While we appreciate whenever our peers recognize the work we do, this award just validates the work we are so proud to be a part of. A year ago today, Firehouse launched the 1 Million 4 Anna initiative with the simple goal of getting 1 million prayers for Anna Basso, our agency founder’s neighbor, as she battles Ewing’s Sarcoma. We knew Anna had an expert team behind her from Children’s Medical Center, but we also wanted to find a way encourage her through the power of prayer as she fought this tough battle.

One year later, Anna continues her brave fight, and we are up to 840,000 prayers and counting. We are so thankful to have the campaign honored this year and special thanks to the award show hosts, Chris Smith and James Hering, who did a great job of telling our story during the show. Because we launched 1 Million 4 Anna on the same day as last year’s DFWIMA Awards, the wonderful board members were kind enough to let us set up a table on site at this year’s event to help event attendees sign up at http://www.1millionprayers.com. We were so thankful for the great audience response to the 1 Million 4 Anna story and we’re excited to launch another push as we near the 1 million prayer milestone.

We haven’t quite reached a million, but we are getting closer. Please check out the site and “pledge” to pray everyday at 12:12 p.m. for Anna. Thanks again to DFWIMA for this great honor and to all the people who bring us closer to 1 Million 4 Anna everyday.

It started out with word that our print campaign for adrenaline sportswear brand Fuel Clothing, featuring kids flying through the air on skateboards, Big Wheels and bicycles, was named a 2009 One Show Merit Winner and a Luerzer’s Archive Finalist. That. Is. Huge. Especially since this was a campaign idea we had a lot of passion for – showing the pure joy of figuring out when you “knew” you loved to ride.

Then Architectural Record selected our campaign for ThyssenKrupp Elevator’s new synergy elevator solution as a winner in the Integrated Campaign category for its 2009 Advertising Excellence Awards, which recognize the most effective ads in the building and design marketplace. They actually said of a print ad featuring a crayon-drawn building, “Amazingly, it captured our hearts and minds… and it never even showed a picture of the product.” What better response could you ask of a campaign meant to target architects and encourage their freedom to design?

And then there’s our “Carol of the Christmas Pickle” video that won Most Effective Use of Video AND Best of Show at the DFW Interactive Marketing Association’s 9th annual Excellence in Interactive Marketing Awards. This wasn’t something a client requested – this was just for us. It was simply an idea a few creatives had a lot of love for. And so, with a budget of $200 and six jars of pickles, they went for it. Two weeks later, a new holiday stop-animation masterpiece debuted, featuring costumed pickles, a snowy cardboard village and a song about pickles set to the tune of “Carol of the Christmas Bells.”

Carol of the Christmas Pickle from Firehouse on Vimeo.