MIRAMAR, Fla.–Tropical Financial Credit Union reported it is one step closer to naming its 2016 Local Hero. TFCU has revealed three finalists from three different Florida counties: Palm Beach, Miami-Dade and Lee. The Local Hero will get a $4,500 check as a “Thank You” for their service and the runners-up will get $500 each for a charity of their choice.
The finalists are:
* Julia Kadel, of Delray Beach, Fla., wgi created the Miracle League of Palm Beach County more than a decade ago to give children with special needs an opportunity to play organized baseball. Now in its 18th season, the organization runs two eight-week sessions at Miller Park in Delray Beach. The specialized field has a cushioned synthetic turf to prevent injuries, wheelchair access dugouts and a completely flat surface to eliminate any barriers to the wheelchair bound or visually impaired players. “Thousands of players, family members, volunteers and citizens of Palm Beach County have benefited from the efforts of Coach Kadel and her commitment to The Miracle League,” according to her nomination.
* Doctors told Bernadette Todd’s parents she would not live past 8 years old due to the fact she was born with Muscular Dystrophy. But against all odds, she has survived, and today this 49-year-old woman from Cutler Bay, Fla. is focused on the needs of others, rather than herself. Bound to a wheelchair, with slight movement in only one thumb and an abundant faith in God, she travels to third-world countries sharing her story of hope and encouragement. She, along with a group of friends affectionately known as “Team Bernadette,” do missionary work to be a light in the world. Recently, the team traveled to a Navajo Indian reservation in New Mexico providing food, shoes and fellowship to families. They’ve also done enrichment programs for at-risk teenage girls in Fort Lauderdale, including a health and fitness day and a spa day at a juvenile justice program. “Through her testimony of love and faith, she has been able to bring hope to thousands of people worldwide, and with all of this, she wanted to do more,” writes her nominator.
* The third finalist is Gail Doxie of Fort Myers, Fla. Gail started the Miles of Smiles Foundation to honor her only son Miles who was killed in a tragic auto accident just days before leaving for Air Force basic training. The nonprofit offers Equine Assisted Therapy and Psychotherapy to U.S. military veterans who served in Afghanistan and Iraq and who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Gail brought the local community together to develop a 20-acre ranch as a place where these men and women can get access to free mental health counseling and services on a timely basis. In addition to her full-time work as a real estate agent, Gail is a licensed mental health counselor who has given more than $60,000 in services to veterans and their families over the last two years. “Gail works tirelessly to fund the facility and the need is great, the program is expanding,” wrote the person who nominated her.
Tropical Financial Credit Union honors a Local Hero each year with nominations made by the public through a web portal www.SubmitaHero.com.