Forida Elks Children's Therapy Services

We have certainly had an incredibly busy summer and are looking forward to fall, hopefully with a little cooler weather!

Our CHAMP, Everett Feger, and his family joined us at the Day at the Rays game Aug. 18 and made the “Play Ball” announcement. This was an incredible experience for Everett and his sister, Clara; mom, Barbie; and dad, Andre. As we always do, the Elks of Florida made the Feger family feel very special.

We just returned from FLOE’s 61st annual conference in Daytona Beach. It was a wonderful convention and congratulations go to the Ladies of Elks for all they do to support our major projects.

For the 2023-2024 year, FLOE donated a total of $39,249.98 to Therapy Services. While we were at the conference, they donated $16,665.73 for the current 2024-2025 year to Therapy Services.

At the FLOE conference, I shared a couple of our patients’ stories. Tina Morris, DPT is their therapist and thank you, Tina, for sharing with us.

Emilia was born six weeks early, weighing just 3 pounds 3 ounces. She faced serious medical challenges, including liver scarring, and spent the first four months of her life in the NICU. Despite the difficulties, Emilia’s resilience shone through as doctors prepared her for a future liver transplant. Her health issues led to delays in her development, especially with her motor skills. To help Emilia overcome these challenges, she received physical therapy from FECTS. This therapy was crucial in supporting her development and helping her reach important milestones. Each session was a step forward in Emilia’s journey toward walking.

Parisarely has a condition that affects her leg joints, requiring several surgeries to help her walk. These surgeries were done in stages to improve her chances of success and help her adjust to each step. Throughout her treatment, Parisarely benefited from physical therapy with FECTS. This therapy focused on helping her walk at home and use a wheelchair for longer distances. To further support her mobility, an adaptive bicycle was provided. Parisarely’s progress is a testament to her hard work and the support she’s received.

Tressy Guadagno, occupational therapist and regional coordinator, presented slides and videos of Everett Feger, our CHAMP. Everyone was impressed at what a difference therapy has made in Everett’s life.

A special thank you goes to all the Ladies organizations for your incredible support of Therapy Services.

On Sept. 30, Florida Elks for Autism tested 10 children at the Florida Elks Youth Camp. We have had tremendous response to this program and continue to receive applications every day. All families are offered the opportunity to stay overnight at the camp. That way, the children are well rested before they begin the testing. We also provide three meals a day and the families are invited to have meals there at the camp. A special thank you goes to all those who make this incredible program so successful.

We were excited to have Family Camp Oct. 4-6. We welcomed more than 200 people to the camp. FECTS, along with FEYC staff and many volunteers from the occupational therapy and physical therapy schools, enjoyed seeing our families and therapists in action.

As we go into the holiday season, so many of our lodges as well as Ladies organizations like to help the children by having parties at their lodges or by making donations to the therapists to help purchase Christmas gifts for our patients. Just a reminder: When making donations for Christmas gifts, please make your checks payable to HATF and in the memo section, put “FECTS Christmas Gifts” and send to my attention, Colleen Gallant, at FECTS, P.O. Box 49, Umatilla, FL 32784-0049. This way your lodge will get proper credit from HATF, and we will make sure the therapist knows it is from your lodge. Please do not make checks payable to the therapist. If you would like a therapist to come to your lodge for any event, please be sure to complete the therapist participation form on the website.

I can assure you that Florida stands as one of the leaders in Elkdom with two amazing major projects — Florida Elks Children’s Therapy Services and the Florida Elks Youth Camp. It is a result of your hard work that Nick Miller, Camp Director, and I, along with all the employees of FECTS and FEYC, are able to work with so many children in the state of Florida. Thank you for your support of our major projects.

Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday season!

Colleen Gallant