(PRESS RELEASE)_(Palm Beach County, FL – April 3, 2020) - The 25th Annual Palm Beaches Student Showcase of Films (SSOF), Florida’s largest student film competition & award show, recognized top high school and college students for their talent and creativity.

“I’m delighted to congratulate this talented group of future filmmakers, writers, and graphic designers.  The competition received more eligible entries than ever before from all corners of the state,” said Michelle Hillery, Palm Beach County Deputy Film Commissioner and SSOF executive producer. 

“And with this year being a milestone, we were looking forward to an extra special red carpet and award show.  However, we were determined to not let the coronavirus pandemic ruin all the fun.  In an effort prove that the show must go on, we turned to social media to announce the results and to celebrate these hardworking students. We look forward to resuming as normal next year,” she continued.

Winners were announced online via a Facebook Watch Party. Eager students watched from the safety of their homes as their name and award was displayed in an original SSOF video presentation. Throughout the video, show host Frank Licari serenaded students with a humorous take on a Billie Eilish hit reimagined as Film Guy.

“An absence of ceremony in no way diminishes these amazing achievements!” added Licari.

Forty-eight film industry professionals from around the world had the difficult challenge of selecting finalists from 377 eligible entries in 12 categories.  More than $20,000 in scholarships and awards were presented. 

The 2020 Student Showcase of Films Award Winners are:

Donald E. Ross Education PSA Award ($1,000)
Parker Miller, Paxon School for Advanced Studies (Jacksonville) - “Crossing the Gap” 

Commercial/PSA Award ($750)
Heidi Kafer, G-Star School of the Arts (West Palm Beach) - “Bound”

Keep Palm Beach County Beautiful Inc. Environmental PSA Award ($1,000)
Josh Riemer, Marjory Stoneman Douglas H.S. (Parkland) - “Plastic PSA – End Plastic Pollution”

Nellie & Fred Chasin Screenwriting Award ($500)
Thomas McCabe, G-Star School of the Arts (West Palm Beach) - “Ain’t No Love”

Animation Award ($1,000)
Suyoung Jang, Ringling College of Art & Design (Sarasota), “Shattered”
Suzanne L. Niedland Documentary Award ($1,000)
Carsen Jessell, Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts (Tallahassee), “Into the Flames”
 
Film Florida’s Sara Fuller Scholarship ($1,000)
Carlos Novoa, G-Star School of the Arts (West Palm Beach)
 
Burt Reynolds Scholarship ($5,000)
Samuel Hahn, A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts (West Palm Beach)
Vanilla Ice Music Video Award ($1,000)
Isaiah Fernandez, West Broward H.S. (Pembroke Pines) – “Uneventful Days”

College Feature/Short Awards
1st Place – Samuel Romero and Arminio Rivero, Miami Dade College (Miami) – “Speak Only Good of the Dead” ($2,000)
2nd Place – William Stead, Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts (Tallahassee) – “The Last Summer” ($1,500)
3rd Place – Sarah Holland, University of Central Florida (Orlando) – “Egghead & Twinkie” ($1,250)

High School Feature/Short Awards
1st Place – Josh Ceranic, Harrison School for the Arts (Lakeland) – “David Isn’t Here Anymore” ($1,500)
2nd Place – Kaia Goudreau, Fort Lauderdale H.S. (Fort Lauderdale) – “Melted” ($1,000)
3rd Place – Jayden Torres and Alex Torres, Harrison School for the Arts (Lakeland) – “Desperado” ($750)

Poster Design Award ($750)
Kaitlynn Touchton, Dixie Hollins High School (St. Petersburg)

(PRESS RELEASE)_(West Palm Beach, FL – April 2, 2020) Friends of the Mounts Botanical Garden today announced that although the Garden has been temporarily closed during the current COVID-19 pandemic out of an abundance of caution and for the well-being of visitors, volunteers, members and staff, Mounts Botanical Garden is now virtually active with a variety of fun and educational online activities for children and adults.

To make this easily accessible to homebound people of all ages, the Garden recently launched three new portal pages on its official website, mounts.org.

Visit Virtually:

https://www.mounts.org/visit-virtually/ 

While the front gate may be closed, this page allows visitors to take a virtual tour of Mounts Botanical Garden. This is the perfect online opportunity to explore the beauty of the Garden, learn more about the fascinating plants and display gardens, find family activities that can be enjoyed from home, enjoy breathtaking photos contributed by staff and guests, and even go on an art-meets-science excursion.

For Children:

https://www.mounts.org/virtual-youth-programs/ 

On this page, Mounts Botanical Garden offers unique programs for children and families, as well as educational experiences for students in grades K-12. Online activities include:

+ Nature Quest

Like all botanical gardens, Mounts is home to thousands of plants from all over the world. This page offers 20 fascinating factoids and questions of a horticultural nature.

+ Virtual Learning is Fun!

Mounts has partnered with Scientist in Every Florida School to bring interdisciplinary content that connects art and science, including livestream events—the first of which will be on April 21 at 10 am, when Dr. David Blackburn, associate curator of herpetology at the Florida Museum of Natural History, will conduct a virtual tour of Mounts to see Ribbit the Exhibit and learn many curious characteristics of frogs.

+ Make Your Own Frog Bog:

Frogs play an important part in the environment as both predators and prey, and as incredible indicators of the health of the ecosystem in which they live. This page offers tips about how to build and stock a healthy frog pond.

For Mounts Members:

https://www.mounts.org/mbg-members/  

“During this unprecedented time of uncertainty while the Garden is closed, we wanted to create a special place for our members and friends,” says Rochelle Wolberg, Mounts Curator-Director. Online activities include:

+ Frog Blog

An insider’s look at the art and horticulture of Ribbit the Exhibit, including stories featuring the 23 whimsical, larger-than-life frog characters created by J.A. Cobb.

+ Virtually Yours

Filled with beautiful places to go, gardening tips from a Mounts horticulturist, and other helpful content, this page includes virtual tours of some of the world’s most amazing gardens.

+ Leaflet

The spring 2020 issue of Mounts’ popular glossy magazine will be published online mid-April.

“We look forward to welcoming everyone back to Mounts Botanical Garden as soon as it is safe to reopen,” adds Wolberg. “Until then, we hope garden lovers everywhere will enjoy the fun and informative content on mounts.org.”

(PRESS RELEASE)_Delray Beach, FL, March 26, 2020 – The Achievement Centers for Children and Families (ACCF), established in 1969, currently serves 539 children in its early learning, out of school and teen programs. While ACCF temporarily closed its children’s programs at all three of its sites, their Family Strengthening and Economic Stability Services are fully engaged during this time of crisis.  

The Center is partnering with local Delray Beach restaurants and community agencies to provide breakfast, lunch and dinner to their families that have been most affected by the crisis.

ACCF launched a meal program that will run twice per week. The organization will offer two days of “jump start breakfast meal kits” provided by Boca Helping Hands; lunches provided by FLIPANY; and dinner supported by Delray-based restaurants, including Caesar’s Famous Ribs and 3rd and 3rd.  Bags of groceries and essential items that have been donated through community support will be distributed at ACCF’s Family Resource Center via drive-through pick up.

“With every passing day, the COVID-19 crisis threatens to have a larger impact than the day before,” said Stephanie Seibel, CEO of the Achievement Centers. “We have adapted our day to day operations so we may continue serving ACCF families most affected. With so many people out of work now, food is among the highest reported need.”

In addition to providing meals, the food program is supporting local restaurants also suffering during the COVID-19 crisis.   Prepared meals are being provided at a significantly reduced cost while restaurant owners are able to employ their staff. “Our first distribution was 200 hot dinners,” said Seibel. “We are inspired by the outpouring of donations that are making this possible. We will continue for as long as we have the resources to do so.”

The organization has set up a COVID-19 Emergency Fund and is seeking donations.  ACCF also provides a list of resources to keep families informed at AchievementCentersFL.org/coronavirus.  


About Achievement Centers for Children & Families
The Achievement Centers for Children and Families was established in 1969 and serves 900 children annually through its Early Learning Centers, After School Programs, Teen Mentoring and Summer Camps. Programs are embedded with family strengthening activities, are academically focused and support the social emotional wellness of children. Economic stabilization services are also available for families in crisis. Achievement Centers supports a collaborative community where children are inspired to reach their full potential and their families serve as the foundation of their child’s growth.

Program are offered at three locations in Delray Beach; Nancy K. Hurd Campus, Village Academy, and Pine Grove Elementary. For more information, call (561) 266-0003 or visit www.achievementcentersFL.org.

(PRESS RELEASE)_Boca Raton, FL (April 1, 2020) –Today, The Addison in Boca Raton announced that it has begun to donate 700 meals per week to Boca Helping Hands (BHH) to aid in its efforts to feed the homebound and other BHH clients most in need of help. Drivers will deliver to 30 homebound clients three times a week, enabling those clients to have hot cooked meals every day. The remaining meals will be provided to the non-profit’s clients who walk up to Boca Helping Hands to receive a hot meal.

“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, we have been preparing 170 packaged hot meals for pick-up each day.  The need has grown in recent days with over 250 now seeking lunch each day. The Addison’s help will go a long way to help the homebound and others who are most in need, but will also help us use our resources to meet the growing needs we are experiencing during this crisis,” said Greg Hazle, Executive Director of Boca Helping Hands. “This is an incredible offer from a wonderful partner, whose help will be particularly meaningful over the difficult few months ahead.”
 
For more information or to donate or volunteer to distribute meals, please contact Karen Swedenborg at 561-417-0913, ext. 202 or visit bocahelpinghands.org.

(PRESS RELEASE)_Delray Beach, FL – April 1, 2020) Marjorie Waldo, President & CEO of Arts Garage, today announced that the nonprofit organization is launching From Our HeARTS to Your Homes, a new virtual series that arts fans can enjoy from the comfort of their homes. The series will roll out over the next month, first to Arts Garage newsletter subscribers and then to the general public via Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

From Our HeARTS to Your Homes will include live musical performances, arts education classes, poetry and comedy, featuring some amazing young performers, such as Matt Brown, Brandii Edwards, Indigo Dreams, and Valerie White. Viewers will also have access to exclusive interviews, blogs, and more.

“This new series is our response to safety concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic that has caused many businesses and arts institutions to temporarily close their doors, including Arts Garage,” says Waldo. “But we refuse to let this virus stop the music and art, which can be truly transformative, giving us joy and hope and helping to heal all that is broken. If ever there has been a time for healing, it’s right now.

“Best of all—this series is FREE. No ticket purchase is necessary to enjoy it,” she adds. “Every artist has donated their time and talent working with Arts Garage to keep our patrons close and energized by the magic of the ARTs. This is our way to serve the community that has supported this venue for so long by connecting people to the world through the arts—even if it is from the comfort of their own couches—as Arts Garage brings them some of the biggest-heARTed performers ever.”

To enjoy this new virtual series, just subscribe to the Arts Garage newsletter (https://artsgarage.org/email-sign-up/).  Or follow us on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r24F2zOkIZ0); on Facebook and/or Twitter. 

For more information or a preview, please visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seIXafU1oJU&t=8s 
or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR1I6VvraB4&t=9s
or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MGTZGlJz28.  

From LoLa 41, the new restaurant on Palm Beach:

"We’re pleased to announce that LoLa 41 (290 Sunset Avenue) has reopened offering curbside take out and delivery to the residents of Palm Beach. The restaurant will also offer wine to-go at 50% off along with a special takeout menu (below). Between 12pm and 4PM, customers can pre-order by calling the restaurant at 561-599-5652. Orders can then be picked up curbside between 4pm and 8pm. For orders online or via UberEats, orders can be placed between 4pm and 8pm. Wine discount will not apply with UberEats order. "

(PRESS RELEASE)_Delray Beach, FL, March 31, 2020 – Space of Mind Schoolhouse and its nonprofit 501(c)3 initiative, Community Classroom Project, along with its Chef, Blake Malatesta, are preparing fresh ingredient dinner boxes and school lunches to encourage family meal prep, learning and life skill development through culinary arts and healthy eating.  For each meal box purchased, one will be donated to a local family in need.

Each meal box, with prices ranging from $24 to $45 for a family of two or four, includes a set of ingredients for a healthy family dinner and dessert , a recipe to follow and a link to watch Chef Malatesta demonstrating each step for families to learn some culinary tricks while preparing their meals together. The school lunch boxes are $10 and include an interactive cooking demo with educational information, including the science, math and cultural influences behind each recipe.

The program test launched on March 21 and 60 meals were distributed, with 30 being purchased by Space of Mind Schoolhouse families, and 30 donated to families served by Delray Beach non-profits, WiseTribe and the EJS Project.

The meals must be ordered online at Space of Mind Schoolhouse and can be picked up at the Space of Mind Schoolhouse at 102 North Swinton in Delray Beach.