News Briefs

Critical need for blood in Collier County

Donors with types O and A blood are needed immediately in Collier County to help boost the Community Blood Center’s critically low blood product inventories.

The local shortage is the result of a sudden increase in usage by area patients coupled with a significant decline in donations. The only way to obtain adequate levels of transfusable blood is through life-saving donations from our community members.

Donors can give the gift of life:

¦ At Community Blood Center’s donor center: 1100 Immokalee Road, Naples, FL 34110, located on the first floor of the NCH Business Center. Hours of operation: 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Monday, Thursday, & Friday, 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Tuesday (closed Wednesday, Saturday, & Sunday). No appointment is necessary.

¦ On the Bloodmobile – Find a blood drive location at www.givebloodcbc.org .

Donors can safely give blood every 56 days. The minimum age to give blood is 16, with a parent present. There is no upper age maximum. Donors must weigh at least 110 pounds, eat before giving blood, and be well-hydrated. A photo ID is required at donation time. The entire process, from registration to refreshment, takes about 45 minutes. All blood products collected by the Community Blood Center, an affiliate of NCH Healthcare System, remain within the community to benefit local patients in need.

AURIANA

Naples Winter Wine Festival names ‘Chef de Cuisine’

The Naples Children & Education Foundation announced that Angelo Auriana will be saluted as Chef de Cuisine at the 25th annual Naples Winter Wine Festival.

Auriana is the innovative celebrity chef behind The Factory Kitchen and BRERA Ristorante.

A native of Bergamo, Italy, near the culinary capital of Milan, Auriana graduated with honors from the prestigious San Pellegrino Hotel School at age 17. Auriana made his way to California in 1985, where he helped with the opening of “Primi un Ristorante” shortly after becoming executive chef of “Valentino Ristorante” during his tenure of more than 18 years in Valentino’s kitchen.

“It will be a privilege to participate in the Festival for a ninth time over its 25- year history, including some of the very early years. I am always awestruck by the commitment to improving the lives of children in need,” Auriana said.

The 25th annual wine festival, to be held from Jan. 24-26, 2025, at The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón, comes following the record-breaking event in January 2024, during which over $33 million was raised. Funds are distributed by NCEF via grants to individual nonprofits and multi-partner, multi-year strategic initiatives focusing on the well-being of the whole child, including early learning, healthcare, hunger, mental health, oral health, out-of-school time and vision.

Collier clerk’s office awarded recognition

Collier County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Crystal K. Kinzel was awarded a Recognition of Excellence certificate for successfully completing the Best Practices Excellence Program in eight categories.

“This award is a testament to our office’s excellence and commitment in providing quality services to the people of Collier County across different areas,” said Kinzel. “We are honored to receive this recognition and will continue to improve our processes to meet the standards of best practices.”

The Florida Court Clerks & Comptrollers established the Best Practices Excellence Program in June 2020 as an opportunity for clerks to receive these certificates for choosing to complete assessments that evaluate acceptance in 10 areas for best practices. The Collier clerk’s office received the award at FCCC’s Summer Conference in Orlando on June 19.

Fifth-eight clerk offices participated in the program, out of the 68 Florida clerks and comptrollers.

Genesis of Naples earns Retailer of the Year award

Genesis of Naples announced it has received the “Genesis CX Retailer of the Year” award.

The award recognizes top performance in customer service, sales and satisfaction among all Genesis automotive dealers throughout the United States during 2023.

Kevin Harvey, senior manager for customer experience for the Southern Region of Genesis Motor America, presented the award to Tim Zellers, owner of Genesis of Naples, at a special employee luncheon on June 19.

“We are very proud to be honored as the inaugural Genesis CX Retailer of the Year,” Zellers said. “This award is especially meaningful because it reflects the entire customer experience and recognizes the consist delivery of customer service each and every day by all the employees at Genesis of Naples.”

Located at 6780 Airport-Pulling Rd. N., Genesis of Naples has consistently ranked as one of the top five volume Genesis franchises in the continental United States. It also is one of a handful of U.S. dealers to be honored with the Genesis Circle of Prestige award, receiving it in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Earlier this year, Genesis of Naples announced plans for a new and expanded automobile dealership. The new showroom will replace the current Genesis of Naples location at 6780 Airport-Pulling Rd. N., next to the family’s Hyundai dealership. After Genesis moves, Hyundai will be fully renovated and expanded.

The Zellers family also owns Tamiami Ford at 1471 Airport-Pulling Rd. N. The Tamiami dealership brand has been a force in Naples since Arlie Zellers launched Tamiami Ford in 1973. Today, the Zellers family – Robert and Sheila Zellers, daughter Joy Zellers-Rautenkranz, and son A.J. Zellers – represent one of the last privately owned auto dealerships in Southwest Florida. Between the three dealerships, the family employs nearly 300 in Collier County with annual new and preowned sales surpassing 5,000 vehicles.

Guadalupe Center collecting school supplies for Immokalee students

Guadalupe Center is collecting notebooks, folders, writing utensils and other items for Immokalee students through Aug. 9 as part of the nonprofit’s 32nd annual School Supply Drive.

School supplies will be distributed to students in Guadalupe Center’s After school Tutoring Program, which serves approximately 760 students in kindergarten, first and second grades. The program provides academic support and enrichment opportunities to ensure students are achieving academic milestones.

Additionally, Guadalupe Center is partnering with teachers to collect academic materials, such as learning-focused board games and index cards, and classroom supplies like construction paper, tissues and batteries.

“Many Immokalee families struggle financially and have limited resources after paying for rent, transportation, utilities and other monthly expenses,” said Dawn Montecalvo, president and CEO of Guadalupe Center. “For children, starting the school year with a new backpack stuffed with school supplies offers hope and confidence that they can achieve success in the classroom.”

For questions or to schedule a donation pick-up, contact Elizabeth Cuevas at ECuevas@GuadalupeCenter.org or call 239-944-9988.

Red Sox announce 13th annual golf tournament

As part of its continuing community outreach efforts, the Red Sox Foundation will hold its 13th annual Swings for the Sox golf tournament on Oct. 11, 2024.

The tournament will occur at the Tiburón Golf Club’s Gold Course at 2620 Tiburón Drive in Naples. All proceeds from this year’s tournament will benefit the Lee County Red Sox Scholarship program. Each year, the Red Sox Foundation awards a $5,000 college scholarship to one deserving student from each of the public high schools in Lee County and one student from a Lee County charter and ALS school for a total of 16 scholarships worth $80,000.

To date, the Swings for the Sox has raised more than $615,000 for local charities and specifically $530,000 for the scholarship program.

Corkscrew offering half-price admission next two months

Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is gearing up for a fun-filled evening on Aug. 4 with New Moon on the Boardwalk.

As dusk turns to night during the new moon, participants will enjoy sunset and may catch a glimpse of the Perseid meteor shower with spotting scopes that will be made available for night sky viewing.

Families can enjoy a touch table about nocturnal animals, story time, a moth station, and a special nighttime sound identification activity with a mini-boardwalk tour. For photography buffs, the Sanctuary’s Photographer-in-Residence, R J Wiley, will host a special workshop about zoom photography on the boardwalk, sharing his secrets for capturing compelling images of the “Super” ghost orchid and other wildlife. Space in this program is limited, with sign-ups available on site on a first-come, first-served basis.

Everyone enjoys discounted admission to the August 4 event, which runs from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.: $8 for adults, $3 for children, and free for members and for children ages 5 and younger. Visitors who say “new moon” at the Nature Store can enjoy a 10 percent discount on T-shirts. Online tickets are recommended at corkscrew.audubon.org/newmoon 24. ¦

The post News Briefs first appeared on Bonita Springs Florida Weekly .