Community Bulletin and Business Briefs

On May 3, Winter Park’s BRIO Tuscan Grille presented faculty and staff at Hungerford Elementary School with meals in honor of Teacher Appreciation Day. Left to right is Dean Tamara Collins, Principal Dr. Jenell Bovis and Michele Mitchell of BRIO Tuscan Grille.

Fifth Third Bank’s Homeownership Connection, also called the “E-Bus,” recently made 13 stops on its Central Florida tour. The vehicle is electronically retrofitted to serve as a mobile classroom with all the financial tools needed to learn about owning a home. More than 530 Central Floridians visited the bus to receive one-on-one credit counseling, free credit reports and bilingual homeownership guides.

Orange County’s top high school athletes were honored May 25 at the Bright House Sports Network Breakfast of Champions at Bright House Networks Stadium on the University of Central Florida campus.

The Winter Park High School award recipients are:

Boys Basketball: Austin Rivers

Girls Cross Country: Shelby Hayes

Girls Golf: Brandi Rodriguez

Boys Swim & Dive: Harrison Curley

Boys Tennis: Matt Saltsgaver

Girls Tennis: Caitlin McGraw

Girls Track: Shelby Hayes

Boys Water Polo: Ory Tasman

Girls Water Polo: Nicole Tobin

Boys Scholar Athlete: Patrick Mputu

The need to fund more pediatric cancer research inspires Hyundai dealers nationwide, including Holler Hyundai in Winter Park. For each new Hyundai purchased, dealers donate a portion of the sales price to advance research. The Orlando-area Hyundai Dealer Association last week donated $50,000 through Hope on Wheels to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children. Visit hyundaihopeonwheels.org

The Adult Literacy League was recently awarded $13,000 from Walt Disney World Resort as part of the Disney Helping Kids Shine Grant program.

The Meat House, a gourmet butcher shop, is coming to Winter Park. Store owner and Winter Park native Kevin O’Donnell has signed a lease for 669 Orange Ave. and is now working to open in July. The Meat House Winter Park will offer a diverse line of premium meats, fresh produce and gourmet grocery products from local vendors.

The residents at Savannah Court in Maitland look forward to their weekly Happy Hours that the Jewish Pavilion volunteers provide to them. May 23 was a bit more memorable. Students from the Jewish Academy of Orlando came to sing songs, both Hebrew and English, old and new. Visit jewishpavilion.org or call 407-678-9363.

The Orange County Public Schools website met all 10 requirements to win a 2011 “Sunny Award” sponsored by the Sunshine Review. The award means the OCPS website is one of only 112 government sites in the nation with perfectly “transparent” information for the public including budget, meetings, elected and administrative officials, audits, contracts, lobbying, public records, taxes, as well as the ease of use and availability of information.

Reservations can now be made for events and meetings at the new Winter Park Community Center, scheduled for its grand opening in September. Rental opportunities are available for weddings, parties, meetings and gatherings for up to 400 people. The first available date will be Saturday, Oct. 1. Call 407-599-3275.

The Red Cross has developed a free iPhone app that gives the location and additional information of all open Red Cross shelters. To download the app, users can visit the Apple store and search “American Red Cross shelters.” For those without an iPhone, visit redcross.org and click on “Find a Shelter.”

Ways to give back

The Boys & Girls Club “Keepin’ It Real Speaker Series” is looking for speakers for upcoming programs. Contact [email protected]

Help your favorite charity win up to $500,000 by “liking” the Chase Community Giving program on Facebook at apps.facebook.com/chasecommunitygiving and casting your vote.

NABA Inc. volunteers will converge on Trotters Park, 1905 Lee Road in Orlando, at 7 a.m. Saturday, June 25, to give it a much-needed face-lift. Visit Convention.NABAInc.org

Host families are needed for exchange students for the 2011-2012 school year. Choose a student from an array of countries around the world. Act now to meet school registration deadlines. Call 321-277-7198 or visit afsusa.org

Business Briefs

Tolaris Realty Group is reporting it has seen a 67.3 percent increase in luxury home sales and traffic since Jan. 1 for luxury homes and lakefront properties in Winter Park, Lake Mary and South Orlando and beachfront condominiums in Brevard and Volusia Counties.

The University Club of Orlando and Eagle Scout Candidate James Phillips raised more than $5,000 for Ronald McDonald House recently at a “Cocktails for a Cause” event at the University Club. Justin Wright, events director at The University Club of Orlando, said the funds will go toward a new activity room at the local Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing for families of seriously ill children.

On May 11, RLF was honored at the 2011 American Institute of Architects National Convention in New Orleans. The leading professional membership association for licensed architects, emerging professionals and allied partners awarded RLF for its use of Building Information Technology for the second year in a row.

This year, RLF received Honorable Mention for the Irwin Army Community Hospital project. The firm is part of a joint venture with Leo A Day, providing design and construction for the new $334 million, 553,000-square-foot facility to replace the existing 50-year-old community hospital in Fort Riley, Kan.

Leadership Winter Park presented its annual Community Leader Award to Dan McIntosh, a partner at Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed, P.A., during the Leadership Winter Park Graduation Celebration Luncheon held on May 19. “Dan’s dedication to Winter Park has been unwavering,” said Debra Hendrickson, vice president of the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce. “He is an engaged and enthusiastic resident, business leader and community advocate.”

Goodwill Industries of Central Florida recently hired Victoria Gonzalez as its donor services director. In this role, she will focus on increasing both contributions and the convenience of delivering gently used items to Goodwill.