Recognizing moms, on their special day
Members of the GFWC Wesley Chapel Woman’s Club handmade a sign and wrote Mother’s Day cards for the ladies at Orchid Cove nursing home in Dade City. The nursing home staff gave the cards, with a flower, to the moms in their facility. The woman’s club wanted all the moms to know that they were thought of on their special day. From left: Nancy Stikes, Linda Jenkins, Roberta Millard, Shantel Meyers, Liz Chavez and Marie Ambrosino.
Donate to CARES
Pasco County Tax Collector Mike Fasano’s five offices will feature CARES (Community Aging & Retirement Services) as its charitable organization for the month of May, and accept donations.
CARES provides services to vulnerable seniors who need meals, home health care, home maintenance, and help with pet care.
“Your kindness will help families in Pasco County who need in-home health services, adult day care and assistance for family members who need a break from the stressful demands of caregiving,” said Jemith Rosa, CARES president and CEO, in a news release.
“Your generosity will help frail elderly people in Pasco County, who are facing illness, hunger, and isolation. Additionally, the family members and caregivers need help as well,” said Rosa.
All proceeds from this promotional effort wil benefit the CARES We Help campaign.
For information about CARES and its services, call Jemith Rosa at 727-863-6868, or visit CARESFL.org.
For more about the promotional and charitable giving programs at the tax collector’s office, call Greg Giordano at 727-847-8179, or visit PascoTaxes.com.
Hospital certified ‘green’
St. Joseph’s Hospital-North’s energy efficiency is good for the environment and the hospital, according to a news release.
The Lutz hospital has received LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by the U.S. Green Building Council, a certification that is a globally recognized symbol of environmental sustainability, the release said.
In addition, the hospital also received an Energy to Care Award from the American Society for Health Care Engineering, for energy consumption reduction.
The hospital’s Facilities Department submitted a report summarizing St. Joseph’s significant energy reduction from May 2015 to October 2021.
Highlights of the report include:
- The hospital reduced energy use by 20% over that time. The energy reduction happened despite the hospital adding more than 100,000 square feet from an expansion that was completed in March 2020.
- The hospital reduced carbon dioxide use by nearly 13,000 metric tons.
- Greenhouse gas avoidance by the hospital during the period was the equivalent of removing 2,673 cars from the road; 1,157 homes off the energy grid; and eliminating 68 railcars of coal.
- Cost savings to the hospital from reduction in electricity and natural gas was more than $1.3 million.
John Young, the hospital’s facility manager, said in the release: “Efficiences in air conditioning played the biggest role in the energy reduction.
“In areas that were unoccupied or were in non-peak usage, we are able to ramp down the air conditioning in those spaces. Air conditioning is the highest energy consumer,” Young said.
Another significant energy savings was the use of LED lighting in the visitor and team member parking lots for the hospital and physician office building. LED lights also are economical and better for nighttime safety.
“The Green Hospital design allows St. Joseph’s Hospital-North to not only be a leader in health care technology and services, but to also be a good neighbor and community partner,” said Tom Garthwaite, hospital president, in the release.
Cultural center receives grant
The Carrollwood Cultural Center will increase accessibility for blind and low-vision patrons using $15,000 awarded through the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay Competitive Grant for the fiscal year 2022.
The center will use the grant money to purchase a new assistive listening system.
The grant also will enable the center to train people who will offer live audio description services to audience members who are blind or have low vision.
Audio description is a live narration of the visual elements of a performance, such as lights, costumes, actions, textures, and scenery.
The new system also will enable hard-of-hearing patrons to tune into a high-quality audio stream through the center’s wireless network. The patron then can access the frequency through an application on their cellphone.
The center plans to start offering audio descriptive services during the final two shows of its 2021-2022 theatrical season, with Roald Dahl’s “Matilda, the Musical” July 15 to July 24, and “First Date” Sept. 16 to Sept. 25.
The Carrollwood Cultural Center is a nonprofit organization with a mission of creating culture throughout community, and community through culture, a news release said.
