Community Bulletin and Business Briefs

Rivers family excels

A crowd of more than 350 of Central Florida’s sports elite attended the PNC Bank SPORTYS at Full Sail University on Sep. 24. Glenn “Doc” Rivers, Boston Celtics head coach, was inducted into the 2011 Class of the Central Florida Sports Hall of Fame and son Austin Rivers won best high school athlete.

Grand re-opening

The Y has invested $2.9 million to make Winter Park a stronger, healthier and more connected community through the renovation of the Winter Park Y on 1201 N. Lakemont Ave. where the community came together on Thursday, Sep. 15, for a grand re-opening celebration.

4 R fights cancer

Winter Garden and Winter Park 4 Rivers Smokehouses donated 100 percent of their tips to Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Florida last week. They raised $708. 4 Rivers employee Troy Brantley, whose daughter passed away from ovarian cancer, inspired this giveback initiative.

A cure for Jasmin

Orlando resident Jasmin Baker is getting a very special present for her 8th birthday this year: a life without sickle cell disease. Jasmin recently received the first bone marrow transplant to cure sickle cell disease in Central Florida just in time for her special day thanks to the Pediatric Cellular Therapy Program at Florida Hospital for Children.

New home

Last week, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Orlando Area presented the Estrada family with keys to their new home — a local foreclosure renovated and resold by the nonprofit. This is the third home completed through the partnership between Orange County and Habitat Orlando on the Neighborhood Stabilization Program. For more information, visit www.habitat-orlando.org

Scholar at Edgewater

Edgewater High School student Sean Walden is one of five Orange County semifinalists in the 48th annual National Achievement Scholarship Program. There are about 800 achievement scholarship awards worth more than $2.4 million.

Chamber founder dies

Ray Miller, husband of Sarah Miller, died on Oct. 2 at their home in Lexington, Ky. Ray and Sarah are the backbone of the Goldenrod Chamber, Goldenrod Historical Society & Museum and the Goldenrod Civic Club. He was also a member of the Elks Lodge on Howell Branch. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be made to the Goldenrod Historical Museum, P.O. box 423, Goldenrod, Fla. 32733.

A&H hiring

Art & History Museums, Maitland (A&H) is hiring a part-time museum store receptionist. Visit tinyurl.com/a-hreceptionist for details and to apply.

Classroom volunteers

Junior Achievement of Central Florida needs business and community members in Orange and Seminole counties to serve as classroom volunteers for students. Contact Rachel Whitmire at 407-898-2121 ext. 30 or [email protected]

Quilt panels needed

The Breakthrough Theatre of Winter Park presents "Quilt: A Musical Celebration," from Nov. 11-28, with a special performance on Dec. 1, World AIDS Day. The theatre is accepting quilt panels from Central Floridians, made to honor loved ones who have died from AIDS. Visit BreakthroughTheatre.com

Help people find jobs

Goodwill Industries of Central Florida is calling for donations of new or gently used items. Sales from donated goods helps fund job training programs and other community-based programs. Visit GoodwillCFL.org

BUSINESS BRIEFS

K. Hovnanian Homes, a nationally recognized homebuilder since 1959, recently completed a Facebook competition for nonprofits. Local organizations were asked to share what they would do with a $500 donation. Receiving the most “likes” — as determined by fan vote — was United in Praise, a Lake County-based non-denominational community choir. To join K. Hovnanian Homes Central Florida on Facebook, visit On.Fb.Me/KHov1. To see the group’s fall concert schedule, visit the United in Praise Facebook page at On.Fb.Me/UnitedinPraise.

The city of Winter Park has been designated a certified gold level Green Local Government by the Florida Green Building Coalition.

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada has awarded Orange County Public Schools a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting.

McCree General Contractors Inc. recently broke ground in the Winter Park Towers community off South Lakemont Drive. Once completed, Loch Berry, a new five-story, 90,000-square-foot building will consist of 54 state-of-the-art two-bedroom apartments nestled on beautiful Lake Berry, from which the facility pulls inspiration.

On Sept. 27, Target distributed 28,000 new books to 15 Miami, Tampa and Orlando schools to help students celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month and reading. In Orlando, Rock Lake Elementary received books as well as a $1,500 grant to purchase books for its own school library.

For the second year in a row, UCF’s graduate engineering program ranks as the third-best in the country for Hispanic students. Hispanic Business Magazine released its 2011 Best Schools for Hispanics list, which ranks the top 10 graduate programs in the country in medicine, law, business and engineering.

ARCpoint Labs, one of the nation’s leading third party providers in the drug and alcohol testing industry, has opened its newest office, ARCpoint Labs of Altamonte Springs, at 270 Northlake Blvd., Suite 1004.

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