{"id":10498,"date":"2014-01-17T13:23:12","date_gmt":"2014-01-17T18:23:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mcreativepr.com\/?p=10498"},"modified":"2014-01-17T13:23:12","modified_gmt":"2014-01-17T18:23:12","slug":"unite-award-winner-announced-bob-janes-triage-center-takes-25000-collaboration-prize","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mcreativepr.com\/2014\/01\/17\/unite-award-winner-announced-bob-janes-triage-center-takes-25000-collaboration-prize\/","title":{"rendered":"UNITE Award winner announced; Bob Janes Triage Center takes $25,000 collaboration prize"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Bob Janes Team with UNITE Award sponsors<\/p>\n

FORT MYERS, Fla. (Jan. 17, 2014) \u2013 Myers, Brettholtz & Company, PA<\/a> announced Jan. 14 that the Bob Janes Triage Center\/Low Demand Shelter was the winner of the inaugural UNITE (Uniting Nonprofits In Teaming for Excellence) Award and the $25,000 cash prize.<\/p>\n

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Established by Myers, Brettholtz & Company, PA and supported by the Southwest Florida Community Foundation<\/a> and the United Way of Lee, Hendry and Glades Counties<\/a>, the UNITE Award is a regional award that recognizes successful nonprofit collaborative models across the five-county area that exemplify excellence and community impact. Its goal is to provide information to the nonprofit community about collaborative models that have succeeded in Southwest Florida area and to share proven effective practices for nonprofits working together.<\/p>\n

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Wayne Smith & Jennifer Coleman<\/p>\n

The winner was announced at the annual Myers, Brettholtz & Company\u2019s full-day nonprofit seminar held at Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre in Fort Myers. In addition, each of the runners up, Families First: Children\u2019s Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida, Inc. and Child Care of Southwest Florida, Inc. and Southwest Florida Addiction Services\/Lee Mental Health Merger, received $2,500 thanks to funding made available by the Wayne Smith of the Smith Family Foundation who wished to reward the other finalists for their dedication to collaboration in the community.<\/p>\n

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Kelly Talamo, Maureen Meltzer & Kiondra White<\/p>\n

\u201cEach of the 27 entries we received were inspiring,\u201d said Lori Sampson-Wilson, principal of Myers, Brettholtz. \u201cIt clearly shows that our regional nonprofits are working together to achieve positive collaborative results.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Bill Blevins, Steve Brettholtz & Major Tom Louden<\/p>\n

The Bob Janes Triage Center\/Low Demand Shelter is a collaboration with the Salvation Army of Lee, Hendry and Glades Counties, the Lee County Board of County Commissioners, law enforcement, Lee Memorial Health System, SalusCare, the National Alliance on Mental Illness and the United Way.<\/p>\n

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Mell Dell & Bill Dabroski<\/p>\n

The Triage Center serves primarily as a voluntary pre-arrest diversion program to reduce the number of individuals with mental illness and\/or substance use disorders that are arrested and sent to jail for minor offenses.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are so appreciative of this recognition for our efforts that help make a difference in the community,\u201d said Major Thomas Louden of the Salvation Army. \u201cThe cash award will be put back into the program to help participants with incidental expenses for job readiness such as needed medications, apparel for job interviews and other various items that will help them get back on their feet and become independent.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Janet Taylor & Beth Lobdell<\/p>\n

Families First is a collaboration of the Children\u2019s Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida, Inc. and Child Care of Southwest Florida, Inc. This community-based early intervention\/prevention program is designed to help young families deal with risk factors associated with violence and abuse.<\/p>\n

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Dottie Pacharis, Debi Webb & Gina Britton<\/p>\n

\u201cOur collaboration with Child Care of Southwest Florida and the Children\u2019s Network has enabled us to keep children out of the child welfare system and strengthen the family unit,\u201d said Jill Turner, founder and CEO of CACSWFL. \u201cWe have all learned how to create a new program and grow it while staying true to our original mission. The three agencies play well together.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Steve Brettholtz, Dave Miller & Emily Furlong<\/p>\n

The merger between the area\u2019s leading agencies for mental health and substance abuse disorders, Southwest Florida Addiction Services and SalusCare, created a new nonprofit entity allowing more patients to receive needed care, more access points for care and ease in registering for treatment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe SalusCare team is excited to have our efforts to improve critically needed services recognized, and we are equally excited by the new ways we have of serving individuals and families in need as we celebrate our first six months of operations as a new company,\u201d said Kevin Lewis, president and CEO of SalusCare.<\/p>\n

To be eligible for the first year\u2019s award, a collaboration had to:<\/p>\n