KANSAS CITY, Mo., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- What started out as a sentiment between a young jeweler and his fiance 40 years ago has become an international icon used in schools, foreign countries and marriage proposals across the world. I Am Loved(R) was conceived in 1967 by Barnett Helzberg Jr., third-generation president of Kansas City-based Helzberg Diamonds. Over the years, more than 50 million people worldwide have been treated to one of the free I Am Loved(R) buttons that feature 11 languages. To celebrate the I Am Loved(R) button's 40th anniversary this year, a twelfth language will be chosen by voters at http://www.helzberg.com/ or in any of the Helzberg Diamonds stores across the country between now and the first week of February. Voters can also register to win a $10,000 I Am Loved(R) shopping spree at Helzberg Diamonds through Feb. 14. "People now get to spread the message of love in more languages than ever before," said Stacey McBride, spokesperson for Helzberg Diamonds. "We are constantly hearing about how these buttons play an important role in weddings, engagements, supporting our troops or simply as heartfelt tokens of appreciation." The 11 languages currently featured on the buttons are Russian, German, English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese and Polish. Voters can choose between four languages for the new button: Arabic, Indonesian, Hindi and Bengali, or write in their vote. "To help us decide which language would be next, we looked at the most widely spoken languages in the world and found four that we haven't yet featured on the buttons," said McBride. Barnett created the idea of the I Am Loved(R) button just after his true love accepted his marriage proposal. He wanted everyone to experience the joy of feeling loved. To do this, he created the button with the words "I Am Loved(R)" that encouraged men to show the women in their lives that they were loved. Today, free buttons are available at all Helzberg Diamonds stores. For more information, contact Lathi de Silva at 316-263-0124 and visit http://www.iamloved.org/ . Helzberg Diamonds takes pride in its 90-plus-year heritage as a fine retail jewelry company. Helzberg Diamonds has over 260 stores nationwide and is part of the Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. (NYSE:BRK) family of companies. For information, call 800-HELZBERG (800-435-9237) or visit helzberg.com. DATASOURCE: Helzberg Diamonds CONTACT: Lathi de Silva for Helzberg Diamonds, +1-316-263-0124 Web site: http://www.helzberg.com/ http://www.iamloved.org/

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