The Westside Gazette

PAGE 10 • OCTOBER 10 - OCTOBER 16, 2024
Deeply Rooted
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Stephen L. Demers Appointed To Broward Regional Health Planning
Council Board Of Directors By Broward County Commission
Submitted by Nicole
Cohen Tindol,
HOLLYWOOD, FL
–– Stephen L. Demers was
appointed to the Broward
Regional Health Planning
Council (BRHPC) Board of
Directors by Broward County
Commissioner Beam Furr.
His term on the Council runs
from August 22, 2024 through
Submitted by Rebecca
Santana | Associated
Press
(Source: Florida Courier)
WASHINGTON —
Waverly B. Woodson Jr.,
who was part of the only
African American combat
unit involved in the D-Day
invasion during World War
II, spent more than a day
treating wounded troops
under heavy German fire —
August 22, 2026.
Stephen L. Demers is Chief
Executive Officer of Memorial
Hospital Miramar, one of
six acute-care facilities of
Memorial Healthcare System,
a public, nonprofit hospital
system nationally recognized
for providing outstanding
patient- and family centered
care. Mr. Demers is also the
Interim Chief Executive
Officer of Memorial Regional
Hospital.
Prior to this role, Mr.
Demers served as the
chief executive officer of
the Memorial Hospital
Pembroke from 2022-2023.
Prior to joining Memorial,
Mr. Demers served as chief
operating officer and vice
president, operations and
chief of ambulatory networks
Black WWII combat medic honored 80 years after D-Day
Joann Woodson stands near a portrait of her husband,
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Waverly Woodson Jr., prior to a
ceremony to posthumously award the Distinguished
Service Cross to him on Capitol Hill in Washington on
Sept. 24.
(AP PHOTO/ROD LAMKEY JR.)
all while injured himself.
Decades later, and nearly
20 years after his death, his
family finally received the
recognition that was denied
many Black service members.
Woodson’s 95-year-old
widow, Joann, was presented
Tuesday, Sept. 24 with the
Distinguished Service Cross
he was awarded posthumously
for his extraordinary heroism.
Generations of Woodson’s
family packed the audience,
many of them wearing
T-shirts with his photo and
the words “1944 D-Day US
Army Medic” on the front.
“It’s been a long, long
road … to get to this day,”
Woodson’s son, Steve, told the
crowd. “My father, if he could
have been here today, would
have been humbled.”
The award, the secondhighest
honor that can be
bestowed on a member of the
Army, marked an important
milestone in a years long
campaign by his widow,
supporters in the military
and Maryland Sen. Chris Van
Hollen for greater recognition
of Woodson’s efforts that day.
His ‘valor stood out’
Ultimately, they would
like to see him honored with
the Medal of Honor, the
highest military decoration
that can be awarded by the
U.S. government and one long
denied to Black troops who
served in World War II.
Van Hollen, who first
heard Wood- son’s story when
Joann Woodson reached out to
his office nearly a decade ago,
told the crowd that Woodson’s
“valor stood out.”
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at the University of Miami
Health System from 2019 to
2021. From 2009 to 2019, he
served in a number of senior
executive positions at Lahey
Hospital & Medical Center in
Burlington, Massachusetts.
His experience also includes
tenures at the University of
Pennsylvania Health Care
System in Philadelphia, the
Surgical Safety Institute
and the University of South
Florida College of Medicine
in Tampa, and Brigham &
Women’s Hospital and the
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
in Boston.
Mr. Demers earned a
bachelor’s of science degree
from the University of New
Hampshire in Durham, New
Hampshire, and a master’s
of business administration
degree from Northeastern
University in Boston. He is
a veteran of the US Navy
Medical Service Corps,
stationed at the Long Beach
California and Newport
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(BPRW) Broward County Classroom
Transformed into Innovative STEM Lab
FPL’s STEM Classroom Makeover Grants program
provides funding up to $50,000 each for five schools
in Florida to provide transformational learning
opportunities in economically disadvantaged K-12
classrooms.
Submitted by Bernadette
A. Morris
(BPRW)
(Black PR Wire) FORT
LAUDERDALE, FL -–
Excitement filled the air
as the doors swung open
to reveal a remarkable
classroom transformation,
made possible through a
collaborative partnership
between Florida Power &
Light Company (FPL) and the
Broward Education
Foundation. Together
with Broward County Public
Schools, the organizations
celebrated the completion
of the STEM Classroom
Makeover at Dillard High
School in Fort Lauderdale.
The $50,000 grant from
FPL, facilitated through
the Broward Education
Foundation, enabled Dillard
High School to incorporate
cutting-edge technology
including robotics kits,
interactive whiteboards and
STEM equipment, creating
an immersive learning
experience. The redesigned
classroom now boasts new
STEM technology which
will help enhance student
engagement and foster
creativity.
“The Broward Education
Foundation is proud to
collaborate with FPL in
creating a space where
innovation and inspiration
thrive,” said James A. Knapp,
President & CEO of Broward
Education Foundation. “This
STEM lab represents more
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Florida
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