PSOG 70s Party

The Pensacola Symphony Orchestra Guild (PSOG) gathered to celebrate in 70s style on May 12. A one-of-a-kind Johnny Cash shirt was worn by Bill Donahue which was given to him personally by the famous singer, and a wedding dress worn by Donna Quinn was brought out for the evening. President Sue Flanders and 1st President Anne Riddles were thrilled to have this event and Brian and Amanda Barr opened their stunning home in East Hill for the party. The evening was perfect, the weather was amazing, and many guests brought in their special “potluck” dishes. Many sat, some stood, all visited and reminisced, enjoying wonderful champagne and tasty treats. “This wonderful home brings back so many fond memories,” said Sue Flanders. “During that time, it was a Symphony Showhouse in 2007 and was kept open for two weeks for many to tour,” she added. Pensacola Symphony Orchestra Guild will donate $32,500 to the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra this year which will help with the musician dinners, intermission refreshments, auditions, 5th grade concerts, and Music for the Family Days.

We have an amazing gift shop with something for everyone, and

Interview with Crista Brandt & Jennifer Elzweig ~ Valerie’s House

What is Valerie’s House?

Valerie’s House Pensacola is a free grief support program and the only non-pro t 501(c)(3) organization in the community whose sole mission is dedicated to helping children and their families to share, grieve, and heal from their losses. We are a children’s grief center in Escambia/ Santa Rosa Counties, serving children ages 5-18 and their families who have had a parent or sibling die. Our long-term vision is to open chapters in Fort Walton Beach, Destin, and Panama City.

How did this organization come about?

Valerie’s House opened its doors in January 2016, but it was a concept a long time in the making. Valerie Melvin was just 31-years-old when she lost her life in an automobile accident in Fort Myers in 1987. She left behind a loving husband and two small children, including Angela, then 10-years old.

After high school, Angela moved away to college and eventually became a journalist, living in various regions of the country. Upon returning to Fort Myers in 2013, she wanted to volunteer with grieving children like she once was and noticed there were very few resources for children to connect and heal together.

Among their services, Valerie’s House provides open-ended peer support groups and activities for children to heal after a signi cant loss in their life. Valerie’s House is not a formal counseling center. It is a community and a platform for individuals to come together, share, and mentor each other through their grief. There is nothing like it in Southwest Florida — Valerie’s House was the rst organization between Tampa and Miami focused on supporting grieving children on an ongoing basis.

What impact does Valerie’s House have on the community?

When children experience the loss of a parent or sibling, it shakes their foundation during a time when they are still learning about themselves and the world around them. The impact is so catastrophic, that if not processed and addressed, they are at risk of being met with many pitfalls on their way to adulthood. At Valerie’s House Pensacola (VHP) our mission is to help children and families work through the loss of a loved one together and go on to live ful lling lives. Our vision is that no child will grieve alone.

The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study indicates the death of a sibling or parent as one of the most developmentally disruptive and traumatic experiences a child can go through, yet resources are slim in most communities. And most don’t realize that Grief is actually the root cause for so much in society.

We know that –

-30% of the children in Florida’s juvenile detection system suffered the loss of a parent or sibling to death as tracked by the Department of Juvenile Justice

-Children who have lost a parent, without the support of others and the tools to know how to grieve, often turn to risk-taking and self-harming behaviors, drugs, criminal activity, and other disorders to cope with grief and are 5x more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety, and 5x more likely to struggle with addiction.

-Impact on Local Schools – Children who are grieving are twice as likely to see their grades drop and experience loss of memory and concentration, lower attendance as well as suffer from emotional or angry outbursts during the school day.

-Many of these incidents are seen as a discipline problem, instead of educators understanding the root of the cause is grief and providing resources.

These long-term effects and numbers prove that grief is, without a doubt, a child welfare issue.

What are some future goals?

Our goals for 2023 and 2024 are to expand our current programing in our new permanent space at 904 East Gadsden Street. Our short-term goals include partnering with Licensed Mental Health Counselors to offer free grief support counseling to some of our VHP kids who are most in need of one-on-one counseling to augment our support groups. Another goal as we grow in the community is to be able to offer more loss speci c group nights for things like sibling loss, traumatic deaths (like homicide and suicide), and grandparents raising kids.

What are your roles and how did you get involved with Valerie’s House?

Crista Brandt: Crista is the Northwest Florida Director of Valerie’s House. In 2020, Crista partnered with founder and CEO Angela Melvin to bring peer-to-peer support groups for grieving children to Pensacola. Like our Founder, Crista also lost her mother in 1987. Suzanne O’Keefe died of cancer when Crista was 11 years old. After the death of her mother, Crista’s grief remained repressed for many years. When she nally addressed her grief wholeheartedly, she began to volunteer through an organization in Atlanta, where she realized how many children had experienced parental death just like her. Crista spearheaded the launch of Valerie’s House in late 2020, expanding to a permanent location in 2022. After running the program on a volunteer basis for two years, Crista made the transition to run Valerie’s House- Pensacola fulltime.

Jennifer Elzweig: Starting as a board member and volunteer facilitator for the “littles” peer support group, Jenni quickly became immersed in Valerie’s House. She is eager to serve her Panhandle community as the Escambia County Program Manager. She’s had a passion for helping those who are grieving since she was young, volunteering as a hospice respite provider right out of high school.

Jenni also knows what it feels like to lose a parent as her father died from a stroke when she was a young adult. She uses this experience to relate to the kids. Teaching and serving are second nature to her, and she is grateful that families have a warm and loving environment at Valerie’s House.

What would you like our readers to know about Valerie’s House?

Parental and sibling death is one of the most developmentally disruptive events a child can go through. Our whole organization is based on supporting children who have experienced death, so they realize that loss doesn’t have to limit their dreams. Grief takes on many forms, not just sadness. Our model helps children share, connect, and build bonds with other kids their age that are dealing with similar experiences. The Peer-to-Peer groups provide children the opportunity to decrease isolation, identify and become aware of their normal feelings of grief, and learn safe and effective ways to manage their dif cult feelings. We help make connections between their grief stories, so they know they aren’t alone.

If you know a family in our area that is in need of grief support services, please refer them to our program coordinator.

Contact Valerie’s House- Pensacola: Jennifer.Elzweig@ValeriesHouse.org

(850) 582-8255

How can someone get involved and/or support your nonprofit?

Volunteers are the backbone of our program. They make Valerie’s House work. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, please ll out an application on the Valerie’s House Pensacola Website, https://valerieshouse.org/volunteerin-pensacola or contact Crista@valerieshouse.org for more information.

If volunteering isn’t an option for you, however you would still like to support our program, consider making a donation to sponsor a child for a year, donate a meal, or purchase something from our Amazon wish list. https://valerieshouse. org/pensacola.

Ocean Strike Team is a nonpro t organization that provides opportunities for ocean lovers to get involved in ocean conservation by participating in citizen science projects and ecotourism. On April 29 the Hilton on Pensacola Beach hosted Ocean Strike’s 3rd Annual Into The Blue Gala.

“We are very excited for the 3rd Annual Into the Blue Gala for Ocean Strike Team,” said Brady Hale, Founder. “The money raised at this annual event helps fund our efforts to remove invasive lion sh from our local waters, conduct research and water quality monitoring, shark surveys, and many other marine conservation issues.” As part of the evening’s festivities, there was a photo booth, a mermaid, and a pirate. In addition to a prime rib dinner, guests were able to participate in both silent and live auctions.

Inspiring others to participate in ocean conservation, Ocean Strike Team members were thankful for everyone’s participation. “Through the efforts of our board and our members, this gala is one of the best in Pensacola. Thank you to our Pensacola community for supporting us,” said Brady. Board member, Frank Watson also shared his thoughts, “Community support has made a signi cant impact on our efforts to protect and preserve our oceans, help ght among our mission for our local ecosystem with our research and removal of the overpopulation of lion sh. If you want to help further our mission, please get involved thru membership or volunteering.”

What is your hometown?

I grew up in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and moved to Pensacola to do my student teaching after college. That was 1969 and I’ve lived here off and on ever since.

What is your profession?

I’m a university president now, but I am a professor at heart. After working in the eld of communication for many years (advertising and public relations) I was invited to teach a college class as an adjunct. That’s when everything fell into place and I knew that higher education was the place for me.

What are some of your favorite things about Pensacola?

The beach, the outdoor activities, the food, and the people. We have incredible diversity here. With residents from all over the world, Pensacola has a real cosmopolitan feel.

Three words that best describe you.

Driven, Creative, Happy.

Favorite place to go out?

I live on the beach and don’t have to go far to nd something to do or something good to eat.

What is one thing that you do not go a day without?

Coffee in the morning.

Finish this statement, I AM PENSACOLA because…

I never give up on anything that matters.