In honor of all of the men and women who have been wounded while serving our country and in conjunction with our
Veteran’s Transition Guide, we are excited to bring you information on SOCOM CCRP.
The United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) Care Coalition Recover Program (CCRP) is designed to assist SOCOM Wounded Warriors…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on November 13, 2009 at 2:03pm —
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Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “The measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy”. If you were asked this question, what would your answer be?
November is National Homeless Awareness month, and as the economy continues to pose new challenges, homelessness has become a growing problem not only in Central Florida, but across the country. Recently we told you about…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on November 6, 2009 at 2:30pm —
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In a recent article (Discovering Zion from 7/20/09) for the Community Guide, we told you about Zion World Wide Mission, an organization that was making a difference for children & families both here and abroad. Their mission is to provide vital social services to low and non-income people, regardless of their religion, social or economical background and to improve the lives of individuals, families and the community.
In just a few short years they have sent over 400 kids to school, fed ove…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on October 19, 2009 at 11:30am —
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Tired of submitting resumes, going on interviews and not hearing back from hiring companies? As we have mentioned before one of the best ways to get a good job is through networking. In this economy, people want to hire and work with people they know. Real Radio’s Buckethead is giving Central Florida a chance to do just that on Tuesday (October 13th) at C…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on October 9, 2009 at 2:02pm —
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These days there are more and more people who are in need of help and assistance in order to get back on their feet. Unfortunately these problems are not just isolated to Central Florida and have become everyday living in countries like Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Recently…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on August 3, 2009 at 10:11am —
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Darien was a seven-year-old with severe medical challenges that should have prevented him from reaching his seventh birthday. Darien came to foster care, as many children do, because the services he required to sustain and enhance his life were prohibitively expensive when provided in his home with his family, but free when provided in the home of a stranger.
To give up a child so that he might have a better and longer life is a great sacrifice – one that Darien’s mother chose to make. Because…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on May 4, 2009 at 3:45pm —
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Today more than ever, every individual deserves to have an opportunity to succeed. Unfortunately there are thousands of children each year who are born into and raised in unhealthy environments. While some of these children will rise out of the ashes and create change in their communities, many will not. And the cycle will continue.
Family Services of Metro Orlando is a private, non-profit organization responsible for the management of services to vulnerable children and families in Orange and…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on May 4, 2009 at 3:42pm —
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My father has often told me, that I will never know what true love is until I have a child. I believe that this is true for most parents. Your children become your world, and you will do anything you can to ensure their success, health and happiness. But what happens when that child becomes critically ill or injured? Most family’s lives are put on hold to care for that child until they get better. During troubled times like these, it is nice to be able to turn to a familiar face for comfort and…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on March 16, 2009 at 10:04am —
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As we have often discussed in the Community Guide, our future success depends on our leaders of tomorrow. The reality is that our leaders of tomorrow will never be able to succeed without the availability of a quality education, a challenge many students are currently facing.
There has been a lot of talk recently on cuts that local schools boards have to consider in order to meet budget shortfalls. While we hope that any budget cuts that are needed will not affect the level of education our chi…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on March 9, 2009 at 7:00am —
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For the past three weeks, my in-laws have been staying with my wife and I, and they have decided that they wanted to look into purchasing a second home here in Florida. They weren’t looking for anything fancy, just a place close by that they could stay when the Pennsylvania winters become too much to bare.
We introduced them to our Real Estate agent who took them on a tour of several great properties, 99% of which were now banked owned. As you walk the halls of these empty homes you realize tha…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on March 1, 2009 at 7:00am —
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It can be very easy at times for all of us to focus on the things that are not going right in our lives. In doing this, we often take for granted how lucky we truly are. This lesson hit home with me several years ago through a good friend’s younger sister Kristen. Kristen was born with Down’s Syndrome and while she is fairly high functioning, she will never have the ability to enjoy many of life’s everyday joys that we take for granted.
Kristen has been dating a boy named Jeff who also has Down…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on February 25, 2009 at 9:28am —
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Over the past two weeks we have been looking at tips and ideas to help job seekers break through the masses of people competing for a limited number of available jobs. This week we will conclude this three part series with a look at tips for nailing an interview and impressing potential employers.
In my role, I have the opportunity to interview a lot of potential candidates who will be working in a variety of positions. The one thing that I always find is that jobseekers come to an interview pre…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on February 13, 2009 at 5:26pm —
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I’d like to welcome you back to part 2 of a 3 part series designed to help job seekers who are currently in the midst of looking for a new job due to recent layoffs, downsizing or other issues arising from our slowed economy.
Last week we looked at ways to create a standout resume & cover letter (visit
How To Impress Employers if you missed this article). This week I wanted to look at what…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on February 9, 2009 at 9:05am —
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This past month there have been several job fairs to coincide with major corporate layoffs. There is currently no economic stimulus act passed and talk of the current package not necessarily having immediate effects on the economy. So where does this leave us?
It leaves us needing to be more resourceful and determined to ensure our own personal success. After speaking directly with many job seekers and hearing people’s frustrations over cattle calls at job fairs with little to no hiring companie…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on February 5, 2009 at 9:22am —
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Story Ran 1/19/09
As Americans begin to embrace change this week with the inauguration of President Barack Obama, our eyes need to focus on how we will prepare to change our future. That change will come from the hands and minds of our children. We must do everything in our power to provide them the opportunity to be the change we all desire.
Children are the most victimized segment of our society and often times the most neglected. In 2005, Jeff Griesemer started that Child Rescue Netwo…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on January 29, 2009 at 7:30am —
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Story from 12/22/08
I don’t think that any one would argue that 2008 has been a crazy year filled with highs and lows for everyone. The holiday season has the tendency to magnify these turbulent times for many people sometimes making them seem difficult to get through. These tim…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on January 28, 2009 at 1:31pm —
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We are entering the time of year when we are recovering from Thanksgiving leftovers and bracing for holiday shopping nightmares. With all of the excitement around the holiday season, it becomes very easy to forget that we should be focusing on all of the good things that we have instead of all of the things that we want. One of the things that most of us do have, but often overlook is our health.
As the economic conditions continue to get tighter, our wallets get strained, and we begin choosing…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on December 9, 2008 at 7:43am —
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I moved to Florida almost 3 years ago and instantly fell in love with how many opportunities there were to enjoy activities outside. Since then I have taken on many new hobbies and activities like kayaking and hiking which made my family back home think that I am crazy. I find it interesting that many of my friends who have grown up in Florida unfortunately don’t take advantage of all of the things it has to offer.
Often times we all take for granted the opportunities that are right in our backy…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on December 8, 2008 at 7:00am —
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Dear Strut-N-Rut
I can not even begin to thank you for making my son’s wish to go hunting a reality. Ever since he has shot a turkey, he has not stopped talking about it. He told everyone at church, in the grocery store, at the doctor’s office, basically anyone and everyone that would give him two minutes of their time. I have not seen him this excited about anything in such a long time. Trust me I know. You see, Joseph was born with Spina Bifda, a neurological defect in his spine. The skin did…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on December 7, 2008 at 7:30am —
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Out of Work? Create Your Own Brand…
Let’s face it; the job market isn’t looking as promising these days. Everyday we hear about more and more companies who are closing their doors and people who are losing their jobs. What can we do if we find ourselves in this situation?
Hopefully you don’t, but if you do, take this opportunity to re-evaluate your career direction. Most people don’t get a second chance to do just that. Today just might be the right time to really focus on what you are passiona…
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Added by Patrick O'Brien on December 6, 2008 at 9:30am —
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