Finalists Announced in Nationwide Family Song Contest

Finalists Announced in Nationwide Family Song Contest

Cottonelle(R) Asks America to Vote Online for the Top Musical Family and Their Pooch

NEENAH, Wis., Sept. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The search for America's top- singing family and dog ensemble has narrowed to 10 national finalists in the "Cottonelle(R) Tales of Best Friends & Family" contest -- a national family song contest that celebrates the special bond between families and their dogs. The final families are in the running to win $200,000 for a home makeover.

This summer hundreds of families and dogs sang and barked their hearts out in the national competition. Now it's up to America to help choose the winner. Families across the country are invited to support their favorite family performance by casting their vote now through Sept. 30 at http://www.cottonelle.com/ .

"The yellow Labrador Cottonelle Puppy represents caring for the family so we held this contest to celebrate dogs as an integral part of the American family," said Angela Fisher, Cottonelle Brand Manager. "More important than how well a family carried a tune, Cottonelle looked for families who performed caring and fun songs that best expressed how their dog is an important part of their family."

The 10 finalist families will head to New York City next month for a special red-carpet announcement on Oct. 20. Florence Henderson, TV mom and music maven, will crown the winning family.

"It has been remarkable to bring so many families together around two things that I love most -- music and the family dog," said Ms. Henderson. "Picking a winner will not be an easy decision, so that's why I invite families nationwide to cast their vote for their top performance at http://www.cottonelle.com/ ."

Hundreds of families submitted an original song and lyrics and performed it with their dog at six live auditions around the country or via video. Finalists were selected from the slew of mailed-in tapes and DVDs and from the live auditions held in Atlanta, Denver, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Minneapolis and Salt Lake City.

Although a recent survey commissioned by Cottonelle revealed that dogs' favorite type of music is country, the performing families devised songs of all musical genres -- from country to rock to rap. Families belted out heart- felt tunes that paid tribute to their furry four-legged friend and brought to life a sense of family caring.

The 11 finalists in the "Cottonelle(R) Tales of Best Friends & Family" Contest are:

-- The Hendricks Family, Ramsey, MN -- The Hernandez Family, Peekskill, NY -- The Hooton Family, Phoenix, AZ -- The Kingsworthy Family, Indianapolis, IN -- The Linnemann Family, Columbus, IN -- The Metheney Family, Colorado Springs, CO -- The Moore Family, Atlanta, GA -- The Nilsson Family, Sandy, UT -- The Riether Family, Collegeville, PA -- The Sibbett Family, Mena, AR

The finalist families each receive a $2,500 cash prize, Cottonelle(R) Brand products and travel and accommodations to the final red-carpet announcement. Finalists also will be highlighted in a national print advertisement in Parenting magazine, and the winning family will appear in a national print advertisement in People magazine.

To cast your vote for your favorite Tales of Best Friends & Family performance visit http://www.cottonelle.com/ .

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 150 countries. Every day, 1.3 billion people -- nearly a quarter of the world's population -- trust K-C's brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well being. With brands such as Kleenex(R), Scott(R), Huggies(R), Pull-Ups(R), Kotex(R) and Depend(R), Kimberly-Clark holds the No. 1 or No. 2 share position in more than 80 countries. To keep up with the latest K-C news and to learn more about the company's 132-year history of innovation, visit http://www.kimberly-clark.com/ .

NOTE TO EDITOR'S: Media Note -- B-roll footage of each finalist is available upon request. Also, if you would like to speak with one of the families please contact Kristen Knobloch at 228-6871 or at kristen.knobloch@ketchum.com .

Source: Kimberly-Clark

CONTACT: Kristen Knobloch, +1-312-228-6871, Kristen.knobloch@ketchum.com , or Tessa McCann, +1-312-228-6876, Tessa.mccann@ketchum.com , both for Kimberly-Clark

Web site: http://www.kimberly-clark.com/ http://www.cottonelle.com/

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