MIRAMAR, Fla. – Following a three-month long search, Tropical Financial Credit Union has named Fort Myers real estate agent Gail Doxie as its 2016 Local Hero. Doxie was selected for her work helping war veterans recover from mental health issues related to their service in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“Gail is to be commended for her work caring for American veterans,” said Richard Helber, president and CEO of Tropical Financial Credit Union. “She is the epitome of what a local hero is all about; someone doing selfless acts on a regular basis for the betterment of a community or for the benefit of other people.”
“I want to thank Tropical Financial Credit Union for this incredible recognition, but I believe the real heroes are the military men and women who lay their lives on the line each day to preserve the freedoms we all love and enjoy,” said Doxie. “I humbly share this honor with them.”
Doxie and her husband, Keith, started the Miles of Smiles Foundation in memory of their only son, Miles, who was killed in an automobile accident two weeks before reporting to Air Force basic training. Working full time as a real estate agent, she went back to school and became a licensed mental health counselor with a mission to help veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). She then brought the community together to develop a 20-acre ranch in north Ft. Myers where she started an Equine Assisted Therapy and Psychotherapy program. The idea was inspired by Miles, who found great comfort around horses.
Doxie provides her therapy free of charge to veterans and their families. In fact, during the past two years, she has donated $60,000 worth of services, the credit union said.
On Oct. 14, about 40 supporters, friends and veterans attended a check presentation ceremony at the ranch. Tropical Financial gave Doxie $4,500 as a thank you for her selfless work. She also received a $1,000 check that went directly to the foundation.
This year, Tropical Financial is recognizing two runner-ups who also do amazing things in their community.:
- Julia Kadel of Delray Beach, Florida, started a baseball league, called the Miracle League of Palm Beach County, to give kids with special needs an opportunity to play organized baseball. The league is now in its 18th season.
- Bernadette Todd of Cutler Bay, Florida, was born with muscular dystrophy, and outlived doctors’ predictions of an early death. Today, she and a group of women she calls Team Bernadette, organize mission trips around the world to bring people a message of hope.
Each woman will be given $500 to be donated to a charity of her choice.
“One thing that’s clear is that people in South Florida have a huge heart,” said Helber. “We received so many compelling stories it was hard to choose just one hero. It’s tremendously overwhelming.”