Members of the Junior League of Boca Raton, including members of its Self Esteem Committee, made nearly 500 cards for patients at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. The cards will be delivered on patients’ dinner trays to brighten their days as no visitors are allowed at the hospital.

Pictured: Back row (left to right): Shelia Traverso (JLBR member), Julie Ott (Director of Development, Boca Raton Regional Hospital Foundation).
Front row (left to right) Sam Eckhart (JLBR Community Issues Manager), Cristy Stewart-Harfmann (JLBR President), Robin Mautino (Program Director, Program Director, Phyllis Sandler Center for Living Well Christine E. Lynn Women’s Health & Wellness Institute and JLBR Member), Jayme Weekly (JLBR Managing Director)

Publix Charities donated $300,000 to Feeding South Florida to be used to support food distribution during the pandemic. The donation also served as a kick off to Hunger Action Month is a nationwide initiative created by Feeding America.

“We are incredibly grateful to Publix Charities for its generous donation to help us continue to serve an estimated 1.4 million individuals facing food insecurity in Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties,” said Feeding South Florida President & CEO Paco Velez. “This donation comes at a critical time, when the demand for food has increased significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Publix Charities understands that more families are turning to Feeding South Florida to help put food on their tables.”

Pictured: Robyn Hankerson and Paco Velez; courtesy of Feeding South Florida

As part of its annual car giveaway, United Way of Broward surprised local UPS employee Derek Anderson a new 2020 Audi Q3 from Holman Automotive Group. Anderson’s name was randomly drawn from a pool of more than 10,000 entries, made up of Broward County residents who donated a minimum of $365 to United Way. Anderson, a Fort Lauderdale resident, has donated to United Way for seven years and has been a UPS employee for more than 17 years.

Pictured: John Jones, Derek and Wendy Anderson and Kathleen Cannon, President/CEO of United Way of Broward County

Broward Education Foundation recently distributed more than 41,000 safely sealed 18-piece basic school supply kits to 41,000 students from 69 Title I elementary schools in Broward County before the first day of school.

The nonprofit also recently partnered with Office Depot to host Start Proud! where they distributed 1,000 backpacks to Davie Elementary School. The backpacks were filled with composition books, notecards, highlighters, pens and a merchandise card for Office Depot/Office Max.

“We are incredibly thankful for the generous support and the amazing partnership we’ve forged with Office Depot,” said Shea Ciriago, executive director of Broward Education Foundation. “Although the start of the school is virtual, students throughout Broward County now have the educational supplies and learning tools necessary to learn and thrive.”

Pictured: Safely sealed 18 piece basic school supply kit as part of the supply distribution to Title 1 elementary schools.

 

Featured article image: Sue Colton, Ruth Carter-Lynch, Tim Curtin, Richelle Kubsch, Donna Korn, Alex Price, Robert Runcie, Shea Ciriago, Laurie Rich Levinson, Erik Anderson, Christine Kelly and Ken King at Start Proud!

Children’s Diagnostic & Treatment Center hosted a series of outdoor “brigades” in the Center’s parking garage before school began, donating new new backpack and supplies to nearly 600 children. CDTC staff and volunteers joined dogs from Canine Assisted Therapies to encourage students. Each family received groceries and snack packs from Helping Hands Food Drives, a gift card to assist with hurricane supplies and a Wellness Kit from Broward Health.

“We knew our annual Back to School distribution would be challenging this year with so many questions about the start of school and the need for social distancing,” shares CDTC Executive Director Ana Calderon Randazzo, Ph.D. “But we couldn’t let our families down when so many are in need.”