Bring The Gift Of Cheer With New Holiday Ca$H Scratch-Off Games South Florida Sun Times Nov 5, 2025 The Florida Lottery Is Excited To Introduce A Brand-New Lineup Of HOLIDAY CA$H Scratch-Off Games, Launching Just In Time To Make The Season Merry And Bright! With Five Festive Games Ranging From $1 To $20, This Year’s Holiday Collection Offers Fun For Every Kind Of Player And Over $270 Million In Total Cash Prizes. Here’s what’s hitting shelves this holiday season: $1,000,000 HOLIDAY CA$H – This $20 ticket delivers the season’s biggest top prize: $1 Million! With chances to win up to 21 times per ticket, this game features more than 3 million winning tickets and over $125 million in total cash prizes. Overall odds of winning are 1-in-2.68. $500,000 HOLIDAY CA$H – Priced at $10, this game features a $500,000 top prize, over 2.9 million winning tickets, and more than $77.7 Million in total cash prizes. Players can win up to 16 times per ticket. Overall odds of winning are 1-in-3.46. $250,000 HOLIDAY CA$H – This $5 game offers a $250,000 top prize, over 3.3 million winning tickets, and more than $43 Million in total cash prizes. With fast-paced play and festive fun, it's perfect for holiday gift giving. Overall odds of winning are 1-in-3.67. $50,000 HOLIDAY CA$H – At just $2, this game packs a punch with a $50,000 top prize and more than $16 million in total cash prizes. With over 2.5 Million winning tickets, it's full of cheer and ready to scratch. Overall odds of winning are 1-in-4.48. $10,000 HOLIDAY CA$H – The $1 game rounds out the collection with a $10,000 top prize, more than 2.6 million winning tickets, and over $7.9 Million in total cash prizes. It's small in price, big on seasonal fun. Overall odds of winning are 1-in-4.83. In addition to these exciting games, players can unwrap even more fun through the Holiday Cash Bonus Play Promotion! From Monday, October 27th, 2025, through Sunday, January 11th, 2026, players may enter non-winning HOLIDAY CA$H Scratch-Off tickets and eligible CASH POP™ tickets for a chance to win cash prizes of up to $20,000 in one of several drawings. Even better, more than $4.2 Million in instant-win cash coupons and 60,000 BOGO CASH POP coupons will be awarded throughout the promotion. Every entry could deliver a little extra holiday magic! Scratch-Off games are an important part of the Lottery’s portfolio of games, comprising approximately 74 percent of ticket sales in fiscal year 2023-2024. Additionally, since inception, Scratch-Off games have awarded more than $66.9 Billion in prizes, created 2,350 millionaires, and generated more than $20.09 Billion for the state's Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF). About The Florida Lottery The Florida Lottery is responsible for contributing more than $49 Billion to enhance education and sending more than one million students to college through the Bright Futures Scholarship Program. The Florida Lottery reinvests 99 percent of its revenue into Florida's economy through prize payouts, commissions to more than 13,550 Lottery retailers, and transfers to education. Since 1988, Florida Lottery games have paid over $100.2 billion in prizes and created more than 4,300 millionaires. For more information, please visit: www.floridalottery.com and be sure to follow the Florida Lottery on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and X (formerly known as Twitter) to stay informed. Previous Next

“More Than A Meal” - Feeding South Florida Launches Hunger Action Month This September South Florida Sun Times Sep 3, 2026 Feeding South Florida – The Leading Hunger-Relief Organization Serving Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, And Monroe Counties – Is Commemorating Hunger Action Month This September With Various Activities To Encourage South Floridians To “Go Orange” To Stand Against Hunger. Hunger Action Month, A Nationwide Initiative Created By Feeding America, Takes Place Throughout September And Is Designed To Raise Awareness About The Issue Of Hunger In America And Inspire Others To Take Action Toward Ending It. In South Florida, approximately one million families face hunger and have no idea where the next meal is coming from, including nearly 500,000 children and seniors. Proceeds raised during the month-long initiative will allow Feeding South Florida to fulfill its mission to end hunger in South Florida by providing immediate access to nutritious food, leading hunger and poverty advocacy efforts, and transforming lives through innovative programming and education. This year, Feeding South Florida’s theme is “More Than A Meal,” revealing the powerful impact behind every meal distributed. Every meal tells a bigger story. Behind each plate is rescued food, compassion, community support, and collective action working together to nourish neighbors facing food insecurity across South Florida. Hunger relief is about more than providing food; it is about upholding dignity, creating stability, strengthening communities, and bringing hope to individuals and families. “More Than a Meal” highlights the unseen efforts that make hunger relief possible and reminds audiences that every action taken in support of Feeding South Florida helps provide more than nourishment; it helps build a stronger, more food-secure community. Bid to beat hunger! An online auction during the month will allow bidders access to fun, unique items while supporting Feeding South Florida’s hunger relief efforts. “Hunger Heroes” t-shirts will be available for purchase to raise awareness about hunger. Monetary donations will go further during September with a Hunger Action Match, all month long donations will be matched dollar-for-dollar, up to $25,000, by Presenting Sponsor Delta Airlines. Every donation is critical, as a $1 donation allows Feeding South Florida to provide approximately four meals to a family in need. During Hunger Action Month, South Floridians can “Go Orange” by participating in various activities throughout the month, including: • Start a Fund Drive: Raise money with coworkers, friends and family online. • Start a Food Drive: Feeding South Florida relies on the generous support of the community to host food drives to ensure it receives shelf-stable, high-demand products. • Dine at Participating Restaurants: A portion of the meal at select restaurants will help feed local families. • Hunger Action Day - Tuesday, September 29th, 2026: Feeding South Florida celebrates Hunger Action Day, also known as “Go Orange Day.” The community is invited to purchase a “Hunger Heroes” t-shirt for $25 and wear it to support ending hunger in South Florida by visiting: https://secure.qgiv.com/event/qx89ki/store/ . • Pack to Give Back – Corporate Teams - Friday, September 18th, 2026 - 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.: Companies are encouraged to volunteer to sort food and pack meal boxes for families at one of Feeding South Florida’s warehouses. • Participate in the 2026 Outrun Hunger 5K – Palm Beach County - Saturday, September 19th, 2026 - 6:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.: Feeding South Florida will host its Annual Outrun Hunger 5K in Palm Beach County on Saturday, September 19th, 2026 - from 6:30 a.m. to 9 a.m., at the scenic Okeeheelee Park, located at 7715 Forest Hill Boulevard, West Palm Beach, Florida 33413. Participants will enjoy a Kids Zone, local vendors, family-friendly activities, and more. Participants can join the event as an individual or a team. This year’s event will be emceed by Noura Salman, Survivor season 39 finalist, CPA, Founder of SuperFreshies.com, and creator of the Lean Out Now health and wellness program, as well as Kirk Gimenez, Senior Vice President at Brickell Capital Finance, two-time Emmy winner, Founder and TV host of Xizzle TV, and member of Feeding South Florida’s Advisory Council. • Volunteer: During Hunger Action Month, coworkers, family and friends are invited to volunteer to sort food at one of Feeding South Florida’s warehouses or help prepare and cook meals for children and seniors at Feeding South Florida’s 5,000-Square-Foot State-Of-The-Art multi-purpose Community Kitchen in Boynton Beach. Dates and times vary. For more details, visit: https://feedingsouthflorida.org/volunteer/ . • Go Orange! Throughout the month, individuals can host an orange bake sale, government and municipalities can issue a proclamation for Hunger Action Month, hotels can welcome guests with an in-room display that showcases Hunger Action Month, schools can develop students’ skills by creating a project to promote hunger awareness and much more. During Hunger Action Month in the past, several landmark buildings including The Breakers, Miami Tower, and the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood Guitar Hotel all participated in “Go Orange Day” by turning their lights orange. • Register an individual or company's #GoOrange initiative to be added to Feeding South Florida’s community activity calendar. Contact: events@feedingsouthflorida.org . • Get social: Post on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or X using the hashtags: #feedingsouthflorida #hungeractionmonth #hungerhero. “Hunger Action Month reminds us that every meal is more than food on a plate. It represents dignity, stability and hope for a neighbor facing uncertainty,” said Paco Velez, President and CEO of Feeding South Florida. “Throughout Hunger Action Month, we are shining a light on the dedicated people, generous partners and rescued resources that make hunger relief possible across South Florida. When our community, volunteers and supporters come together, we strengthen an ecosystem that helps individuals and families not only overcome hunger but thrive.” Feeding South Florida thanks its generous Presenting Sponsor Delta Airlines and Premier Impact Partners Publix and Publix Supermarkets Charities. For more information about Hunger Action Month, please visit: https://secure.qgiv.com/event/qx89ki . Or contact: events@feedingsouthflorida.org . About Feeding South Florida® Feeding South Florida is a member of the Feeding America network and is the Leading Hunger-Relief Organization serving Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe Counties. Providing support for more than 25 percent of the state’s food-insecure population, its mission is to end hunger in South Florida by providing immediate access to nutritious food, leading hunger and poverty advocacy efforts, and transforming lives through innovative programming and education. Feeding South Florida serves over 1.7 million unique individuals through direct-service programs and a local network of more than 350 NonProfit and community partners. Visit: www.feedingsouthflorida.org . Or call: (954) 518-1818. During Hunger Action Month, South Floridians can participate in various activities throughout the month. Feeding South Florida's mission is to end hunger in South Florida. Feeding America, takes place throughout September and is designed to raise awareness about the issue of hunger in America and inspire others to take action toward ending it. Previous Next

Ride & Play With Onboard Family Fun: Explore Special Offers From Popular Miami Venues Thu Apr 11 2024 16:01:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Disney On Ice Rolls Out The Red Carpet With Spotlight Magic! South Florida Sun Times May 21, 2026 A Dazzling New Disney On Ice Production Is Skating Into Sunrise, And It’s Unlike Anything Audiences Have Seen Before. Disney On Ice Presents Spotlight Magic! Invites Fans To Step Into The Spotlight And Join A Glamorous Red-Carpet Celebration Packed With Never-Before-Seen Performances, Chart-Topping Music, And More Than 30 Beloved Disney Characters – Coming To Amerant Bank Arena From Thursday, September 10th, 2026 - Sunday, September 13th, 2026. Disney On Ice Preferred Customers can purchase advance tickets starting today to get the best seats available, tickets went on sale to the public on Tuesday May 12th, 2026. Fans can still sign up to become a Disney On Ice Preferred Customer and get exclusive access to the pre-sale offer code. Hosted by Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy, Spotlight Magic! celebrates the magic each of us brings to the party. As the spotlight travels through vibrant Disney worlds, heroes, sidekicks, and even villains, take center stage for unforgettable moments of music, storytelling, and world-class skating. Audiences will have the chance to see fan‑favorite characters make their Disney On Ice debuts. From Zootopia 2, pop sensation Gazelle and sly newcomer Gary De’Snake, join Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde for an all‑new adventure. From Lilo & Stitch, Angel makes her highly anticipated North American debut, soaring high above the arena on a sparkling chandelier before reuniting with Stitch in a heartwarming on‑ice moment. Fans will also experience beloved stories from Beauty and the Beast, Tangled, Toy Story, Moana, and Monsters, Inc., alongside a thrilling, never-before-seen showcase featuring Disney’s iconic villains, including the Evil Queen, Gaston, Maleficent, and Ursula. The celebration is powered by an electrifying soundtrack that blends Disney Channel hits like “Pumpin’ Up the Party” (“Hannah Montana”), “A Night to Remember” (High School Musical 3: Senior Year), and “Good to Be Bad” (Descendants 3), with timeless classics such as “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” (Toy Story), “Be Our Guest” (Beauty and the Beast), “I’ve Got a Dream” (Tangled), and “I Am Moana” (Moana). Beyond the music and storytelling, Spotlight Magic! delivers breathtaking production elements, including jaw-dropping aerial acrobatics, a kinetic chandelier made of 64 glowing light bars, cutting-edge LED technology, and dazzling choreography performed by world-class figure skaters. From shimmering lanterns illuminating the arena to performers riding a moving camera boom that sweeps spotlights across the ice, every moment is designed to immerse audiences in Hollywood-inspired magic. The excitement begins before the show and continues at intermission, as guests are invited to strut the red carpet and showcase their star power. Fans are encouraged to dress to impress and take part in the high-energy atmosphere that sets the stage for an unforgettable night. This all-new production joins a unique lineup of seven Disney On Ice shows currently touring worldwide, including Jump In!, Find Your Hero, Magic of Family, Mickey’s Search Party, Road Trip Adventures, Magic in the Stars, and Let’s Dance!, each bringing Disney magic to guests in their hometowns across the globe. Produced by Feld Entertainment, Disney On Ice has entertained millions of families in more than 80 countries on six continents. When: Thursday, September 10th, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. Friday, September 11th, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. Saturday, September 12th, 2026 at 11:00 a.m., 3:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. Sunday, September 13th, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. & 4:00 p.m. Where: Amerant Bank Arena – One Panther Parkway, Sunrise, Florida 33323 Tickets: Purchase online at: www.SeatGeek.com or in-person at the venue box office. It’s easier than ever to experience Disney magic with family-friendly pricing that lets you choose the perfect enchanted adventure. *Ticket pricing is subject to change based on market demand. Magical Pass Add a little extra magic to your Disney On Ice experience with the all-new Magical Pass, including premium seats with some of the best views in the house! Arrive early to enjoy a visit with a special Disney star before the start of the show and commemorate your very special experience with a collectible lanyard. Note: Character greeting included with Magical Pass starts 45 minutes before the show and will conclude promptly 15 minutes before show time. Adults & children, ages 2 and up, MUST each have a Magical Pass Package show ticket to attend. Children must be accompanied by an adult. For specific Sunrise local show information, please visit: https://www.disneyonice.com/spotlight-magic/sunrise-fl-amerant-bank-arena Follow Disney On Ice Social Media channels: Facebook, Instagram and TikTok About Feld Entertainment® Feld Entertainment®, family owned and operated, is the worldwide leader in producing and presenting live touring family entertainment experiences that bring people together and uplift the human spirit. Properties include Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey®, Monster Jam®, Disney On Ice, Monster Energy AMA Supercross, and the SuperMotocross World Championship. Across the brand portfolio, Feld Entertainment has entertained millions of families in more than 80 countries and on six continents. Visit: www.feldentertainment.com for more information. Beauty & The Beast Mickey & Minnie Moana Monsters Inc Stitch & Ange Tangled Toy Story Zootopia Previous Next

Changing The Lives of Students: A Pathway Through Education To Economic Success Thu Jun 06 2024 16:16:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Broward Performing Arts Foundation’s Annual Reception And Brunch Kicks Off Broward Center’s 2025-2026 Performance Season South Florida Sun Times Dec 25, 2025 The Broward Performing Arts Foundation Annual Reception And Brunch Kicked Off The New Season For Donors And Benefactors With A Look Back At History And A Preview Of The Programming To Come At The Broward Center For The Performing Arts. The Event, Generously Underwritten By J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Had A Decidedly French Theme With Guests Arriving To Have Their Photos Taken Before A Backdrop Of The Eiffel Tower. Highlighting the Annual Reception was a presentation by award-winning author, historian, master storyteller, and distinguished professor of American History at Lynn University Dr. Robert Watson, who brought to life the history behind the show that revolutionized Broadway musicals, the Tony Award-winning Les Miserables, coming to the Au-Rene Theater at the Broward Center from Tuesday, December 16th, 2025 - Sunday, December 28th, 2025. Broward Performing Arts Foundation President Lisa Kitei welcomed guests, introduced the board and announced two upcoming fundraisers for the Broward Center: Winter Wonderland A “Frozen” Family Celebration on Sunday, December 14th, 2025 and the Foundation’s 2026 Annual Celebration with Darius Rucker on Saturday, March 7th. Tables for the Annual Celebration pre-show dinner are sold out; however, VIP tickets for lower orchestra seating and the post-show tailgate party are still available. Foundation Board Chair Dev Motwani spoke about his connection to the Broward Center starting at an early age. “My high school graduation was one of the first held here. I had the good fortune of speaking as valedictorian at the ceremony, so to be here speaking before you now as Board Chair, I have come full circle.” Motwani, who was reintroduced to the Broward Center when he served as Chair of the City of Fort Lauderdale’s Economic Development Advisory Board, said, “It was then when I started to understand the Broward Center’s true economic impact. What your support does here for the community helps fund the largest free arts education program in the United States benefiting more than 100,000 students from 150 Broward schools annually through more than 50 education programs.” Broward Center President and CEO Ty Sutton previewed highlights of the upcoming season, including the Bank of America Broadway in Fort Lauderdale series and the MD Now Slow Burn Theatre Company series. “At a time where we see arts groups throughout the United States, especially some of the largest performing arts centers, reducing programs, we keep expanding and growing and that is thanks to all of you,” Sutton said. “I am excited for this upcoming season.” For nearly 40 years, the Broward Performing Arts Foundation has been instrumental in providing support for the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. The Foundation was established in 1985 to deliver the required private funding to build the Center and create an endowment to sustain its operations. Over the years, the Foundation has successfully raised funds to support the Broward Center’s innovative and diverse programming, arts-in-education initiatives, community engagement activities and capital projects. In 2021, the Foundation completed a $30 million capital campaign to renovate and restore the iconic Parker Playhouse. Prior to this, it raised $60 million to complete the Encore! capital campaign to renovate, renew and revitalize the Broward Center. For more information about the Broward Performing Arts Foundation, call: (954) 468-3284. Or email: Foundation@BrowardCenter.org . About The Broward Center for the Performing Arts One of America’s premier performing arts venues, the Broward Center for the Performing Arts presents more than 850 performances each year to more than 600,000 patrons, displaying a wide range of exciting cultural programming and events. Guest experiences at the Broward Center include the all-inclusive Spirit Club Level, the Nicklaus Children’s Health System Intermezzo Lounge, special events in the Huizenga Pavilion and innovative classes and workshops for all ages at the Rose Miniaci Arts Education Center. With one of the largest arts-in-education programs in the United States, the Broward Center serves more than 100,000 students annually. The Broward Center also manages The Parker, an iconic Fort Lauderdale venue, the Rose & Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center on the campus of Nova Southeastern University and the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center in Miami-Dade County. The Broward Performing Arts Foundation, Inc. receives and maintains funds to sustain, develop and secure the future of the Broward Center. The Broward Center is located at 201 Southwest Fifth Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33312. For more information, visit: www.BrowardCenter.org . Dev Motwani, Dr. Robert Watson, Polly Sutton, Ty Sutton, Lisa Kitei (Photo Credit: Downtown Photo) Dr. Robert Watson, Rick Thill (JPMorgan Chase), Ty Sutton, Carole Bowen Ann M. Burris and Jon Hines Charlie Ladd, Valerie Peru, Brooke Lochrie, Robert Lochrie Sonia Gleit, Michael Gleit, Suzanne Scharf, Bernard Scharf Sharon Florescue, Carole Nugent, Dr. Robert Watson, Bonnie Barnett, Carol Kalagher, Ladan Patel, Sophia Mylona Soneet Kapila and Dr. Prabodh Kapila Linda Von Allmen and Douglas Von Allmen Todd Lard and Brian Huseman Wayne Weiner, and Lucretia Weiner Previous Next

Where Florida’s Gun Violence Exacts Its Biggest Toll On Black And Latino Children By Daniel Chang and Fred Clasen-Kelly, KFF Health News; Olga Pierce, The Trace; Yona Gavino, Action News Jax; and Daralene Jones, WFTV Sep 3, 2026 Just West Of The St. Johns River, Which Divides This Sprawling City Racially And Economically, 2-Year-Old A’mahri Robinson Was Murdered In His Mother’s Arms. Ladonna Johnson was rocking A’mahri to sleep in March when he was shot in the head with a gun she kept for protection. A’mahri loved going outdoors and taking rides in his pull-along wagon. His mother called the toddler “sweet” and “affectionate.” When he was around, she said, “you just felt love.” The child was close with Steven Dodson Jr., his mother’s boyfriend, who had reached for the gun during an argument. Dodson, 21, in June pleaded guilty to murder and aggravated child abuse and was sentenced to life in prison. A’mahri died in one of Florida’s most violent places for children: Jacksonville. This city has three ZIP codes that rank among the 10 worst in the state for firearm injuries involving children. Every year, hundreds of children are hospitalized in Florida with gunshot wounds, and overwhelmingly, they come from a tiny number of ZIP codes, an exclusive analysis of hospital data by KFF Health News and The Trace found. Hospital billing data obtained from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration shows that from 2018 to 2024 more than 4,000 children 17 or younger were hospitalized for firearm injuries — a rate of about 1.5 a day. The newsrooms gathered data that the state’s hospitals use to collect payments from insurance companies or the government. The information does not identify patients but includes details about where they lived and their age, race, and other demographics. The number of children killed in Jacksonville has grown so large that a nonprofit , Families of Slain Children, built a “Wall of Compassion” memorial listing hundreds of people killed by gunfire in the city. Memorial organizers have stood up a second wall nearby that is filling with names. The numbers reflect how Florida’s long history of racial discrimination and permissive gun laws undermine public health, said researchers, public officials, community activists, and grieving parents. Jacksonville kids were shot most often in racially segregated neighborhoods — a legacy from the early 20th century of state-sanctioned discrimination in housing, banking, and investment. These areas today are plagued by pollution from defunct city-run trash incinerators, garbage-strewn lots, dilapidated housing, poverty, and other problems that local leaders have been promising to fix for more than 50 years. Nearly all the Florida ZIP codes with the highest rates of firearm injuries for children have large Black or Latino populations. Perhaps nowhere is the toll of gun violence more evident than at UF Health Jacksonville, a safety net hospital and the only Level I trauma center in northeastern Florida. As Chief of Acute Care Surgery, Firas Madbak sees firsthand the toll exacted by guns. “You see it day in and day out,” Madbak said. “I'm working tonight, and I suspect I'll see a couple victims.” Jeffrey Goldhagen , a UF Health Pediatrician and Former Health Director for Duval County, which includes Jacksonville, said state and local leaders have failed to address what he called the “root causes” of preventable firearm injuries and deaths, such as poverty, lack of opportunity, and neglect. “The bottom line is nobody gives a flying f--- about these young men,” Goldhagen said. Gun violence victims and their families face increased risk of depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other mental health problems. Throughout U.S. history, local governments have pushed industrial plants, oil refineries , and highways through Black neighborhoods even as research linked them to increased risks of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, cancer, preterm births, and gun violence. But the Florida Department of Health does not focus on gun violence as a public health threat, Goldhagen said, despite its being the nation’s leading cause of death for children and teens. The State Health Improvement Plan , a set of goals developed by the health department and an advisory committee, does not mention guns, the toll they take on children, or efforts to reduce firearm deaths and injuries to young people. Instead, its goals include preventing or reducing sudden unexpected infant deaths and youth drownings, emergency room visits for motor vehicle crashes, and hospitalizations for traumatic brain injuries. And yet, no one with the authority to address this public health crisis would agree to talk to KFF Health News about gun violence and its toll on Jacksonville’s children — not the Florida health department, Gov. Ron DeSantis, Mayor Donna Deegan, or 18 of 19 members of the Jacksonville City Council. Only Council member Jimmy Peluso responded. Peluso said the city has long ignored the needs of neighborhoods with high rates of firearm injuries among children. “A lot of these neighborhoods have just felt like the wealth has left them,” he said, “and the city didn’t come in to put in the amount of work they needed to.” DeSantis, a Republican, in public comments has called for few limits on how people purchase or carry firearms. He signed a bill to allow Floridians to carry concealed weapons without a permit. When then-U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared firearm violence a public health crisis in 2024, DeSantis called the advisory an “ unconstitutional power-grab .” DeSantis said Florida would not follow the advisory, which recommended policies including universal background checks for gun purchases and requirements for secure storage. DeSantis spokesperson Molly Best declined an interview request and to answer questions about the governor’s gun policies. “There isn’t an agenda to end gun violence in the state of Florida,” said Jean Francis, a former pediatric nurse who leads the Jacksonville chapter of Moms Demand Action, part of a nonprofit that advocates for stronger firearm laws. Research has linked increases in pediatric gun deaths from 2011 to 2023 to state-level gun policies. States with permissive gun policies, such as “stand your ground” and open carry laws, reported higher rates of firearm deaths among children than states with strict regulations, such as weapon and age restrictions, according to a study in JAMA Pediatrics . The study ranked Florida among a group of 30 states with the most permissive gun policies. Four states with comparatively strict gun laws — California, Maryland, New York, and Rhode Island — saw a decrease in pediatric gun deaths over the same time period. Florida law prevents cities and counties from enacting stricter gun safety measures. Research shows kids in disadvantaged neighborhoods are up to 20 times more likely to suffer firearm injuries than their peers in the most advantaged areas. “It's disheartening,” Madbak said. UF Health Jacksonville treated 255 patients for gunshot wounds in 2024, including 32 who were 17 or younger, he said. In 2025, the hospital treated 269 patients for firearm injuries, including 22 who were under 18, according to Dan Leveton, a hospital spokesperson. As of Aug. 19, the hospital has treated 137 patients for gunshot wounds this year, including 18 who were 17 or younger. Preventing gun violence “shouldn't be a political issue, even though it is,” Madbak said, adding that there is a lot of room for more effective advocacy for violence prevention. “It's really an American issue,” Madbak said, “and our state has been impacted tremendously by this kind of violence.” The Pain of Mothers, Grandmothers, and Aunts In Orlando, one ZIP code — 32805 — had the state’s highest rate of children under 18 hospitalized for a gunshot wound from 2018 through 2024, with a total of 25 children, or 125.8 per 100,000. On New Year’s Day 2018, Bryce Williams, 17, was shot in a neighborhood park in Casselberry, an Orlando suburb. He was found dead after crashing his blue Kia into a home near the park. Williams’ death devastated his family, his grandmother Kim Crow told WFTV in Orlando. “First off, you can’t believe that someone is taken from you so violently,” Crow said. “It’s heartbreaking.” In April, Daesean Moctezuma Orland, 18, was fatally shot while attending a house party outside Orlando. Two others wounded in the shooting were taken to the hospital. Police arrested a 16-year-old boy about a month after the shooting and charged him with Moctezuma Orland’s death. Moctezuma Orland’s grandmother Lizzy Moctezuma told WFTV that a friend of her grandson’s called her and daughter Noemi Moctezuma to tell them that he had been shot. The women drove to four hospitals, including one in Tampa, searching for him. “My every day is crumbled,” Lizzy Moctezuma said. “It's hard to work. You sit there and you watch the news. You're like, oh my God, there goes another kid getting killed by gun violence.” “It's a hole in my chest, a hole in my mind,” Noemi Moctezuma said. “It's like the biggest void that you could ever possibly imagine, that not even the happiest moments can fill a void like that.” Jacksonville, a city of about 1 million, is particularly treacherous for children living in areas north and west of downtown. The victims include a 7-year-old boy gunned down while playing in front of a house, a 13-year-old boy fatally wounded coming home from a football tryout, and a 5-year-old girl killed by a stray bullet as she sat in a parked car. Advocates for victims said that gun violence has ripped any sense of normalcy from families and entire neighborhoods. Grieving mothers fear fireworks and other loud noises that sound like gunshots. Grappling with their own emotions, they said, they sometimes struggle to help their surviving children cope with the loss. “When you hear their stories, you think, ‘This is the worst thing I have ever heard,’” Francis said, “until you hear the next one.” Hours after graduating from Jacksonville’s Raines High School in May 2022, Rashaud Fields , 18, was shot and killed while arriving at a friend’s celebration. Fields was walking into the party when a car pulled up and opened fire, his mother, Yvonne Fields, told Action News Jax in an interview. A defensive lineman on his high school football team, Fields had been offered a full scholarship to play for Keiser University in West Palm Beach. His parents were planning a party for the following day to celebrate his graduation “Everybody loved him,” Yvonne Fields said of her youngest son, calling him “the life of the party.” “Rashaud loved to dance. He was a joke teller. He was funny,” Fields said. At the time, Rashaud Fields was at least the ninth 17- to 19-year-old homicide victim in the city that year, according to the Florida Times-Union , the local newspaper. Yvonne Fields said she has kept her son’s room exactly as he left it the day he was killed. She smells his shirt every day. “I know he's not coming back,” she said, “but I can feel the spirit.” Two days after celebrating his 18th birthday, Maurice Hobbs was fatally shot in January 2017 as he waited for his mother to pick him up. “I was not even a block away,” Latasha Hobbs said to Action News Jax. A singer, rapper, and poet, Maurice Hobbs wanted to perform and launch a clothing line. He dreamt of making enough money to give homes to everyone in his family so they could all live on the same street. His mom recalled celebrating his birthday with cake and dancing in the kitchen and his reaction to turning 18. “He was like, ‘Oh my God, Mom, I made it to 18,’” Latasha Hobbs said. “So it's hard to swallow knowing that my baby didn't make it to 19. It's not fair. My baby deserves to be here.” Pamela Howard has struggled for nearly two decades with the pain of the killing of her son Derrell Baker at age 17. Howard, a mother of five, called her son energetic and an anchor for his younger siblings. Baker excelled at football, she said, and was on track to graduate high school despite having severe attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Someone shot Baker in September 2008 as he walked to school. A passerby found him by the road. Howard said she thought Baker was at school and later football practice. The family learned something might be wrong only when a sibling heard that Baker had been shot. Howard called area hospitals in search of her son. By the time she found him at UF Health Jacksonville, it was too late, she said: He had died hours earlier. “I don’t remember anything after they told me” he was dead, Howard said. “My friends say they just heard me scream.” For the mothers Fields, Hobbs, and Howard, the sudden, unexpected death of their children cut deep. The lack of closure is painful. Police have not made an arrest in any of the cases. “When I get justice,” Yvonne Fields said, “maybe I'll be a little at peace.” Leading Cause of Death Michael Nance , Chief of Pediatric Surgery and Trauma at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, said there has to be an appetite in state capitals to regulate firearms and protect children from gun violence. Nance co-authored a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics finding that the number of states where guns were the leading cause of death for children and teens increased from zero over the period 2004 to 2008 to 24 from 2019 to 2023. Motor vehicle deaths among children, once the leading cause of death in that group, have declined primarily because of safety interventions undertaken by governments and car manufacturers, he said, from seat belt laws and speed limits to air bags and antilock brakes. “That progress has been pretty universal across the U.S.,” he said, “but firearm stuff is just all over the map.” Guns don’t have federal safety standards, Nance noted. They aren’t regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, a federal agency that protects the public from dangerous products, and they can’t be recalled the way unsafe toys or cars can be. “We've really done almost nothing to change the trajectory of firearm injuries in kids,” Nance said. Goldhagen, the UF Health pediatrician, said Jacksonville leaders tried to address gun violence through the Jacksonville Journey, an initiative launched in 2008 — when Duval County was the murder capital of Florida — under former Mayor John Peyton. The program for children at risk of violence provided mentorship, summer camps, job training, and nonpolice strategies such as neighborhood beautification projects and community center programs. The Journey also partnered with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on gang intervention focused on young people. Officials credited the effort with a nearly 40% reduction in homicides in Duval County in its first four years. After Peyton left office in 2011, program spending of about $15 Million was slashed to $8.6 Million in 2012 and about $2.3 Million in 2014. The scaled-back program was eventually combined with another children’s initiative to form the Kids Hope Alliance , which uses city, state, and federal grants to fund youth services and intervention programs. Duval County is the only large county in Florida that does not have a child services tax dedicated to programs for children, including efforts to reduce youth crime. City leaders believe “public safety is about fire and police, but not social services,” said Vicki Waytowich, Executive Director of the Partnership for Child Health , a nonprofit funded through grants and contracts that provides health and juvenile justice services for children and families in Jacksonville. “There is absolutely zero political will to do anything that remotely resembles a child services tax,” she said. In 2024, city leaders halted spending on a gun violence prevention program called Cure Violence, which tried to squash beefs between youths before they escalated to shootings. A city Office of Inspector General report alleged the program lacked oversight and sound financial practices. “We have a public health system that doesn’t focus on this as a public health or population health issue,” Goldhagen said. Waytowich said crime is a symptom of much deeper problems on the north side of Jacksonville, from neighborhood decay to generational trauma and lack of job opportunities. “We don’t really have the funds to address the root causes,” she said. “What we’re doing is slapping a band-aid on things.” Unlike in Mandarin, a predominantly white neighborhood on the south side of Jacksonville with easy access to about seven grocery stores, children of the city’s north side have poor nutrition, Waytowich said, and many walk more than a mile to get to school. “We can see that kids don’t have hope,” Waytowich said. “When kids believe they’re going to die at 21, then what’s the use of goal-setting and résumé-building workshops?” In 2025, Jacksonville Mayor Deegan launched a program to address gun violence called Journey Forward . But like its predecessor, Journey Forward does not have a dedicated, ongoing source of funding. Hard Memory On March 22, Ladonna Johnson said, she broke up with Dodson because she saw that he was sharing location information with other women on his cellphone. She said she went into a bedroom where A’mahri and his sister were watching television and put her son on her lap. Dodson followed Johnson into the room, she said, then went into a closet and retrieved the gun. “He just kept asking me, ‘What are we doing?’” Johnson said. Moments later, Johnson said, she heard a loud bang. Her daughter started to cry. They will both need therapy, she said. She is dedicated to preserving A’mahri’s memory: “I want people to know how adorable and sweet my son was.” Still, she said, “I feel like I will never be OK.” Methodology To find that more than 4,000 children under 18 had been treated in Florida hospitals for gunshot wounds from 2018 to 2024, The Trace and KFF Health News analyzed two datasets obtained from the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration via a data request: • In the emergency department file, which contained records of 67,565,314 ER visits that did not result in an inpatient admission, we identified 37,415 gunshot wound cases using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s ICD injury code matrix . • In the inpatient file, which contained records of 21,857,664 hospital visits in which patients were admitted, we identified 28,149 gunshot wound cases using the CDC definition. We defined children as 17 and under and filtered the patient age column to find that 2,340 children had been treated in ERs and 1,684 admitted to hospitals with gunshot wounds. To avoid double-counting, we excluded patients from the emergency department file whose records indicated that they were transferred to a different inpatient facility. Demographic breakdowns were generated using the race and ethnicity columns in the datasets. To examine the geographic distribution of the burden of gun violence, we grouped child gunshot wound victims by the ZIP code provided. Importantly, this ZIP code is the location not of the shooting but of the child’s residence. A small number of children in the data had out-of-state ZIP codes, or placeholder ZIP codes indicating they were homeless or from a foreign country. These children are included in statewide totals as children treated in Florida hospitals but not in ZIP-level results. This data does not include children who were shot but died at the scene or before reaching the hospital or who never received medical treatment. KFF Health News data editor Holly K. Hacker contributed to this report. This report was produced by KFF Health News, The Trace, Action News Jax in Jacksonville, and WFTV in Orlando. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism. Two-year-old A’mahri Robinson was murdered while in his mother’s arms in March. (Ladonna Johnson) The Jacksonville, Florida, nonprofit Families of Slain Children has built a memorial called the “Wall of Compassion” that lists the names of hundreds of people who have been killed by gun violence in the city. (Daniel Chang/KFF Health News) Iveliz Moctezuma, grandmother of Daesean Moctezuma Orland, who was shot and killed at age 18 at a house party in Davenport, Florida, in April. “It was the hardest night of my life,” she says. “They ripped him away from us.” (Keary Croskrey/WFTV) Yvonne Fields of Jacksonville, Florida, talks about the death of her son, Rashaud Fields, 18, who was shot and killed in May 2022 at a high school graduation party. Her son loved to dance and was a joke teller, Fields says. (Kevin Jordan/Action News Jax) The day her son Derrell Baker did not come home from football practice in 2008, Pamela Howard of Jacksonville, Florida, heard from her daughter and later on social media that Baker had been shot, she says. She says she called local hospitals until she found that Baker, 17, had died of his injuries. “There’s nothing to prepare you for it,” she says, “but there’s nothing to help you deal with it.” (Malcolm Jackson for KFF Health News) Kim Crow, grandmother of Bryce Williams, who died at age 17 from being shot in a neighborhood park in an Orlando suburb in 2018. Crow says her grandson’s death has left a void in her life. “I'm not me anymore,” she says. (WFTV) Latasha Hobbs celebrated the 18th birthday of her son, Maurice Hobbs, in January 2017. Two days later, he was fatally shot. She says he was a singer, rapper, and poet who dreamt of starting his own clothing line. (Kevin Jordan/Action News Jax) Noemi Moctezuma, aunt of Daesean Moctezuma Orland, who was shot and killed at age 18 at a house party in Davenport, Florida, in April. “It's a hole in my chest, a hole in my mind,” she says. (Keary Croskrey/WFTV) Previous Next

Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center Presents Soweto Gospel Choir Aventura Digest Sep 5, 2025 The Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center At 7:00 p.m. On Saturday, September 20th, 2025 For A Celebratory And Culturally Rich Performance. The World-Renowned, Multi-GRAMMY® And Emmy® Award-Winning Ensemble From South Africa Will Perform PEACE, A Program Filled With Joyous Songs To Delight The Entire Family. Tickets Are Available At: https://www.mosscenter.org/mc/eventDetail.page?id=364 PEACE features a vibrant mix of South African freedom songs, traditional spirituals, and beloved classics. The eclectic program also includes an array of tributes to musical icons, among them Aretha Franklin, Harry Belafonte, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, and Leonard Cohen. Soweto Gospel Choir formed in 2002 in celebration of African gospel music’s inspirational spirit. Since then, the group has garnered worldwide acclaim for their rich harmonies, dynamic rhythms, and vibrant stage presence. Described by the San Francisco Classical Voice as a group that is “undeniably synchronized, appears unshakable, and simultaneously expresses universality and individuality,” Soweto Gospel Choir continues to impress and engage audiences around the globe. Celebrated by Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Barack Obama, and Oprah Winfrey, the group specializes in music that transcends borders, reminding all of hope, peace, and faith’s unifying power. The collective also lives the love that is expressed on stage. Soweto Gospel Choir is actively involved with philanthropic ambassador work and established its own AIDS orphans foundation, Nkosi’s Haven Vukani, to raise money for underfunded organizations. Ticket prices for PEACE range from $25 to $35. The show is recommended for ages 7 and above. To purchase, visit: www.MossCenter.org , visit the Moss Center Box Office in person. Or call: (786) 573-5300. Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center The Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center, informally known as “The Moss Center,” is managed by the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, with funding support from the Office of the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners. The Center is dedicated to presenting and supporting arts and culture and providing access to the arts to Miami-Dade County. More information about the Center and its programs can be found at: www.MossCenter.org . Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs The Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council develop cultural excellence, diversity, access and participation throughout Miami-Dade County by strategically creating and promoting equitable opportunities for artists and cultural organizations, our residents and visitors who are their audiences. The Department receives funding through the Miami Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, The Children’s Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, the State of Florida through the Florida Department of State, Florida Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Peacock Foundation, Inc., The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation, and The Taft Foundation. Other support and services are provided by TicketWeb for the Culture Shock Miami program, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, the South Florida Cultural Consortium and the Tourist Development Council. For more information, visit: https://miamidadearts.org . Dennis C. Moss Cultural Arts Center - located at 10950 Southwest 211th Street Miami, Florida 33189 Previous Next

History Fort Lauderdale Presents “Three By The River” - Artists-In-Residence Annual Show From Thursday, June 4th 2026 – Tuesday, June 30th, 2026 South Florida Sun Times May 28, 2026 History Fort Lauderdale Presents “Three By The River,” An Artists-In-Residence Annual Exhibition, From Thursday, June 4th, 2026 To Tuesday, June 30th, 2026. Featured Will Be Acrylics By Constance Ivana, Mixed Media Works By Stephanie McMillan, And Portraits By Florencia Clement de Grandprey. An Opening Reception And Meet-And-Greet With The Artists Will Take Place On Thursday, June 4th, 2026 From 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., At The New River Inn Museum Of History Building On History Fort Lauderdale’s Campus. Complimentary Light Bites And Beverages Will Be Provided. “We’re proud to continue creating opportunities for artists and the community to connect through art and culture,” said Patricia Zeiler, Executive Director of History Fort Lauderdale. “’Three by the River’ highlights a diverse range of creative perspectives and celebrates the imagination and talent that help shape South Florida’s vibrant arts scene.” Constance Ivana is a Fort Lauderdale–based Mural Artist and visual creative passionate about creating bold, vibrant artwork that sparks reflection, conversation, and joy. Her art is inspired by social justice, Black stories, women’s voices, and nature. Stephanie McMillan is a third-generation Fort Lauderdale resident and artist. Her distinctive style combines affectionate humor with the bright colors of the sunny tropics. A graduate of the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU, with a focus in animation, she began drawing illustrations and editorial cartoons, for which she won several Florida Press Club awards. This led to 25 years as a widely published freelance cartoonist and illustrator producing award-winning editorial cartoons, syndicated comic strips, comic journalism, and graphic novels. In recent years she has returned to painting, drawing, and mixed media assemblage. She is the author/illustrator of several books including As the World Burns and The Beginning of the American Fall: A Comics Journalist Inside the Occupy Wall Street Movement (Seven Stories Press). Her original sketches, illustrations, comics, and papers are archived at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum at Ohio State University. Born and raised in southern Spain, Florencia Clement de Grandprey is a self-taught mixed media figurative artist whose mission is to empower and inspire through meaningful and uplifting artwork. Her artistic journey began in 2014 when she left her full-time job in interior design to follow her true passion: painting. Clement de Grandprey has developed a style without rules, granting her the freedom to express herself fully. She blends her love for the classic masters with contemporary design, resulting in unique mixed media paintings. Her award-winning work celebrates strong, confident, soul-aligned men and women. She aims to highlight our unique, perfectly imperfect nature, bringing out our strengths and beauty as a reminder of who we truly are. She ensures that a variety of ethnicities are represented, making everyone feel seen and honored in her art. History Fort Lauderdale, proud steward of our community’s past by making our heritage accessible and engaging to residents and visitors, hosts a variety of engaging multicultural experiences, year-round. It seeks to bring awareness to the community through both traveling exhibits and multiple permanent exhibits including “Women Trailblazers,” “Fort Lauderdale – the Early Years,” “The Roots of Resilience: The Journey of Black Broward,” “Fashion & Musical Theatre,” “From Dugouts to Dream Yachts: the story of boatbuilding along the New River,” Seminole Arts & Culture,” “New River Archaeology,” “Viva Fort Lauderdale: Celebrating Hispanic Art & Culture,” and “Take PRIDE, a retrospective on LGBTQ life in South Florida.” History Fort Lauderdale’s Artists-in-Residence Annual Show is sponsored by the following funds at the Community Foundation of Broward: Jan and Ed Crocker Unrestricted Fund, Leo M. and Alice J. Rutten Fund and The Frederick A. DeLuca Foundation Broward Community Fund. Additional funding is provided, in part, by Broward County Board of County Commissioners as recommended by the Broward County Cultural Council and Visit Lauderdale. History Fort Lauderdale is open seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. with docent guided tours, daily, at 1:00 p.m., 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Group walking tours are available upon special request. Admission is $15 for adults; $12 for seniors and $7 for students (through age 22 with a valid student ID). Admission is free for members, military and children ages six and under. Tickets are available online at: HistoryFortLauderdaleTickets. For more information about History Fort Lauderdale, please call: (954) 463-4431. Or visit us online at: https://historyfortlauderdale.org . Follow us on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/ftlhistory , on Instagram @ftlhistory and on Twitter @FTLHistory. Subscribe to us on YouTube at: www.youtube.com/user/FTLhistory . History Fort Lauderdale Since 1962, History Fort Lauderdale has served as the proud steward of our community’s past by making our heritage accessible and engaging to residents and visitors. It brings the stories of our diverse community to life through engaging educational experiences, innovative cultural exhibits, research, and preservation of artifacts. Guests to Fort Lauderdale are invited to explore the city’s rich past that is housed in historic buildings on a lushly landscaped campus - the History Museum of Fort Lauderdale situated in the 1905 New River Inn, the 1907 Pioneer House Museum, the 1899 Ivy Cromartie Schoolhouse Museum and the Hoch Research Library, South Florida’s foremost history center housing print resources and newspapers from 1910 - present plus 400,000 archival photos, 2,500 maps and 5,000 architectural blueprints. History Fort Lauderdale is located at 231 Southwest Second Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301. Tickets are available online at: http://bit.ly/HistoryFortLauderdaleTickets . History Fort Lauderdale is a NonProfit agency supported by memberships, grants and charitable contributions. “Universal Reflection,” 46" x 62" hand-painted acrylic on fiber, by Florencia Clement de Grandprey “Representation,” acrylic, by Constance Ivana “Superorganism,” mixed media, 78”x 48” by Stephanie McMillan Previous Next

Broward Resident Finds Strength In Giving Back South Florida Sun Times Apr 9, 2026 When Shashayne Maxwell Walked Into The Lobby Of Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital On The Morning Of December 11th, 2025, She Wasn’t Just Volunteering. She Was Returning To A Place That Once Supported Her Family And Helped Her Discover Just How Strong She Could Be. Maxwell, who will celebrate her third year with Florida Power & Light Company this July, joined fellow employees and Miami Dolphins cheerleaders at the 22nd Annual Kiss Country Cares for Kids Radiothon. The event raised a record‑breaking $344,003—the highest total in the Radiothon’s history—to support the hospital’s mission of providing world‑class care to children across South Florida. For Maxwell, volunteering wasn’t just an act of service; it was personal. In 2014, Maxwell’s son began feeling unwell shortly after returning from a summer in Boston. What began as a routine visit to urgent care quickly escalated. Doctors suspected Diabetes and rushed him to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, where his diagnosis was confirmed. He was admitted the day before his 12th birthday. “He spent a week there,” Maxwell recalls. “The staff was incredible. They paid attention to every detail. They basically saved his life.” Her son spent two days in the ICU before transitioning to the Pediatric Ward, where hospital staff made sure he wouldn’t miss out on celebrating his milestone birthday. They decorated his room with balloons and a handmade banner. A clown rode in on a tiny tricycle. Nurses stopped in with gifts and cheers. “They made him feel like everything was going to be okay,” she says. “In such a scary moment, they gave him hope, and they gave me hope, too.” Years later, when Maxwell arrived for the Radiothon, she recognized the clown who helped her son celebrate, now retired, but still volunteering. “She remembered my son’s name,” Maxwell says. “I couldn’t believe it. You don’t often get moments like that.” Maxwell admits that returning to the hospital brought a wave of emotions. “It was bittersweet,” she says. “But I felt compelled to show up and give back to another child who might be going through something just as terrifying.” As stories from families filled the airwaves during the Radiothon, Maxwell reflected on how deeply the hospital’s work touches the community. With more than 360,000 pediatric patient interactions each year, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital serves as a lifeline for families across the region, including many in FPL’s service area. “To know that I was part of something that will help those families meant everything,” Maxwell shares. “It reminded me how much empathy and kindness there is in our community.” Her experience strengthened her commitment to service and community involvement. She credits her family—including her husband, who also works for FPL—and her colleagues for their steady support throughout the years. “This office is so family‑oriented,” she says. “I know I can ask for help when I need it, and someone will be there.” That same sense of care extends beyond the workplace. In 2025, employees volunteered more than 55,000 hours in their communities. Through volunteerism and community partnerships, FPL is committed to powering strong communities and making them better places to live, work and raise a family. Today, Maxwell balances her career, family and the final stretch of her MBA program at Florida Atlantic University, where she’ll graduate this summer. She says her experiences have shaped her perspective and strengthened her resolve to serve others. As she reflects on her journey, Maxwell says she hopes others find encouragement in her story. “There’s always a blessing somewhere, even in the hardest moments,” she says. “Looking back at everything we’ve been through, I know I can do this. And if I can, someone else can too.” Previous Next

South Florida's Theater & Arts Honors - The Carbonell Awards Welcome Four New Judges For 2025-2026 Theatre Season South Florida Sun Times Oct 8, 2025 The Carbonell Awards, South Florida’s Most Highly Coveted Recognition Of Theatrical Production And Performance Excellence, Today Announced Four New judges. They Will Bring The Total Number Of Carbonell Judges To 48, Including 18 In Broward County, 11 In Miami-Dade, And 19 In Palm Beach County. Collectively, They Will See And Evaluate More Than 100 Different Productions At More Than 30 Professional Theaters. The Current Theater Season Runs Between September 1st, 2025, And August 31st, 2026. The four new Carbonell judges are: + Deborah Bigeleisen (West Boca) is an internationally acclaimed artist who in her early career was a textile print designer and founder of her own global design company in NYC. She also served as a voter/judge for the Emmy Awards in several design categories. She began her fine art career upon moving to WPB in 1998. Over the course of her 25-year art career she has had 21 solo shows and has been juried into over 65 group exhibitions. Her paintings are sold through fine art dealers, International Contemporary Art Fairs including Art Hamptons, The Palm Beach Show, and the Shanghai Art Fair, and upscale digital art platforms. They have been widely published in international lifestyle and art magazines including Architectural Digest and Fine Art Collector and have been prominently exhibited in museum exhibitions including The Boca Raton Museum of Art, The Platt/Bornstein Galleries at American Jewish University in Los Angeles, and the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, Brooklyn, NY. + Barbara Cheives (West Palm Beach) is President/CEO of Converge & Associates Consulting. Her community engagement clients include the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County (she recently joined their Board) and the Maltz Jupiter Theatre, where she offers training and consulting in workplace communication and race relations, and guides the theatre’s diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Barbara's consulting expertise includes law enforcement and public safety, not-for-profit organizations, media, education, and corporations. She served as the first Executive Director of Toward a More Perfect Union in Palm Beach County, a non-profit initiative addressing the critical impact of race and ethnicity in a diverse community, is Past President of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, has been featured in The Palm Beacher as one of “25 Impact Players Defining Palm Beach County, and is the new chair of the Board of Trustees of St. Mary's Medical Center. + Wendy Bryan Michaels (Miami) Actress, writer, playwright with 25+ years of experience, who won the Carbonell Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2006 for Bluefish Cove and was nominated for Best Actress the same year for Rabbit Hole at Mosaic Theatre. She appeared in the films I Love You Phillip Morris with Jim Carrey, Bachelor Party 2 with Harland Williams, and Sex Drive featuring James Marsden; and co-created and starred in the comedy series My Sister Is So Gay, alongside Loni Anderson, Debra Wilson, and Rae Dawn Chong. + Cheryl Steinthal (Boynton Beach) is Artistic Director/Choreographer for The New Florida Follies; a lifelong dancer, she is a former Rockette at Radio City Music Hall, danced in the Ziegfeld Girls Gala featuring Liza Minnelli, was dance coach to Ann Miller’s understudy in Anything Goes at the Papermill Playhouse, and choreographed shows at the Delray Beach Playhouse and numerous high schools and residential communities in NY, NJ and Florida. They will join the current team of distinguished Carbonell judges: From Broward County: + Jerry Abella (Wilton Manors) actor, playwright, and arts journalist. + Charles Baran (Palm Aire) actor, singer, comedian, published author and Senior Writer and Brand Ambassador for South Florida’s OutClique Magazine. + Noah Cuellar (Fort Lauderdale) actor, director, former member of the Chicago Latino Theatre Company. + Mary Damiano (Oakland Park) award-winning writer, editor, and theater critic who has covered the South Florida arts scene since 2000, former Carbonell Coordinator. + Donna Horkey (Davie) actor, director, stage manager, props master, and make-up artist. + Mike Jeknavorian (Tamarac) actor, writer. + Jerry K. Jensen (Hallandale) director, production stage manager, producer, and tech designer. + Larry Jurrist (Hollywood) retired teacher, performer, and screener for the South Florida LGBTQ Film Festival. + Jeff Kiltie (Wilton Manors) General Manager of Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, stage manager, producer, member of Actors’ Equity Association, and former president of the Carbonell Awards. + Jill Kratish (Fort Lauderdale) Associate Vice President of Programming & Producing for the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. + Jody Leshinsky (Lauderhill) Life Enrichment Manager at John Knox Village of Florida, and longtime former officer and board member of the Carbonell Awards. + Marcy Ruderhausen (Hollywood) classically trained actor, media spokesperson, and brand strategist. + Lynne Schaefer (Tamarac) production manager/assistant stage manager who worked on many Broadway shows. + Greg Schuh (Tamarac) actor, director, teacher, dancer and choreographer. + David Simson (Pompano Beach) veteran stage director. + Gilda Steiger (Hallandale Beach) communication and marketing pro. + Ali Tallman (Pembroke Pines) director, movement coach, dramaturg, and playwright. + Savannah Whaley (Lauderhill) veteran arts publicist who managed public relations for the Broward Center for the Performing Arts and former theatre columnist. From Miami-Dade County: + Al Alschuler (Miami) arts journalist and theatre board member. + Nancy Doyle Cohen (Miami) Arts, Culture & Education Director at the David Posnack Jewish Community Center in Davie, and former Director of Group Sales for Broadway Across America. + Nancy Duerr (Miami) actor, spokesperson, TV host, and voice over artist who served on national and local boards of SAG and SAG-AFTRA for 25 years and was a member of the G1 team that merged the two unions. + Isadora Zia Hernandez (Miami Beach) student at the New World School of the Arts in the Visual Arts division for Art & Technology. + Marjorie O’Neill-Butler (Miami Beach) playwright, theater critic, and a member of the Dramatists Guild, AEA and SAG-AFTRA. + Ileana Oroza (Miami Beach), former arts editor and assistant managing editor at The Miami Herald, now an independent editor focused on cultural issues. + Jorge Perez (Miami) former editor of CubaNet News and correspondent for the EFE agency, blogger and author. + John Soliday (Miami) award-winning actor, director, educator, and member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. Michelle F. Solomon, M.A. (Miami) editor in chief and theater critic/writer for both Artburstmiami.com and Miamiartzine.com. + Pauline Winick (Miami Beach) a leader in the local arts community and former Chair of the Cultural Councils of Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami Beach. From Palm Beach County: + Dr. Lhisa Almashy (Lake Worth) award-winning educator who founded film and theater organizations in California and Michigan. + Barbara Bradshaw (Delray Beach), a 17-time Carbonell Award nominee and four-time winner who has been a professional actress for more than 50 years. + Cheryl Dunn Bychek (Royal Palm Beach) served as PR/Marketing Director for the BoarsHead Theatre in Lansing, Michigan and the Theatre Club of the Palm Beaches, longest serving Carbonell judge. + Elizabeth Dashiell (Jupiter) is both Carbonell Coordinator and a judge, and has served as Co-Producer of the Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival since 2013. + Jason Fisher (West Palm Beach), actor, stage manager, and arts journalist. + Sharon Geltner (Boynton Beach) award-winning writer and multimedia communication specialist who is a contributing writer/reviewer for both the Broward Arts Journalism Alliance (BAJA) and Palm Beach Arts Paper. + Tom Hantzarides (Delray Beach) talk show host and producer, writer, journalist, and founder of GET OUT South Florida LGBTQ+ Media. + Allen H. Jones (West Palm Beach) retired Production Designer who has worked on hundreds of TV commercials, films, and plays. + Mark Keller (Boynton Beach) producer-presenter for numerous concerts and stage productions from Broadway to South Florida and serves on the board for Florida Children’s Theatre. + Dale King (Greenacres) award-winning newspaper reporter and critic in both Rhode Island and Florida. + Christine LeShay (Riviera Beach) actor, playwright, and owner/artistic director of A.C.T.S. of Life Productions. + Teri Mitze (Boynton Beach) began her producing career at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, founder and producer of The Great American Children’s Theatre Company, and produced more than 300 national television commercials.. + Deborah Nix (Delray Beach) retired high school and middle school counselor and lifelong theater student and enthusiast. + Jeremy Quinn (Boynton Beach) has acted in or directed over 300 theatrical productions including On and Off Broadway and three National Tours. + Linda Shorrock (Boynton Beach) costumer for Palm Beach State College and experienced designer, wardrobe coordinator, and costume technician. + Jan Sjostrom (Boca Raton) spent 28 years as cultural editor and theater reviewer for The Palm Beach Daily News, a critic for South Florida Theater on Stage, and an adjudicator for the Kravis Center’s Dream Awards for high school musicals. 48th Annual Carbonell Awards This season’s Carbonell Awards will be presented at a glittery ceremony on Monday, November 17, at FAU’s University Theatre in Boca Raton. Hundreds of actors, musicians, performers, writers, directors, back-stage technicians, producers, reviewers, designers, specialty artists, and diehard theater fans are expected to attend South Florida’s version of Broadway’s Tony Awards® under the leadership of Executive Producer and Director Andrew Kato, Coordinating Producer Eloisa Ferrer, and Associate Producer and Musical Director Caryl Fantel. Tickets for the ceremony and after party are only $45 and will go on public sale in mid-October. About The Carbonell Awards The Carbonell Awards fosters the artistic growth of professional theater in South Florida by celebrating the excellence and diversity of our theater artists, providing scholarships, and building audience appreciation and civic pride by highlighting achievements of our theater community. More than 30 professional theater companies in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach Counties participate in the awards process every year. The Carbonell Awards also celebrate the accomplishments of local artistic leaders by presenting various Special Awards. Along with New York’s Drama Desk and Chicago’s Joseph Jefferson Awards, the Carbonell Awards are among the nation’s oldest regional arts awards and predate others, including Washington, D.C.’s Helen Hayes Awards. The Carbonell Awards are named after the internationally renowned sculptor Manuel Carbonell, who designed the signature solid bronze and marble award given annually to Carbonell Award winners. Over nearly half a century, the Carbonell family has donated more than $250,000 in awards. For more information, please visit: www.carbonellawards.org . Deborah Bigeleisen Barbara Cheives Wendy Bryan Michaels Cheryl Steinthal Previous Next

Decades Of Experience In Stewardship, Strategy And Operations - Barry University Names Ron Steiger as New Vice President for Business and Finance & Chief Financial Officer South Florida Sun Times Jul 23, 2026 Barry University Announced Today That Ron Steiger Will Join The University As Vice President Of Business And Finance & CFO, Effective, Monday, August 10th, 2026. Steiger comes to Barry University from Miami-Dade County Public Schools, where he spent nearly two decades helping guide the financial strategy and operations of one of the nation's largest public school districts. As Chief Financial Officer, he oversaw a $7.4 Billion budget and led work across finance, budgeting, treasury, procurement, risk management, grants, payroll and compliance. “Ron brings the kind of financial leadership that is in line with Barry University's vision as we continue to plan for the future with innovation and purpose," said Mike Allen, Ph.D., President of Barry University. “He has earned trust across South Florida by bringing clarity to complex issues and keeping the needs of the community at the center of his work. He will be an outstanding addition to our dynamic leadership team at Barry.” At Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Steiger’s latest endeavors include helping lead major financial initiatives tied to long-term planning, public accountability and operational improvement. In addition, guiding budget development and forecasting, managing annual audit processes that resulted in clean opinions, strengthening treasury and investment operations, supporting credit rating upgrades and overseeing federal stimulus funding after the COVID-19 Pandemic. “Barry University’s mission and commitment to service are deeply meaningful to me,” Steiger said. “I look forward to joining the Barry community and to working with President Allen, faculty, staff and university leaders to support Barry’s students and the institution’s long-term priorities.” Steiger previously served as Chief Budget Officer, Assistant Chief Budget Officer and Executive Director at Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Earlier in his career, he held strategy and analytics roles with Leo Burnett and Arthur Andersen. He earned a Master of Business Administration from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. Steiger’s appointment reflects Barry University’s continued focus on strong stewardship, thoughtful planning and operational excellence. For more information on Barry University, visit: https://www.barry.edu/ . About Barry University As South Florida’s largest private Catholic institution of higher learning and as one of the leading universities in the nation for promoting social mobility, Barry University is preparing students for the future workforce by offering them more than 100-degree programs in a variety of disciplines and giving them the tools and real-world experience that transform concepts into impact. Barry's programs center on experiential and service learning, responding to market conditions and addressing critical societal needs. Barry graduates are socially conscious leaders in many industries and in their communities. Learn more at: www.barry.edu . Or visit their Instagram at: @barryuniversity. Previous Next