Bayfront Health Port Charlotte’s Volunteer Auxiliary Awards $18,000 to Higher Education
PORT CHARLOTTE, FL (July 1, 2014) — Bayfront Health Port Charlotte’s Volunteer Auxiliary, Health Care Volunteers of Peace River Regional Medical Center, awarded $18,000 toward their Eighth Annual Health Career Scholarship Program. The nine recipients are students seeking a career in the health care industry.
The Volunteer Auxiliary is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote the health and welfare of individuals within the Charlotte County area community. With this in mind, the organization provides scholarships to deserving students who will ultimately improve and enhance health care services within our community.
The Volunteer Auxiliary Scholarship Committee is composed of five dedicated Health Care Volunteers: Ginnie Dembowski, volunteer coordinator; Joan Howarth, vice president; Don Locker, tram services captain; Carol Fitts, secretary; and Martha Stralko, treasurer. Together, this team of volunteers dedicates additional time to finding and selecting deserving students, many of which participate in Bayfront Health’s Teen Volunteer Program.
When choosing the recipients for the Annual Health Career Scholarship Program, the Scholarship Committee bases their selection on an objective and a need basis, with both academic and non-academic factors considered. To be eligible, the applicant must be currently enrolled, or will enroll upon graduation, into a health care related education program.
To date, the Health Care Volunteers of Peace River Regional Medical Center Auxiliary Scholarship Committee has awarded a total of $128,500 to health care career-seeking students since 2007. Funding for these scholarships is derived from a variety of services and fundraising events hosted by the Auxiliary, including gift shop sales, seasonal book and jewelry sales, the operation of vending machines on the hospital campus, and popcorn sales that take place in the main lobby.
The Eighth Annual Health Career Scholarship Recipients are:
- Kirsten Boyd, attending Florida International University
- Rebecca Emdin, attending Edison State College
- Amber Howarth, attending Florida Gulf Coast University
- Kelli Kennedy, attending State College of Florida
- Nicholas Newman, attending Florida Gulf Coast University
- Andrew Sunderland, attending Southwest Florida College
- Tanya Sharma, attending University of South Florida
- Walter Peretiatko, attending University of Florida
- Courtney Wyville, attending Florida State University
Bayfront Health of Port Charlotte, its staff, physicians and Volunteer Auxiliary congratulate these nine students on their scholarships, and wish these students the best of luck as they further their education by pursuing and entering the health care field, and ultimately improving and enhancing health care services within our community.
About Bayfront Health Port Charlotte
Bayfront Health Port Charlotte (formerly Peace River Regional Medical Center) is a 254-bed Joint Commission Accredited full service hospital that is more than a provider of medical excellence; it is where people come to be cared for and cared about. With expert physicians and staff in cardiovascular services, orthopedics and spine, emergency care, and women’s services, and through strategic partnerships with Shands/UF, All Children’s Specialists-Johns Hopkins Medicine, Florida Advanced Cardiothoracic (FACT) Surgery, and now Bayfront Health, we are united to bring high quality care to Florida's Gulf communities. To learn more, visit: www.bayfrontcharlotte.com.
