R/P MARKETING PUBLIC RELATIONS BRINGS ON STEPHANIE JOHNSTON AS AGENCY PRESIDENT

HOLLAND, OH, April 13, 2016 – R/P Marketing Public Relations welcomes Stephanie Johnston as part of the agency’s leadership team. Johnston will serve as President and is an equity partner in the agency. R/P is a 26-person, full-service agency headquartered in northwest Ohio. The agency’s client roster includes Libbey, Inc., the Smithsonian's Lemelson Center, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and other leading organizations in manufacturing/B2B, healthcare, associations and the arts. Its Transcend Hospice Marketing Group division is widely regarded as the foremost hospice marketing company in the country.

Martha Vetter, founder and CEO, will continue her role as CEO and majority shareholder. The move is intended as the first step in a multi-year succession plan that will ensure a stable future for the agency and build on its legacy as Vetter looks forward to her future as a volunteer, gardener and world traveler.

Johnston is a senior strategist and marketing communications professional with 18 years of corporate and agency experience. Most recently, she was with O-I, the world’s largest glass container manufacturer. Among other roles, she led the company’s highly successful specialty glass brand – Covet. Prior to her seven years at O-I, she worked extensively in the agency world, including roles at E.B. Lane in Phoenix, Trozzolo Communications Group in Kansas City, and Fleishman-Hillard in St. Louis and Kansas City. Her client roster has included Walmart, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, HNTB, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Clorox and Procter & Gamble.

“R/P is excited and honored by the addition of Stephanie to our leadership team because of her energy and her shared passion for solving complex marketing challenges, building great teams and doing work that ‘wows,’” said Vetter. “Stephanie shares our core values, plus we’re glad to have her fresh ideas, 360^o thinking and contemporary approach to working with clients.”

About R/P Marketing Public Relations

R/P Marketing Public Relations is a full-service firm that seamlessly blends marketing, advertising, public relations and social media to solve complex marketing challenges. With a rich and diverse client roster that spans the country, R/P has particularly strong experience in the manufacturing/B2B, healthcare, arts and association arenas.

About Transcend Hospice Marketing Group

Transcend Hospice Marketing Group, a division of R/P, is the foremost marketing public relations firm focused solely on the hospice industry. Transcend has helped more than 30 hospices across the country increase admissions and length of stay through strategic and creative marketing initiatives that promote hospice care with dignity.