Climenhage

Thecamera stays on the woman’s face because she has an important message: She has survived a close call with breast cancer. Her eyes shine. We learn she has already triumphed in astonishing ways. Chaunte Lowe is a fourtime Olympic high jumper, meaning she beat out top-tier competition over 16 straight years.

But she would never have overcome triple-negative breast cancer, had early detection not made that possible. The one-minute spot is an argument to support the Mary Brogan Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, which promotes access to care for underserved populations. The nonprofit was hoping for state funds to supply that care. To get the message out, they turned to Sachs Media and Amy Climenhage, one of the brightest stars at the well known communications firm.

Climenhage, 25, was a driving force behind the video. She likes producing content that is both intimate and immediate. It is not far removed from her lifelong passions for writing and reading, a visual injection capable of drawing in even a casual viewer.

“I always appreciate being trusted with someone’s story and getting to tell it well for them,” she said.

Her bosses appreciate it too. Three years after hiring her, they made Climenhage the youngest account manager in the company’s 27-year history.

“Amy’s skills and enthusiasm were evident right from the start,” said Herbie Theil, a Sachs partner and spokesman. “She already had an exceptional skill set — and what she didn’t know, she was able to figure out or learn quickly.”

Her journey began in 1998 as Amy Cook, the only child of three in the family to be born in Florida, or to stay here. Others returned to Michigan, where the family had previously lived.

“I’ve always kind of felt like I paved my own way,” she said.

That sentiment includes putting down roots here: “I love the state of Florida. I guess I’m quite loyal to it.”

Because of her love of reading, she originally grew up thinking she might want to be a teacher. She’s a big advocate of early childhood education, and has also used her public relations savvy to get help to coastal Floridians in the aftermath of major storms.

As a communications intern at UF Health Shands Hospital, she gravitated toward writing profiles of nurses and other health care workers. They were not famous, nor were they professional communicators, but they had stories, each one unique. Gradually, a portrait of the institution emerged through the descriptions and experiences of its staff.

“My eyes just kind of opened,” she said. “I quickly found out that I absolutely loved doing that kind of work.”

Her relationship with Sachs began during a college internship.

“She recognized right away what questions to ask, and understood the answers and how to apply them to her work,” Theil said. “And she only grew in her knowledge from there.”

As a public affairs account manager, Climenhage is able to move in the direction of her clients’ needs. Strategies vary from traditional news to traditional advertising, social media or the kinds of testimonial videos that can make a difference, depending on the audience a client needs to reach.

Payoff from promotional spots such as the Chaunte Lowe video is abundant. The Mary Brogan early detection program is now enshrined in a Florida 2022 statute, which authorizes state and federal funds to underwrite free or low-cost breast and cervical cancer screenings for qualifying candidates.

In her free time, Climenhage enjoys running the Florida trails, sampling dining spots with her husband, Brandon Climenhage, or meeting up with friends.

She has passed the lessons of mentorship from partners like Theile and Drew Piers, the managing director, on to new colleagues, challenging or cheering them on. She hopes to continue creating effective, moving content by and for Floridians.

“I think people are very much moved by a personal story,” she said, “giving an issue a voice, highlighting that person and what their story is or says about the general issue. Floridians understand that.”