southern Beauty Magazine. Winners Will Fly to Los Angeles in August for Special Celebratory Concert Event at House of Blues
All across America there are hometown heroes who routinely go about their daily lives helping others in very special ways unbeknownst to others. But now, five of them are coming to Los Angeles to be recognized for their heroism; the result of being selected from among hundreds of entrants in a national ‘Hometown Heroes’ contest sponsored by music recording artist Laura Bryna (www.laurabryna.com) and Southern Beauty (www.southernbeautymagazine.com) magazine.
Bryna co-wrote ‘Hometown Heroes’ for her current CD, ‘Trying to be Me’. It’s a song dedicated to the heroics of men and women in the military service who sacrifice at home and overseas for their country. The song was adopted by the Air National Guard and is being used in its advertising and recruiting efforts. Bryna took the idea one step further with a national search to find and honor ordinary citizens who in their daily lives are making tremendous contributions to their communities and society.

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“It’s especially exciting to be honoring such a wonderful group of selfless, giving American heroes,” says Bryna of the contest winners. “They’re helping hundreds of people every day and doing it because they love to give back and feel it’s the right thing to do.”
Sharon Whitson, Cindy Simmons, Cathy Cloutier, Rebecca McCormick and Ron Regen all share one thing in common: they are ‘Hometown Heroes’ who will be honored here on August 10th during a special concert event at the House of Blues where Bryna and her band will perform songs from her soon to be released second album.
The ‘Hometown Heroes’ are:
Ron Regen (Rockaway, New Jersey) – Regen is a local hero and has been for over 20 years. The New Jersey resident has volunteered on the Mine Hill First Aid Squad and the Rockaway Twp Fire Dept. He has delivered a baby; pulled individuals from burning cars; saved lives with CPR and given countless hours to his community and fellow man.
Cathy Cloutier (Tarawa Terrace, North Carolina) – Cathy is a hero to her husband, a Marine veteran who has been to Iraq for three tours. She’s also hero to their boys and works fulltime as a dental assistant. She has to play not only the role of mother, but the role of father while her husband is gone. She has no help, because her entire family is in Maine. Since her husband’s latest deployment, the younger of the two children has had to have surgery to have tubes placed in his ears. Cathy has had to take the baby to all the doctor visits, the surgery and the post-ops on her own. She knew marrying a Marine meant for some harder times than most, but she never complains.
Sharon Whitson (Lapeer, Michigan) – James Whitson refers to his wife of 39 years as heroine to so many people. She “quietly” goes about assisting children and families in crisis through a program she started in their small community. She runs Lapeer Family Mentors and has worked with many student interns in social work programs at several of the Universities in the area.
Cindy Simmons (Ormond Beach, Florida) - Cindy started the Children’s Musical Theatre 27 years ago and has been helping kids achieve and build self confidence for three decades. Through CMT thousands of kids have been awaken to the wonders of the arts in addition to gaining the self confidence to obtain their dreams. Cindy turns every child into a star and allows them each their five minutes of fame. The person who nominated Cindy speaks from personal experience. Her daughter was extremely shy when she came to Cindy – with Cindy’s help she won her high school's top leadership award at her graduation and is still known for her public speaking achievements. She won a full college scholarship for vocal performance because of Cindy and went on to compete in the Miss America system and won thousands of dollars of additional scholarship money.
Rebecca McCormick (Hinsdale, New Hampshire) – McCormick is a member of the Navy Reserves. She’s put herself through college and has a degree in Marine Transportation. Rebecca is a longtime volunteer, helping those less fortunate, such as working in soup kitchens to assisting at a mentally and physically challenged children’s home. She is a member of the VFW Auxiliary, American Legion Auxiliary, Lady Oriental Shrine of North America, Eastern Star and the Marine Corp. Auxiliary, and a former Grand Worthy Advisor for the State of Vermont Rainbow Girls.
‘America’s Search for Hometown Heroes’ and the August 10th House of Blues event are sponsored in part by Laura Bryna, Southern Beauty, JOICO Hair Care, It’s A Glam Thing, and The Andaz West Hollywood. While in Los Angeles, the winners will be treated to dinner at The Palm restaurant, a tour of the city courtesy of Starline Tours of Hollywood, and accommodations at Andaz West Hollywood.
ABOUT LAURA BRYNA (www.laurabryna.com)
Considered a ‘southern beauty,’ Laura Bryna is a music recording artist whose debut album, “Trying to Be Me,” released in January of 2008, continues to receive raves. After launching her CD, Bryna completed a 45-city tour with Grammy-winning legend Clint Black, and has also opened for such acts as Sugarland, Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw and Taylor Swift. Bryna was selected to be the face and voice of the Air Guard’s national ad campaign. In this role, she co-wrote and performs the song “Hometown Heroes” for the Air Guard, as a tribute to the men and women who aid, assist and protect those in need during domestic and international crisis. In addition to being seen and heard on TV and Radio ads around the country, Bryna makes special appearances on behalf of the Air Guard, including performances at concerts and events coast to coast. In June, Bryna was named a celebrity spokesperson for the National Guard Youth Foundation’s Challenge Program,