Good News Friday: Good Deeds - Aug. 15, 2014
Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation’s board of trustees recently approved four grants totaling $220,500. The Breast Health Center at Sarasota Memorial Health Care System received a grant of $140,000 to fund breast health screenings and diagnostic services for uninsured and underinsured patients for one year. Three grants went to healthcare-related nonprofits: $38,000 for a capital campaign for the Sally and Sam Shapiro Babies and Children’s Medical Center at the Glasser-Schoenbaum Human Services Center to assist in the construction of a children’s clinic; $25,000 to the Florence A. Rothman Institute to fund salaries for two Ph.D. scientists to conduct a feasibility study on Alzheimer’s disease/dementia; and $17,500 to convert an existing area at the Good Samaritan Pharmacy & Health Services into a patient exam room.
The nonprofit Center for Architecture Sarasota has received a donation of $10,000 from Mel and Gary Schmidt. Gary Schmidt, P.E., is senior vice president of Ardaman & Associates, an engineering firm with offices throughout Florida and Louisiana. The donation will help fund the Center for Architecture Sarasota Scholarship for the UF CityLab-Sarasota program in addition to supporting the building fund established to renovate the historic Scott Building on South Orange Avenue.
The Jack and Jill Late Stage Cancer Foundation (JAJF) partnered with Jeff Mayers, general manager at the Longboat Key Club and Resort; Bruce McDonald, general manager at Hyatt Regency Sarasota; Ed Braunlich, resort manager at Hyatt Siesta Key Beach; and Damien O’Riordan, general manager at The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota, to host families seeking a vacation from the battle of late stage cancer.
HOPE Family Services received a $1,800 donation from Deborah and Vernie Pickhardt of Pickhardt’s Professional Services in Parrish. Each year the Pickhardts host a Christmas party at their home to benefit domestic violence survivors who reside in HOPE’s Emergency Safe shelter. HOPE also provides a 24-hour Helpline, individual and group counseling for adults and children, advocacy, safety planning and community education. Last year more than 372 victims, including children, stayed at the shelter. For more information, visit HOPEFamilyService.org or call (941) 747-8499.
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, the kickoff event for the Breast Cancer Awareness Walk 2014, will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. next Thursday, Aug. 21, at Gold Coast Eagle Distributing. Manatee County Commissioner and event chair, Vanessa Baugh, and a Breast Cancer Survivor: The Making Strides team will be in attendance to release an announcement on how the community can be a part of setting a new Guinness World Record.
“Rock for a Cause,” hosted by the Sarasota Young Professionals Group and S-One Holdings, is coming to S. Palm Ave. from 3-10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11. Based on a “battle of the bands,” local bands will compete for a chance to allocate $3,500 to the music department of a Sarasota County school of their choice and $1,500 in prize winnings. The entry fee per person is only $1, or a school supply donation, with all proceeds going back to Sarasota County Schools.
Ten Girls Inc. Sarasota students visited Goodwill Manasota to shop for back-to-school looks during the Shabby Chic Boutique fashion show Aug. 7. The fashion show is a venture where students design and embellish fabric and donated items in a business setting while learning how to make updated looks, price inventory, set up displays and design and sell accessories and decorations. The girls shopped and selected various items to build an outfit.
The Salvation Army partnered with JC Penney at Westfield Sarasota Mall to provide an exclusive shopping experience to nearly 100 students looking for new school wardrobes. Store manager Bob Parker gave each child a 25 percent Friends and Family discount, stretching donations even further. Volunteers helped the parents and kids get the most bang for their buck while staying within budget. The Republican Women’s club donated backpacks filled with school supplies, and First Baptist Church arranged transportation.