Category: Community

As the leading business organization in the city of Parkland, we would like to share our thoughts and feelings with our community that has been so shaken by the tragedy that occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School just 6 weeks ago. Just as many families were, our board of directors was left paralyzed from the shock that something so horrific could happen in our quaint small town. As parents, this couldn’t have been closer to home. This was our home. That day, many of us stood in debilitating silence, not able to even breathe, as we waited. Those minutes of silence were deafening until we finally heard from our children inside the school. It hit us so deep in our hearts that no words can adequately describe that type of agony. Although many of us hugged our children a little tighter that night, we were left painfully aching for our seventeen neighbors who wouldn’t have the same opportunity. The outpouring messages of support from all over the nation deeply touched us. It uplifted us through our darkest, our most painful days. Words can’t express our deepest gratitude to the businesses and the families that selflessly donated or contributed to our community’s healing. To express our heartfelt appreciation, our board of directors will be making each one of those businesses Stoneman Douglas Shooting an honorary member of our chamber for the remainder of the 2018 calendar year. We will also work to highlight these businesses on our website as well as our Facebook page. We want to encourage our community to support those businesses that have generously given without asking for even a simple mention in return. That is the beauty of true giving and our community is forever grateful.

The Parkland Chamber of Commerce’s mission has always been to bring the community together through supporting local small businesses while working with our City Commission, our local PTAs and schools. So it comes as no surprise that our tight-knit business community, much like our proud students, residents and elected officials, have risen from the ashes, united together towards making an effective change. In the past year, we have seen countless catastrophes that aren’t limited to schools. They happen in our airports, our nightclubs, our places of worship and at work. It is affecting us all, in every aspect of our lives. We recognize that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. However despite that, the Parkland Chamber of Commerce stands tenaciously behind the movement of our students. We support their efforts for stricter gun control laws and we support their march to stand up for their lives and quite frankly, ours. Safety isn’t just a school issue; it’s everybody’s issue. We desperately need to move forward, both respectfully and peacefully, to prevent yet another life lost. We will not hear yet another parent’s heartbreaking cry. Furthermore, we look forward to the full transparent report and investigation yet to be revealed regarding the deficiencies of our public safety agency (BSO), our school board (BCPS), the FBI and our Department of Family and Child Services. We stand to strongly encourage an open dialog between these organizations to ensure loopholes are closed in order to avoid another potential threat in any one of our communities ever again.

The Parkland Chamber of Commerce is committed to our community and will continue to work towards providing resources to aid the recovery process of all members, students, teachers and residents of Parkland. Please look for our upcoming events, including an important Business Roundtable: Examining The Economic Impact Of The MSD Shooting, as well as a public workshop on How To Be An Effective Change Agent For Your Non-Profit.

This is not a sprint; rather it’s a marathon. Our journey will be long, but our community will stay true to the course. Although some wounds can never heal, we will find strength in one another. We continue to look for partners who can lend support, particularly during the summer months while school is out of session for our students. We are looking to foster student and civic events that will keep our healing community engaged and moving forward. We welcome all of you, our extended Parkland family, to join us, and together, we hope we can all say, #Neveragain.

was a regular day; the sun rose as usual, bringing the Florida Sunshine over Parkland. We hurried out after a quick breakfast, some of us hearing our moms calling out to finish the toast. But we needed to get to school in time, had to catch up with notes from friends for the upcoming tests. No time be tardy, dad was already in the car, waiting to drop us off at the school. Holding our backpacks and our lunch, we ran out of the door to the waiting car, never to return.

It was a day of excitement, a special day, some of us carried special tokens of friendship, balloons, chocolates, and some cards with simple message of love. It was Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, a day filled with love for family and friends, love shared, and joy doubled.

But it was not a usual day, mom and dad.
Weapons of mass destruction took over the love we were looking forward to celebrate and we were snatched away in minutes. Not knowing what was happening we huddled ourselves in silence, hoping to survive.
You know the rest: Alive and then gone in a minute.
Alas, that was the last day of our lives.

Left Without a Goodbye

March Like You Have Never Marched Before
Don’t stop Mom, Dad, relatives, and friends
We are looking down from Heaven, holding each other’s hand

March like you have never marched before.
The path is rocky, with many roadblocks
But don’t stop Mom, Dad, and students everywhere.

March like you have never marched before
We are the bright, shinning beams of Florida Sun
We are the coolness of the moon light night
We are first fragrant blossoms of Spring
We are colorful beauty of Fall
We are the first flurries of Winter
We are the seventeen brightest stars of any night
Don’t stop Mom and Dad, relatives, and all students.

March like you have never marched before
Falter not, never should there be another such tragedy.
We are the Seventeen Angels marching with you all
We are your power and determination
We are the Seventeen Lights every corner you turn or falter.

March like you have never marched before
Our dear coach, esteemed teachers, and MSD students
We all left suddenly without a goodbye or a hug
We are in the Heavenly abode, the Best of the Best
We are looking down and guiding you as you go forward
We want you to bring changes in gun laws
You are echoing our silent voices let them be heard!

March like you have never marched before
With determination to achieve the long overdue changes
Don’t stop Mom, Dad, relatives, friends, and students Nationwide
Continue to march, nothing should stop or hinder your efforts
The Nationwide Movement has started, out with the weapons
Marching you will go North, South, East, and West
Bring in Peace, Harmony, and Goodwill for all.

March like you have never marched before
Seventeen angels are holding your canopy.

times we hear of tragic events after they happen. Here is how they begin. It all starts with dispatch, “the calm voice in the storm.”

DISPATCH

Gunshots echoed in the dispatch room. Kathy Liriano picked up the phone “Help! There is a man with a gun shooting at kids at MSD high school!” It was from a teacher who had students in her room that were injured from gunshots that were fired through the window and door of her classroom. As Liriano heard gunshots through the phone, she remained strong while attempting to calm the caller. She assured her that help was on the way and told her, “as long as I can hear you breathe, I know you are there, so it’s OK. I’m here.” Liriano is the head supervisor for the dispatch call center at the Coral Springs Police Department. She jumped on a call in order to help with the more than 1,000 calls that came flooding in on February 14. Since all 911 cell phone calls made from Parkland are directly routed to the Coral Springs Police Department, the dispatch call center had quite the task in front of them. Douglas First Responders

“911 dispatchers actually are our first responders,” Liriano said. They document all pertinent information from callers and relay that information to the officers being dispatched. They gather as much information as they can, while calming callers at the same time. First responders rely on this information in order to prevent them from entering blindly into a situation. Dispatchers are often referred to as the “ears before the eyes get there.”

POLICE

Sergeant Carla Kmiotek, head of training for the Coral Springs Police Department, was in a meeting that day when an officer charged in and proclaimed, “There’s an active shooter at Stoneman Douglas!” Sergeant Kmiotek remembers jumping up, running to her vehicle opening the door, putting on her bullet proof vest, removing her rifle from the top of her car, loading it, and speeding over to the “north side of the building” at Stoneman Douglas High School.

Kmiotek, who has a teenager herself in high school, charged into the 1200 building. She immediately encountered the carnage. Her first thoughts were “This is bad, this is really bad.” Children were strewn everywhere. Some dead. Some badly injured.

There’s an active shooter? What do you do first? Help those in need that might lose their lives or do you go after the active shooter? First responders face the challenge of saving lives or apprehending a violent killer. The challenge is real and Valentine’s Day 2018 proved just that to be the case. A total of 30 first responders from the Coral Springs Police Department were on scene that day. The main objective of the first wave was to find the suspect. Sergeant Kmiotek was in that first wave. The second wave of first responders entered the building immediately and attended to the injured. They scoured the building, performing triage on victims with the help of tourniquets, combat gauze, chest seals, and trauma dressings, which they carry on their persons.

FIRE RESCUE

Michael Moser, Division Chief for the Coral Springs Fire Department, was the first to arrive on the scene making him the Incident Post Commander. He informed dispatch where he set up the medical treatment area. Dispatch then relayed that information to the police officers so they know where to bring the injured victims. Upon arrival to the post Commander Moser decided which victims needed immediate hospital transportation. He was in charge of managing the injured. Further triage techniques were performed at his command post. This enabled him to keep victims alive and ensure that they received urgent care. He orchestrated the coming and going of emergency vehicles and decided what hospital each victim would go to.

While interviewing Chief Moser in his office he was multi tasking. He simultaneously kept an eye on his computer while answering questions. He was working diligently to arrange public safety for the March in Parkland. Some events occur without prior knowledge and some events are planned in advance. When massive amounts of people will be in attendance there is an increased need for police and fire department presence to keep the public safe and to avoid chaos.

Although all these first responder units, from Dispatch to Police and Fire Rescue, trained extensively for this type of event, nothing can ever really prepare them for the reality of an active shooter. Kathy Liriano, Sergeant Carla Kmiotek, and Division Chief Michael Moser are just three that are mentioned here, but all those that give of themselves for others are truly heroes. Most people don’t know of the efforts these true unsung heroes made on that fateful day. Fourteen victims were saved. Many more could have died if not for the quick and coordinated efforts of all the first responders.

First responders, from the beginning of a tragic event to the end, are our true unsung American heroes.

Jonathan Fields graduated from Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in 1998 and was in the process of helping to plan his 20th class reunion when tragedy struck in Parkland on February 14. Like most of the community, the nation, and the world Fields helplessly watched in pain and disbelief after hearing the news of the shooter who killed 14 students and three teachers at a place where he himself had felt safe for four years.

“This is the least I can do to give back to the community I grew up in and love so much,” said Fields, a licensed practitioner in Oriental medicine, who is offering free group acupuncture to help heal PTSD, stress, and anxiety.

Both locals and those outside of the South Florida area are pitching in by creating funds or donating to various funds that help the surviving families, including getting them to the March for our Lives that took place last month in Washington, D.C. Locally, there were similar events happening last month.

Coming from celebrities and donors around the world, millions of dollars have been raised to help victims, their families and the community. Here in Parkland and its surrounding communities of Coral Springs, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Coconut Creek, and Boca Raton the support continues. With varied areas of expertise, area residents have found a way to volunteer, participate, donate, and help.

They sell and wear T-shirts and bracelets with slogans like “#MSD Strong” or “Enough is Enough,” “March for our Lives,” or “Never Again.” Parkland resident mortgage lender Mike Smith donated dozens of “Parkland Strong” T-shirts. Other residents walked, ran, marched, worked out, protested, laughed, and cried. They donated blood, lit candles, and helped in any way they could — to raise money, provide strength, and show support.

They created fundraising groups and events, like Kids First Politics Second and the MSD Strong 5K/10K Virtual Race. Registration for the latter is open through April 30, with 100 percent of the net proceeds being donated to several MSD Victim GoFundMe accounts, according to the event’s page at runsignup.com.

They continue to help wounded student Anthony Borges pay his hospital costs; help teacher Ivy Schamis feed Luigi, her 19-month-old therapy dog; and help alleviate travel costs for victims’ families who attended the March for our Lives in Washington, DC. MSD teachers Frank Krar and Penny Pogano are now sporting MSD Strong tattoos.

They raised money while attending dance shows at Broadway Bound; exercising at a Zumbathon (created by area Zumba teachers) at Piper High; creating art at Painting with a Twist; burning calories at Orange Theory; running with Runners Depot; and taking Pilates classes with 100 percent of the fees going to MSD Strong.

Gabe Glassman, a sophomore at MSD, can no longer attend class in the building that is now a crime scene. His parents, Aaron and Lisa, wanted to do something to help the teachers and students who have been displaced from their classrooms, so they began a drive to collect school supplies. For simplicity, Lisa asked that the supplies be sent to her home. She did not expect the amount of packages that arrived from not only around South Florida, but also from around the state, nation, and as far away as France and Switzerland. It got too big, so the Glassmans moved it to the clubhouse in their Parkland community, Cypress Head, and received help from neighbors.

“So many people came out to help,” Aaron Glassman said. “They pitched in organizing all of the school supplies into bins breaking down boxes and moving stuff over to the clubhouse.”  The couple also raised nearly $8,000 selling T-shirts and magnets.

Laura Simoncini of Laura’s Ultimate Pilates in Parkland charged $25 to participants with proceeds benefitting the families and memorial fund. She started with a moment of silence and lit 17 candles in the studio, and then sold T-shirts that say “Pilates for Change” and “MSD Strong.”

“It really hit home for me because we know so many people who were affected by this and my heart is just breaking,” said Simoncini, whose twin sons lost a friend in the shooting. “Whatever I can do. I want to do more classes to raise more. I was so glad to help in some way.”

Help came from Parkland restaurants such as Déjà Blue, which organized a White Night of Remembrance, and Pizza Time Caffe, which held a fundraiser with Alliance Corporate Contracting. Owner Mark Papaleo donated 100 percent of pizza sales to help raise funds to send Parkland families to participate in the March for our Lives last month.

In New York City, MSD alumni organized a billboard in Times Square to honor 17 victims, which was donated by a sign company for a 24-hour period.

Various religious organizations have sent counselors to help survivors cope. The State of Israel has brought specialists from the Israel Trauma Coalition.

Cathy Carter, whose son is a junior at MSD, found support from her co-workers at the Pompano Beach dental office where she works as a dental technician. Lisa and Aaron Glassman, partners in a real estate law firm, collected school supplies at Cypress Head community for teachers who have been displaced from their regular classrooms. The tireless parent volunteers, like Tammi Donato, kept on volunteering.

Even the little things, like having Donato text “How are you?” meant a lot to teacher Schamis, whose class was terrorized by the shooter. “I have been getting so many shout outs just to see if I’m OK,” Schamis said. “They’re making it more bearable than it would have been.”

Area residents honored slain students by recognizing those activities they loved the most. Martin, Peter, and Alaina were honored as members of the JROTC; Jaime for her love of dance; and Alyssa for her love of soccer.

Ryan Petty, whose 14-year-old daughter, Alaina, was killed, said in a Miami Herald video: “Please know that the incredible support is deeply appreciated and has made a lasting impact on our lives. Thank you.”

Never did I expect to be addressing a school shooting in Parkland. The City of Parkland, the City of Coral Springs, and countless communities throughout Broward were affected by the horrific and devastating tragedy that took place on 2/14/18. Together we faced an unspeakable tragedy that none of us could have ever imagined — the attack on our school where 3,300 of our children go each day to learn, better themselves, build a future, and interact with their friends and the teachers who care for them.

Our hearts are heavy, as they will be for a long time, for the families who lost a loved one. We are also heartbroken for those who were injured, the students, teachers, staff, and first responders who saw things no one should ever have to see. We also feel for those who suffered the loss of a friend, a teammate, a student, a teacher, a neighbor, a coworker. We feel for those who waited excruciating lengths of time to hear from loved ones not knowing if they were safe.

As we grieve, each of us in our own way, it is important we understand everyone grieves in different ways and in different time. We should all be understanding and respectful of the grieving of others —realizing there is no wrong way to grieve. No one should be left to feel guilty for the way they are processing this tragedy. This is not a time for judgment or critique, but a time for extending kindness and offering support. That will serve to unite us and that is how we will get through this together.

Parkland has always taken great pride in being a close-knit city of families. We see families at every event in the City, we see them biking together, we see them in the grocery store. On Wednesday, February 14, 2018 the Parkland family grew much larger. In the immediate aftermath of the events on that day and continuing now, so many people and organizations have reached out to our City with assistance and support. Many of them from distant places, but all of them reassuring us that we are not alone, that we have family all across the country.

To our immediate family — the students, faculty, and staff of Stoneman Douglas High School, the residents of Parkland, our neighbors in Coral Springs who suffered the impact just as we did — we are here for you to move forward together. To our extended family of those around the country who have offered a sympathetic hand, we welcome you and are strengthened by your compassion and the piece of our heart that you now occupy.

As the nation, and the world, has watched news coverage of our community, they have realized what a special place this is. They have seen our community rally together quickly. They have seen our strength and determination. They have seen our wonderful students speak out eloquently about the need for change so this never happens again.

We have a long and difficult road ahead. Many in our northwest Broward community are suffering and grieving. We must ensure they have the support and resources to navigate through this. Our community has always risen to the occasion to help others and I know we will be strong and help each other. Together we will get through this with our community support and the support of our extended family.

There are many names I could mention at this time. People who have been heroic, supportive, and instrumental in so many positive things that have transpired in such a short span of time. And I know they will understand if I mention only 17 names in this column.  #ParklandStrong. #MSDstrong.

Alyssa Alhadeff, Scott Beigel, Martin Duque Anguiano, Nicholas Dworet, Aaron Feis, Jaime Guttenberg, Chris Hixon, Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, Alaina Petty, Meadow Pollack, Helena Ramsay, Alex Schachter, Carmen Schentrup, and Peter Wang.

There are truly no words that can be spoken to ease the pain of the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. What can you say to the parents and families who lost a beloved child? What do you say to a community, whose city is named the safest in Florida to live in and the fifteenth safest in the country, now being listed as a city in which the eighth worst school shooting in the nation occurred?

You don’t say anything. You just be there to listen, and weep. You be there to support the community as it recovers and heals.

From the moment the news broke, the shock, disbelief, and horror of this mass shooting took our breath away. Watching the news reporters and officials break down as they brought us the updates only emphasized the horror of what had transpired. As the story developed and facts came to light of how and why this happened, it still made no sense. We don’t know if it ever will.

We pray for the families to find the strength to endure the pain that will never go away, to relearn how to live life with a semblance of normalcy, and to, above all, express their love for each other and keep that love strong. We pray for a speedy recovery for the injured. We pray for the physically uninjured to have full emotional recoveries. We pray that this never occurs again.

 

the Parklander

Oh, you know all about the danger invasive pythons pose in the Everglades and the annual hunt by folks who come from afar for bragging rights or to collect a bounty.

 

But I’ll bet you don’t know all about the science behind the effort to reduce the python population before they destroy the populations of deer, bobcats, rabbits, and other animals being wiped out, thanks to the pythons that have no predator.

 

Right now, for example, a cooperative effort by Canadian scientists and Florida wildlife experts is underway with federal help at the National Wildlife Research Center in Gainesville, Florida, financed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. They are experimenting with ways to trick male pythons into slithering into a trap. How? They start with skin that pythons have shed. Then, using a complex process involving various chemicals, they extract pheromones from the skin. They build a maze in the laboratory and spread female pheromones through the maze to see if males will follow the trail into a trap.

 

You could say this is a centuries-old idea. Question: How can you trap men? Answer: Get them to chase women. Ian Bartoszek, a biologist with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, puts it this way: “A male python is the best female detector on the plant.” And females are more important to catch.

 

If the “trick-them-with-pheromones” technique can be perfected, we could kill many males, eliminating some that would fertilize female eggs.

 

That would be helpful, but finding and removing females would be more effective because they have so many eggs — as many 70, 75, or 80.  Besides using pheromones, another method using the males to lead hunters to females is underway.

 

Bartoszek and his colleagues are at work searching for pythons and attaching radio-tracking devices to the males, knowing they will lead them to the potential mamas. Finding them in the first place, though, is no walk in the woods. Well, it actually is a walk in the Everglades — sometimes a long walk through knee-deep muck that sucks your foot down with every step. By all accounts, pythons are very difficult to see because they so easily blend into the Everglades landscape. An ecologist from the University of Arkansas, John Wilson, is quoted in Popular Science magazine that you can stand on a python and not even know. They can move fast, so even when you snag one it might get away. Two or three people may be needed to hold an 11-footer.

 

With the radio-tracking strategy, the snakes are let loose when they’re tagged and may eventually seek out the ladies. A helicopter tracks the electronic signals and leads hunters on the ground to the capture. In the meantime, the python might kill some mammals, but catching an egg-filled female is worth the price. The strategy has reaped some benefits. In 2015, for instance, Bartoszek reported trapping four males in a hole with a 14-foot female, capturing 240 pounds of python and a lot of eggs. In a public radio interview Bartoszek said he and his fellow scientists have eliminated more than 2,000 pythons from the Everglades National Park since 2002. Yet, the python population is still growing, and Ian Bartoszek said the range is expanding northward.

 

The ecological battle is on, but it’s not yet being won. Scientists will be the most effective warriors we have in the battle.

During this time of year that is often spent receiving, take a moment to consider what it means to give. With the excitement of the holidays, it can be easy to forget about those who are less fortunate. However, the truth of the matter is, there are many people within our own community who struggle when it comes to obtaining everyday necessities, not to mention having the means to provide gifts for children. There are several opportunities for everyone to help, whether it is through volunteer work or donations. One of the local organizations that participates in lending a helping hand to the Palm Beach County area is The Giving Tree.

The Giving Tree is a non-profit organization that was established more than 25 years ago by Myra Singer, a member of Temple Beth El, a local synagogue in Boca Raton. Myra established The Giving Tree after realizing that there were many people in the community who were struggling to make ends meet. Since then, the organization has seen hundreds of volunteers each year and has helped more than 2,000 people in the Palm Beach County area. Giving Tree

Help is offered to people who reach out to The Giving Tree through agencies that sponsor those in need. The agencies that work with The Giving Tree include Best Foot Forward, Caridad, Children’s Home Society, Family Promise of Boca Raton, and more. Each of these organizations offers different services to people in need in the surrounding areas. These services include housing assistance, afterschool and educational programs, as well as helping foster children who have been neglected or abused.

The Giving Tree organization is run entirely on a volunteer basis. During the holiday season, they need more volunteers to help spread holiday cheer to the less fortunate. Anyone is welcome to participate in the volunteer program, even children, provided they are accompanied by an adult. The volunteer work includes gathering and sorting through donated items, wrapping presents for the children, and helping to deliver them on Christmas Eve. This year’s location for the volunteer work will be the T-Rex Corporate Center, located down the street from Temple Beth El on Yamato Road in Boca Raton.

Donations are accepted in all shapes, sizes, and quantities. However much or little a person can give is always appreciated. Donations can vary from everyday necessities to holiday gifts for the children. Everyday necessities include school supplies, clothes, hygiene products, and other similar products. Gently used electronics are welcomed as well. These include gaming consoles, iPods, cameras, and computers. Gift cards from Walmart, Target, or VISA/AMEX are also accepted to help adults and seniors pay for food and gas. To arrange for these items to be picked up, email TheGivingTreeBoca@gmail.com. During the holiday season, it is also possible to drop the donations off at this year’s volunteer location.

While year-round donations and volunteer work is encouraged, The Giving Tree offers a special opportunity to those in the community during the holiday season. The Holiday Gift Program consists of children’s Wish Lists. Those who volunteer to participate in this event will receive a Wish List from a child who has found themselves in a circumstance that prevents them from receiving any gifts for the holiday season. The volunteer who is assigned the Wish List is in charge of shopping for this child’s desired Christmas items, which the volunteer will later drop off at this years volunteer location. Although the child’s identity and personal details remain anonymous, the donor will be left knowing that they played a part in helping a child smile on Christmas morning.

The Giving Tree is an organization that has not only had a positive effect on those in need, but also on those who have participated as volunteers. Judy Gordon, one of the co-chairs of the organization, claims that her work with The Giving Tree has allowed her to obtain a better understanding of the amount of need within the community that surrounds us. Judy said, “Right here in our own backyard, there are children who go without meals and don’t have the necessary things to help them be successful.”

So often, we feel as though helping people is beyond our abilities. Either the people in need are too far away or the amount of help needed is too great. Thanks to organizations such as The Giving Tree, people are granted an opportunity to help those in need. Judy said, “People are so generous. They don’t know how to give, so when they hear about us, it gives them the opportunity.”

Donations, no matter how large or small, as well as time spent volunteering, no matter how long or short, make all the difference in the world to someone without means. For more information on how you can help, email The Giving Tree at TheGivingTreeBoca@gmail.com or call Temple Beth El at 561-391-8900.

She began dancing at four years old. She began cheerleading in middle school and instead of never looking back, she looked forward to being a Miami Dolphins cheerleader. Adrianna had big dreams for her future and with some encouragement for her high school coach, Shannon Ferguson, who once was a Miami Dolphins cheerleader, had Adrianna attend weekly cheerleading classes in preparation for the auditions.

“I knew being a Miami Dolphins Cheerleader is something I wanted to fulfill when I was 18,” she said. While waiting to turn 18, the age young women can audition to be a cheerleader, Adrianne was an All-District Lacrosse player and got her certification in Child Care.

Adrianna is now in her fourth season as a cheerleader. One of the things she enjoys most about being on the team is how much they do for the community. “We do so much for the community, we visit troops overseas, attend charity events, hold cheer clinics for children, and visit hospitals during the holidays. We are always putting a smile on someone’s face and I admire that about this organization,” she said. Cheerleader

In January 2016, Adrianna and the cheerleading team got to visit the troops in SW Asia. In December 2016 she and the cheerleaders traveled to Belgium, England, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, and Spain. These are experiences she wouldn’t have had if it weren’t for the Miami Dolphins.

Sometimes cheerleaders get negative press. They’re thought of as not very smart and are objectified. Fortunately for Adrianna, that has not been her experience.

“I’ve been a cheerleader for four years now and I have never had any negative experiences. Our fans are great and very supportive. At the end of the day, we are all cheering on one of the best teams in the NFL. What makes the Miami Dolphins special to me is that we are always giving back to the community and helping others feel comfortable within themselves. I love to inspire and empower women to be the best version of themselves and being part of the Miami Dolphins Organization I am able to fulfill that role and take it to the next level.”

Adrianna is currently in school studying fashion and interior design and aspires to become an interior designer and fashion retail owner. “My vision is to make everyone feel confident and express their inner beauty. I have learned over the past few years to appreciate the little things, accept others opinions and continue to bring to mind that I am doing what I love and what makes me happy,” she said.

She also thinks about the influence she may have on little girls. If she was to give them any advice, she uses a favorite quote, which says: “To have the courage to think differently, the courage to discover the impossible and the courage to conquer any problem and succeed.”

As a nod to the Miami Dolphins, Adrianna is proud of the fact that the Dolphins organization is very community minded. She credits them with her “learning to appreciate the appreciate the little things, accept others opinions and to continue doing what I love and makes me happy.”

The start of the holiday season is approaching, and with it brings about a time when people begin to think of spreading joy to others. It is in this holiday spirit that one particular organization is enabling individuals to support U.S. soldiers who are overseas fighting for the country’s freedoms everyday. The Adopt A U.S. Soldier program, started in 2005 by Ann Johnson, connects deployed soldiers with those seeking to show their gratitude.

The U.S. soldiers, stationed overseas miss their homeland and posses an overwhelming feeling of jubilation to hear from the people who appreciate the sacrifices they make for us all. When Ann Johnson’s son Paul was deployed to Iraq, she wrote him a letter once a week and when she sent him a care package, Paul shared it with his unit. The troops were thrilled to receive items from home. Ann’s friends found out and started sending Paul packages too, which he then shared with his platoon. The amount of supporters grew exponentially and today, Adopt A U.S. Soldier, according to the website adoptaussoldier.org, “is active in over 170+ countries/ territories/ independent states with over 1,000,000 active volunteers supporting our troops.”

Kelly Watters, a registered nurse in the cardiovascular intensive care unit at Broward Health Medical Center, signed up with the Adopt A U.S. Soldier program about a year and a half ago. She was in love with a soldier 20 years ago who was deployed and all he asked of her was to write him letters while he was away. Unfortunately he was killed in action and never made it back home to see her again.

While researching good causes for the hospital to get involved in as a community outreach program, Kelly stumbled upon The AAUSS program. Sounding very dear to her heart, Kelly knew the program could brighten up the lives of the men and women deployed overseas. With the memory of her fallen loved one whom she lost 20 years earlier, she knew how much enjoyment and excitement a soldier feels when getting a letter from back home.

Kelly brings awareness to the program by speaking to groups and sharing her experiences. She is now on her fifth soldier in the course of a year and a half and finds that the program is beneficial to the soldiers and feels very rewarded to participate.

According to The Adopt A U.S. Soldier organization, “most deployed troops hardly ever receive a thank you, a kind word, or even a card or letter from home, let alone a simple care package to remind them what they’re fighting for.”

This holiday season you can make a difference in someone’s life. By adopting a soldier through the Adopt A U.S. Soldier program you too can have the opportunity to connect with soldiers overseas in order to show them your support. Go to adoptaussoldier.org and make a rewarding difference for you and someone else.