Shopping trip for a college-bound teenager at Youth Haven

Lina Portman2 days ago

0 3 minutes read

Will Watts
| Special for The Banner

GL Homes hosted Youth Haven resident Johane Saintil on a shopping trip to Walmart in Naples to prepare her for college life. She recently graduated from Lorenzo Walker Technical High School and will soon be a freshman at Florida International University in Miami.

In less than two hours, several carts were filled with essential items for college dorms, including sheets, towels, a laundry basket, a fan and a dorm refrigerator.

Arriving as a homeless teen, Saintil became a resident of Rob’s Cottage, Youth Haven’s transitional living program that provides a safe, caring environment, a place to sleep, and access to intensive case management, educational support, nutritious meals, and medical and mental health services. Youth Haven’s transitional living program for homeless teens focuses on high school graduation, job readiness, college readiness, and strengthening community connections.

GL Homes' Good Night's Sleep initiative provides all the furniture needed to make a house a home. Having the necessary comforts is essential for people moving from homelessness to their own home.

Youth Haven provides a home, hope and healing to abused, neglected and homeless children and youth ages 6 to 20 in Southwest Florida. Its 18.5-acre therapeutic campus in Naples offers Collier County’s only emergency shelter for youth removed from their homes.

Lee Health Appoints Reema Narang as Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer

Lee Health has selected Reema Narang as its new Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer. With more than two decades of experience in healthcare, Narang’s experience spans large health systems.

Narang will lead strategic planning initiatives to identify and analyze industry trends and business models to improve patient health and healthcare delivery. She will focus on developing strategies to improve the patient experience while reducing the total cost of care. Additionally, Narang will work to define transformative payment strategies, aligning human, financial and technology resources to drive innovation investments and ensure business agility.

Narang joins Lee Health from Advocate Health in Chicago, Illinois, where she served as senior vice president of strategic growth and transformation. Narang also served as administrative leader of value-based care at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

“We are thrilled to welcome Reema Narang to our leadership team,” said Dr. Larry Antonucci, President and CEO of Lee Health. “Her remarkable track record and commitment to innovation will undoubtedly strengthen Lee Health’s position as a healthcare leader in the Southwest Florida region and beyond. With her proven ability to lead strategic initiatives and foster a culture of excellence, I am confident that Reema will play a critical role in shaping the future of healthcare delivery at Lee Health, ultimately benefiting our patients and the communities we serve.”

Narang earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from New Delhi, India, and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Connecticut. She also holds an executive certificate in healthcare value from Harvard Business School.

Protect Beach-nesting Birds from Fireworks This July 4th

Celebration fireworks can literally scare birds to death.

While beach fireworks displays are entertaining for people, the explosions of color and noise take a toll on coastal birds, especially nesting species.

Fireworks debris litters our beaches and coastal waters and can easily be mistaken for food by sea turtles and other marine life. Hungry chicks munch on plastic waste, even ingesting some of the smallest pieces.

Audubon Florida urges Floridians and visitors to let nesting birds in peace by not setting off personal fireworks on the beach.

To make our beaches safer for birds:

Keep at least 30 metres between nesting birds and people who approach them. Signs or people will warn you of these areas, but some birds have not yet settled in to start nesting and may simply appear to be resting in the sand. Avoid walking among flocks of birds on the upper beach.
If pets are allowed on beaches, keep them on a leash and away from birds.
Remove trash and food scraps, which attract predators that will also eat the birds' eggs and/or chicks.
Do not drive over beach dunes or other nesting areas.
Attend a municipal fireworks show instead of setting off personal fireworks.
Be careful: if a bird swoops down on you, you are too close.

To learn more, visit fl.audubon.org.

More: Now you know: Wonder Gardens, the next step

And: Now You Know: Estero's Response to FEMA; Sunshine Ace's Block Party; Bonita's Plans for the Fourth

Lee Health Appoints Reema Narang as Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer

Celebration fireworks can literally scare birds to death.

Lina Portman

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