Lead Photo: Heatherwood Construction completes renovation of affordable housing project and provides Christmas Toys to community residents.

HEATHERWOOD CONSTRUCTION CO. COMPLETES AFFORDABLE HOUSING RENOVATION

Heatherwood Construction Co. has completed a full renovation of the Jones Walker Palm Gardens Apartments, a 61,000-plus-acre community of 160 affordable housing apartment homes at 2902 Blount St. in Fort Myers. New owners, Redwood Housing of Austin Texas, made good on their promises to renovate the affordable housing community and temporarily rehouse tenants during the renovation. Heatherwood Construction was hired to fully renovate the older housing project to improve living standards and bring the units up to code. The project was led by the Bonita-Springs-based team’s senior project manager, Rafael Valdes, and additionally supervised by Charles Crouch and Levi Whiteleather. The design was done with MK Architecture and overseen by architecture project manager Carlos Cardet. All tenants were moved back into their new homes at the end of November. To celebrate the completion of this project and the Christmas season, Heatherwood Construction teamed up with Toys for Tots and Love & Light Ministries to have a gift giveaway for the residents at the Royal Palm Gardens Apartments, giving 130 children two-plus presents each.

NAPLES ART TO REOPEN JANUARY 2021 WITH FULL CLASS, WORKSHOP AND EXHIBITION SCHEDULES

Naples Art will reopen its downtown Naples building at 585 Park Street on Jan. 2, 2021, following a period of extensive repairs and remodeling. A lineup of one- and two-day workshops, adult and youth classes, and special events are scheduled for the upcoming spring season in their renovated home just steps from Fifth Avenue.  Classes starting Jan. 18 appeal to a range of artistic interests.  Naples Art is implementing comprehensive protocols to keep students, teachers, and staff safe. Visit NaplesArt.org for the complete schedule and to register for classes.

Christine Hause

BANK OFFERING ‘HYBRID’ SEMINARS/WEBINARS IN JANUARY

Charlotte State Bank & Trust Vice President Christine Hause and Portfolio Manager Gregory Thomas will host a series of complimentary Trust and Investment Management seminars in January. The free educational sessions are being held as live seminars and online webinars. Attendees may participate in person at the bank’s Murdock branch office, 1100 Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte, or online via the Charlotte State Bank & Trust website. In-person capacity is limited to allow for social distancing. Masks are mandatory. Advance registration is required for the seminars or webinars, which last from 10-11:30 a.m. The January sessions take place between Jan. 5-28, starting with “Avoiding Estate-Planning Mistakes, with Celebrity Examples.” Registration is available at any branch office, online, via email at rsvp@csbtfl.com, or by calling Brielle at 941-624-1943.

OPTIEXPRESS JOINS QUIGLEY EYE SPECIALISTS

D.R. HORTON OPENS JENNINGS MODEL IN TOSCANA ISLES

CHARITABLE NOTES

 

Community Cooperative restarts mobile food pantries for veterans in January

Community Cooperative will again offer monthly mobile food pantries for veterans at the Lee County Veterans Affairs (VA) Clinic in Cape Coral, with the first set for 10 a.m. to noon on Jan. 6, 2021. At the drive-thru pantries, veterans and their families will receive a week’s worth of shelf-stable food, meat and fresh produce. Community Cooperative offered its first veterans-only food pantry at the VA Clinic in Cape Coral in spring 2017. The VA honored Community Cooperative with the inaugural Bay Pines Director’s Club award in September for the food assistance program at the Lee County VA Clinic. The Bay Pines VA Healthcare System runs nine facilities serving more than 108,000 veterans in 10 counties in Central Southwest Florida and is the fourth-busiest VA Healthcare system in the country. For more information, visit CommunityCooperative.com.

 

Guadalupe Center opens ‘Jump Up for Education’ in advance of Circtacular

Guadalupe Center’s Circtacular, a virtual fundraising extravaganza set for Jan. 21, has kicked off with its Jump Up for Education. The Jump Up for Education is traditionally the highlight of Guadalupe Center’s annual fundraising gala. In 2021, Circtacular will be a live-streamed event, allowing a virtual audience of philanthropists, business and community leaders, entrepreneurs and educators to follow online as students share their stories of personal challenges, achievements and goals. Supporters can contribute to the Jump Up for Education in advance or during Circtacular. All gifts will be recognized throughout the live-streamed event. Proceeds help provide high-quality learning opportunities for more than 1,400 students annually through Guadalupe Center’s nationally accredited Early Childhood Education Program, After-school Tutoring & Summer Enrichment Program and college-preparatory Tutor Corps Program. Ticket and giving opportunities are still available at GuadalupeCenter.org/Circtacular. 

 

CCMS Physician Wellness Program receives $30,000

This December, the Southwest Florida Physicians Association gave $20,000 to support the Collier County Medical Society www.ccmsfoundation.org Physician Wellness Program, and NCH Healthcare System provided $10,000. These contributions help the program sustain the health and well-being of community physicians, which in turn helps them care for their patients and can increase the number of physicians practicing in Southwest Florida. The Physician Wellness Program features confidential, convenient, cost-free access to professional psychological services for all Medical Society physician members. Since the Program’s inception in February 2017, it has provided more than 330 psychological sessions to physicians.

 

Fort Myers Sunrise Rotary check presentation.

Fort Myers Rotary clubs donate more than $20K to Midwest Food Bank

In a great community effort, several Fort Myers Rotary groups joined together to raise money for the local Midwest Food Bank (MFB), Florida division. During the recent check presentation at the Fort Myers Sunrise Rotary location, District 6960 presented MFB Executive Director Karl Steidinger with the raised donation of $12,989. This donation will be used to purchase a new refrigeration unit for a transportation truck. Additionally, Fort Myers Sunrise Rotary donated another $10,800 to help cover the cost of the recent 1,100 holiday food boxes donated at a local food and toy distribution event. For more information, visit midwestfoodbank.org.

 

Two residents share this ROOF home in Immokalee, each with their own separately leased bedroom.

ROOF Receives a $5,000 grant from Truist

Residential Options of Florida (ROOF) received a $5,000 grant from Truist Financial Corp. through its Truist Charitable Fund, a donor-advised fund at The Winston-Salem Foundation. The funding will support ROOF’s new development, Independence Place Bayshore. This is ROOF’s third home in Immokalee and fourth home in Collier County. The 348,000 square-foot home will house two individuals with developmental disabilities and their caregiver. The two-bedroom, two-bath home will be built to ADA standards making it fully accessible to all future residents. ROOF rents its homes as low as $231 a month, allowing individuals receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) to live affordably and independently. ROOF’s resident services coordinator provides service coordination connecting residents to various services in the community, including supported living services, transportation, employment, and benefits planning assistance.

 

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