PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

South Florida Sun Sentinel

Cultural

NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale named new officers of its board of governors: Andrew M. Heller and Michelle Howland, vice chairs; Juan Bergaz Pessino, secretary; and Laura Palmer, At Large. They join Executive Committee members Francie Bishop Good, chair; Jeff Haines, treasurer; Stanley S. Goodman, and David Horvitz, as At Large, all of whom were reelected. Heller is the founder of Heller Capital Corp. Howland is the founder of The Howland Group, real estate specialists. Bergaz Pessino established the Bergaz Productions Co., with offices in Coral Gables and Santa Monica. Palmer is the president of Seitz Inc. Advertising and Promotion. The Board of Governors also named Whitney Lane and Barry Jay Minoff as new members. Minoff is an actor and film producer. Lane is a speech and language pathologist in private practice.

Sports

Bradley D. Houser was elected as second vice chair of the Orange Bowl Committee. Bradley is a partner with the law firm Holland & Knight LLP in Miami, and co-chairs the firm’s South Florida Corporate, M&A and Securities Practice Group.

Recognition

Broward County Library Director Kelvin Watson was honored with an official Broward County Proclamation commemorating his service to Broward County and pronouncing Feb. 9, 2021, as “Kelvin Watson Day” in Broward County. The proclamation, which was issued by Broward County Mayor Steve Geller at a recent Broward County Commission meeting, recognizes Watson’s contributions and outlines his many accomplishments in his four years as Broward County Library Director. Under Watson’s leadership, the Library launched numerous innovative initiatives that expanded library services throughout Broward County, including satellite service points at the Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport, local parks and commuter transit buses, as well as targeted programs for underserved populations such as veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and children and families living below the poverty line. Watson, who was named library director in February 2017, is leaving Broward County this month to take the position of executive director of Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.

Construction

Tester Construction Group, in Coconut Creek, will be run by Allen Parets, a construction executive with over 17 years of experience in the industry.

Government

Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson was elected chair of the Higher Education and Workforce Investment Subcommittee of the House Committee on Education and Labor, which has broad jurisdiction over issues related to college affordability, campus climate and safety, apprenticeship programs, and workforce development. Wilson is a former school principal whose district includes Florida Memorial University, the only HBCU in South Florida; St. Thomas University; Barry University; Broward Community College; and Miami Dade College, and Florida International University. Also, Wilson is the founder of the 5000 Role Models of Excellence Project, an in-school, dropout prevention mentoring program for boys of color.

The Hallandale Beach Commission selected Interim City Manager/CRA Executive Director Jeremy Earle as the new Hallandale Beach city manager. Earle joined the city in May 2017 as assistant city manager and has been serving as interim city manager since Aug. 12, 2020. He was also the city’s community redevelopment agency’s executive director, since January 2019. Earle previously was a deputy director for the Fort Lauderdale Department of Sustainable Development and CRA executive director for Dania Beach.

The Florida League of Cities announced that North Miami’s District 3 Councilwoman, Mary Estimé-Irvin, was appointed to serve on its Advocacy Committee. The Advocacy Committee is responsible for garnering support for the legislative priorities adopted by the Florida League of Cities’ membership, with a focus on the League’s members and the Legislature. Estimé-Irvin has served as a North Miami City Councilwoman since 2019.

Community

The Arc of Palm Beach County named Kurt Gehring, chief executive officer of the Gehring Group, as its new board chair, to lead the Board of Trustees for the next two years.

Pace Center for Girls Broward’s Regional Executive Director, Aggie Pappas, was promoted to vice president of program innovation & strategic implementation for Pace’s National Office. In 1992, Pappas opened Pace Center for Girls Broward with 30 girls in a storefront facility, and now the program has served over 8,500 girls based in its Wilton Manors location. Additionally, Pace Center for Girls Broward hired Sara Nuñez as the new executive director. Nuñez previously was chief development officer at Girl Scouts of Southeast Florida and executive director at the YMCA for New York.

Finance

Fiske & Co. announced that Staci Parrish has joined the firm as managing director of tax & accounting, in Fort Lauderdale.

Agri-business

Bespoke Extracts Inc., a producer of hemp-derived CBD products, announced the appointment of Carly Stojsic as the company’s new director of marketing. In addition to consultative work in the cannabis space, Stojsic also worked as market editor and senior trend specialist for WGSN, the global authority on consumer and design trends.

Medical

Christian Dammert launched an ATC Healthcare medical staffing franchise in Plantation. Dammert’s background in the service industry includes operations and management at local and corporate levels, including experience in recruiting.

The Health Foundation of South Florida has appointed a new President and Chief Executive Officer, Loreen Chant ;anda new Board Chair, Melida Akiti, vice president of ambulatory and community services at Memorial Healthcare System.

Palm Beach County Medical Society 2020 President Larry M. Bush, MD, recently passed the gavel to Roger L. Duncan, III, MD, vice chief of anesthesia at Palms West Hospital and fellow of the American Society of Anesthesiologists. Additional members joining the PBCMS board of directors include: Colette Brown-Graham, a board-certified fellow of the American

College of Obstetrics and Gynecology who cares for patients at Complete Healthcare for Women in Wellington; Ramon Cuevas-Trisan, a general physical medicine and rehabilitation physician at the West Palm Beach Veteran Affairs Medical Center; Gregg Goldin, a radiation oncologist at the Lynn Cancer Institute at Boca Raton Regional Hospital/Baptist Health South Florida; Krishna Kishor, an ophthalmologist at the University of Miami Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Palm Beach Gardens; Catherine Lowe, an ophthalmologist practicing in Palm Beach Gardens; Harish Madhav, an OB-GYN in private practice in Boynton Beach; Ali Syed, a resident at the Florida Atlantic University Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine; Charles Szuchan, a medical student at FAU; and Justin Williams, an internal medicine resident at Wellington Regional Medical Center.

Technology

Lesley DeCanio joined Coral Gables-based 8base as chief revenue officer. DeCanio was previously vice president, advertising & digital marketing for McClatchy. Prior to that, DeCanio was senior vice president, agency engagement for TMP Worldwide, now Radancy, and the national director of sales for Yahoo!/Hot Jobs. 8base is a platform and services company for building digital products.

Law

Anthony Brunson P.A. announced the addition of Roselee Marie Scott-Heron, as a human resource specialist, in Miramar.