From Broward Children's Center
CEO Wins Two Awards for 30 Years of Special Needs Advocacy
By Thor Barraclough
Jul 7, 2004, 12:45
CEO Wins Two Awards for 30 Years of Special Needs Advocacy
POMPANO BEACH FL – In the space of one week Broward Children’s Center CEO Marjorie Evans has been awarded a Bank of America Local Heroes Award and named a Concern Award finalist by the Health Foundation of South Florida.
The awards recognize her contribution to her community and her leadership in enhancing the health and well being of people in Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties. The awards come with a $5000 and $10,000 grant respectively.
“With more than 33 years of service, Marjorie Evans has continued to break barriers to improve the lives of children with special needs,” said Shari Gantman, Health Foundation of South Florida Public Relations Director. “What makes her stand out is her delight in the possibilities for improvement in the quality of life of special needs children that hard work can realize. We are delighted to have this opportunity to salute her.”
Marjorie Evans service of those with special needs began in 1970 when she volunteered at the Broward Captivated Child Center and fought an almost daily struggle to keep the doors of the facility open and solvent. Thirty-five years later, she heads Broward Children's Center, an organization that has served thousands of infants, children and young adults who are developmentally disabled and medically fragile.
Her stewardship has seen the Center grow from one serving 25 children with several employees to a campus with 300 staff meeting the needs of 600 children and families, some of whom are among the country’s most medically fragile youth.
Evans achievements include heading the creation of; the first full-day school program for medically fragile/developmentally delayed Broward youngsters; Florida’s first after school program for children with disabilities; Florida’s first licensed freestanding pediatric nursing facility; first not-for-profit agency to be awarded Broward County Commission funding for developmental disabilities; first education class for cognitively intact ventilator-assisted children; first preschool program for children with handicaps and first independent living environment for ventilator assisted young adults in the United States.
Center Operations Officer, Jacqui Mogavero said Evans continues to inspire Center staff to provide the highest quality of life possible to those they serve through services that nurture education, privacy, dignity and safety.
For more than 30 years, Broward Children’s Center has been providing medical, educational, therapeutic and advocacy services to infants, children and young adults with special needs. For more information call 954.410.4410
Health Foundation of South Florida is a not-for-profit public charity. As a grant making foundation, its unique mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and to provide funding that directly benefits the health and well being of those in need. Since 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $44 million in grants and direct program support. For more information on the Foundation, please call 305.374.7200.
For more information: Thor Barraclough
954.410.4410
thorb@bcckids.org
© Copyright 2004 by Broward Children's Center