Community & Philanthropy

Disadvantaged students interview in style, thanks to a Creek professor Atlantic Technical College professor Debra Oistacher looks forward to her Nov. 11 birthday party each year. On the invitation, she includes the requisite details: when, where and a reminder not to bring gifts. No gifts? Instead, the self-styled “professional do-gooder”  asks party attendees to bring

A Creek mom spreads positivity with painted rocks When her 8-year-old son picked up a colorfully painted rock on the way to his weekly tennis lesson in Coral Springs, she told him to put it back. Less than an hour later, the boy found another rock with the words “Coral Springs Rocks” and a link

To describe John Coburn’s garden, a friend recently said, “You could charge $5 admission.” It’s lush and beautifully manicured, with Zen fixtures and butterflies fluttering about. The design came to him and his girlfriend, Dori Brenes, after a therapeutic day at Butterfly World. They turned the space, which a year ago had not one plant,

Nora Rupert has an office, but as the Broward County School Board representative for District 7, she’s more likely to be somewhere in Coconut Creek, Deerfield Beach and parts of Pompano Beach and Margate. While traveling around the community, she holds panels, meets students and parents, and speaks to local clubs, PTAs and civic groups.

Harlene Zweig remembers the special gifts her son Jacob possessed. One of his favorite pastimes was volunteering with Parkland Buddy Sports, helping special needs children. “He always treated everyone equally regardless of ability, or whether they were wealthy or not,” she says. “Whoever they were, whatever their status, he always made everyone feel like they

As a music teacher at Arch Creek Elementary School in North Miami, Jimmy Michel witnessed firsthand the needy children who weren’t able to pay for music lessons outside of school. Over his 11 years as a music teacher, the Florida Memorial University graduate met talented children whose parents couldn’t afford to pay $50 or more

Fort Lauderdale calls itself the Venice of America, but how much do we really know about the waterways that spurred the comparison to Italy’s famed city of canals? Local marine biologist Paola Espitia is here to help. In March, she launched the Blue Discovery Tour, a two-hour boat ride aboard the bubblegum-pink Water Shuttle. On

Retired teacher creates games for kids to develop skills while having fun Lucille Lucy’s educational game business started with sugar packets. She would use the packets on restaurant tables to keep her children entertained, but it was also helping them learn math. She would ask them to count the packets or to put the colors

A South Creek resident shares photos from his book on city history Few Broward residents understand local history like Dan Hobby. The former executive director of the Fort Lauderdale Historical Society (1980-2000), the Pompano Beach Historical Society (2000-14) and the Sample-McDougald House Preservation Society (2000-16) wrote articles for local publications and books on Broward County

Veterans Park hosts a tribute to a fallen infantryman from Coconut Creek Beth Becker-Agami and her son, Daniel, were as close as a mother and son could be. He called her almost every day, or they used Skype. Daniel would email her and send her videos he made. It meant more to her because the

Jack Golio and Janet Lopez are two Monarch High School seniors who are making the same choices that millions of their peers across the country are making this month, as they go from being high school’s Class of 2017 to college’s Class of 2021. But they’re also part of an elite group. They join less

Almost every week, Rebecca Gastineau and her golden retriever, Quaker, would stop at Blast Salon on Lyons Road. When it was time to pay for her services, Quaker, holding a credit card between his teeth, would offer the payment to the salon’s owner, Kathie Tate. The dog wasn’t performing a trick. It was part of