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GOODWILL PRESIDENT, CEO TO STEP DOWN

Rick Evanchyk, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida Inc., will leave his post at the end of 2018 after four years as president and CEO and 15 years total with the organization. John Nadeau, currently the organization’s vice president of operations, will officially take over as president and CEO in mid-January 2019. Nadeau has worked at the organization for the last three years. Prior to his move to Southwest Florida, Nadeau spent eight years at Goodwill of the Olympics and Rainier Region in Tacoma, Washington—the majority of that time as director of stores. Under Evanchyk’s leadership, the Southwest Florida Goodwill agency has improved in organizational growth, persons served, community collaboration, and accomplishments including the development and expansion of its Pathways programs and its HUD Housing initiative for people with disabilities. Under his direction, the Goodwill housing program now has 16 focused apartments in operation with more than 200 residents. This is up from six apartments when he joined the organization.​​

RSW OCTOBER TRAFFIC DOWN

During October, 569,553 passengers traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers, a decrease of 2 percent compared with October 2017. Year-to-date, passenger traffic is up 5.6 percent from the same period last year. The traffic leader in October was Delta Air Lines with 119,860 passengers traveling to and from Fort Myers. Rounding out the top five airlines were American (98,408), Southwest (91,966), JetBlue (75,693) and United (64,125). Southwest Florida International Airport had 5,379 aircraft operations, an increase of 0.3 percent compared to October 2017. Page Field saw 9,167 operations, a 34.5 percent increase from October 2017. In addition, slightly more than 2.7 million pounds of air freight moved through Southwest Florida International Airport in October 2018. For more information, visit www.flylcpa.com.​

LOMBARDO RE-ELECTED AS NORTH NAPLES FIRE COMMISSIONER

Woodward, Pires & Lombardo P.A. partner Christopher Lombardo has been re-elected as fire commissioner for the North Naples Fire Department. He last ran for office in 2016 and has served on the North Naples Fire Control and Rescue District's board of fire commissioners from 1998 until 2014. He now serves as chairman of the board. Lombardo has worked as a civil trial attorney for more then 30 years. He is also involved in several organizations, including the Children's Museum of Naples, where he serves on the board of directors, and the Boy Scouts of America, where he serves as scoutmaster.​

PANELISTS TO DISCUSS BUSINESS GROWTH

The Above Board Chamber of Florida will host a pair of meetings, titled “The Keys to Growing your Business.” The first event will be held from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Dec. 10 at the Hilton Naples. Vicki Tracy, executive sales director of the Arlington of Naples, will serve as the master of ceremonies, joined by panelists Sandra Stilwell Youngquist, CEO and owner, Stilwell Enterprises & Restaurant Group; Matthew Kragh, founder of MKH Architecture and Planning; and Jim L. Henderson, president and owner, William C. Huff Cos. The second meeting will be held from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Dec. 12 at the Crowne Plaza Fort Myers. NBC2 anchor Rachel Pierce will be the master of ceremonies for the second meeting, joined by Stilwell Youngquist; Samira Beckwith, CEO and president of Hope Healthcare; Luis E. Insignares, founding attorney, The Law Office of Luis E. Insignares; and Tree Tietsort, vice president, LCM Engineering. The cost to attend is $28 for members and $32 for nonmembers before Dec. 5 for the Naples meeting, and before Dec. 6 for the Fort Myers meeting. After those dates, it’s $28 for members and $32 for non-members. Register at AboveBoardChamber.com or call (239) 910-7426.​​

HENDERSON FRANKLIN HIRES TUCK

Attorney Kaylee Tuck has joined Henderson, Franklin, Starnes & Holt P.A. (www.henlaw.com) as an associate in the real estate and land use and environmental law departments. She returns to the firm after serving as summer associate in 2017. Tuck focuses her practice in commercial and residential sales and leases, development, land use and survey matters. Tuck received her undergraduate degree from Florida State University in 2014, and law degree from Stetson University College of Law, cum laude, in 2018. While in law school, Tuck was a member of the Phi Alpha Delta International Law Fraternity, served as an associate editor for the Journal of International Aging Law and Policy, and worked as an intern for the legal department of the St. Petersburg Police Department. ​

EMCH JOINS CHARLOTTE STATE BANK & TRUST​

Rich Emch, has joined the trust and investment management services division of Charlotte State Bank & Trust. A Certified Financial Planner, (CFP) with 30 years of experience in banking, finance, and investing, Emch is serving as a vice president and trust administration officer. Emch previously worked as a commercial lender at the bank for four years starting in 2001 before taking on greater responsibilities at Englewood Bank & Trust, where he worked until 2012. Both banks are owned by the Crews Banking Corp. Emch holds an associate degree from Cuyahoga Community College, a bachelor’s degree in communication from Cleveland State University, and a Master of Business Administration from Baldwin-Wallace College. He has also completed the College for Financial Planning Professional Education program, Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University, Gulf Coast Community Foundation Leadership Institute and the Enrolled Agent certification program. Emch is a past president of the Economic Development Council of Charlotte County, Port Charlotte Toastmasters, Charlotte County Habitat for Humanity and the Rotary Club of Murdock. Emch graduated from Leadership Charlotte with the class of 2001 and was the founding chair of Leadership Englewood in 2008.​​

COMMUNITY CONCERT ASSOCIATION BOARD NAMES SERIES UNDERWRITER

The Fort Myers Community Concert Association Inc. Board of Directors have appointed Alexandra Bremner and her mother, Eunice Bremner, as underwriters of its entire 2019 concert season. Alexandra and Eunice are the niece and sister of the late Berne Davis, who was the series underwriter for many years prior to her death in 2016. Program sponsors include Rob and Ruth Diefenbach of Fort Myers, Sanibel-Captiva Community Bank, Madeleine Taeni, and Pamela Templeton of Fort Myers. Some series tickets are still available the 70th Concert Series, which begins in January with six concerts, all starting at 7:30 p.m. and held at the Barbara B. Mann Hall on the Florida SouthWestern College campus in Fort Myers. For tickets, call the Barbara B. Mann Hall box office at (239) 481-4849.​​

CHARITABLE NOTES​

Fifth Third Foundation distributes Strengthening Our Communities grants

The Fifth Third Foundation has announced its 2018 Strengthening Our Communities (SOC) Fund grants for Florida. Awards from the fund, now in its second year, benefit designated nonprofit programs that support affordable housing, small business development and financial stability for individuals and families. Southwest Florida recipients included St Matthew’s House, Habitat for Humanity of Collier County, Affordable Homeownership Foundation, and the Florida Small Business Development Center at Florida Gulf Coast University. The SOC Fund is part of Fifth Third Bank’s Community Commitment, which will invest $32 billion in mortgage lending, small business lending, community development lending and philanthropy by 2020. Fifth Third invited nonprofit organizations across its regions to apply for the funding. Grant awards begin at $25,000 and are for a one-year period. The maximum grants depend on the program and demonstrated need. Fifth Third awarded $3 million in SOC grants across its footprint in 2018. ​

Naples Winter Wine Festival auction lot items listed

Auction lot items have been announced for the 2019 Naples Winter Wine Festival, to be held from Jan. 25-27 at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples. All proceeds raised from the Saturday live auction will support the Naples Children & Education Foundation’s (NCEF) strategic initiatives and annual grants. Auction lot highlights include a golf experience throughout the Scottish Highlands and southern Ireland; a French luxury experience in Bordeaux and Paris and attendance to the Paris Christian Louboutin Fashion Show in September 2019 as Louboutin’s personal guests; an Arctic Circle adventure from Helsinki through Lapland, Finland; exclusive Tony Awards access and a stay in Saranac Lake; an Italian wine and cuisine tour; a tailored visit through Sonoma’s wine region; and a US Virgin Islands yacht cruise. Ticket packages to the Naples Winter Wine Festival are limited to 600 guests and start at $12,500 per couple. A $30,000 package, which includes reserved seating for a party of four at a vintner dinner and under the festival tent, is also available. For ticket inquiries, contact Barrett Farmer at barrett@napleswinefestival.com or (239) 514-2239.​

McGriff Insurance Services raises funds for American Heart Association

McGriff Insurance Services raised $830.50 at its annual Thanksgiving cake and pie auction on Nov. 20. All proceeds will benefit the American Heart Association – Heart Walk. McGriff employees donated cakes, pies, and other sweet treats, which Greg Frith, customer advocate at Fire Service Disaster Kleenup, auctioned off. Among the popular desserts was a caramel turtle bunt cake that was claimed for $150. ​

Amigos Center launches $50,000 Matching Challenge Campaign

Amigos Center has announced a challenge campaign to match a one-time $50,000 year-end gift. The gift will be matched dollar for dollar and will help ensure that the Amigos Center may continue to offer services to the benefit immigrant families as they work to succeed in the U.S. The community center in Immokalee provides 5,000 clients each year with social services, including English language classes, and Creole and Spanish language congregations meet in multiple locations in Lee and Collier County. The Amigos Center is a partner agency of the United Way of Lee, Hendry, Glades and Okeechobee Counties. All donations are tax deductible to the highest amount allowed by law. For more information contact Rev. Robert Selle at (239) 281-1664 or visit www.amigoscenter.org.

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