Cracker Barrel Kissimmee hosted a community celebration event on Nov. 12. Cracker Barrel Kissimmee, a partner with the Education Foundation Osceola County, made a $10,000 donation to support its program A Gift for Teaching, which provides much-needed school supplies to teachers and students.
The event also commemorated renovations at the newly-remodeled restaurant, including recent and a décor refresh.
Apply for St. Cloud Citizen’s Academy by Nov. 30
The application period for the city of St. Cloud’s 2025 Citizens Academy will close on Nov. 30. Class size is limited.
The Citizens Academy is an interactive, immersive experience designed to give residents a behind-the-scenes look at how the City government works, with a goal to foster interest in citizen involvement on City boards, committees, or elected office by more informed residents.
The free academy program will meet on Tuesday nights starting Jan. 7, 2025 through April 1.
City staff will review the applications, confirm residency, and select the class members no later than Friday, Dec. 13.
For more information and to complete the online application, go online to https://www. stcloudfl.gov/2156/Citizens-Academy
KUA recognized for community programs
Kissimmee Utility Authority announced Friday it is being recognized by The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) with a “Building Strong Communities” award for “Making valuable investments that enhance the quality of life in our communities beyond efficient delivery of affordable, reliable, and clean energy.”
FMEA recognized public power utilities for programs and projects that improve the environment, provide community education, collect charitable donations, focus on crime prevention and other special programs, such as lighting ball fields and playgrounds, taking part in community and holiday celebrations, hosting blood drives, recognizing veterans and members of the military, and strengthening the communities in which they serve.
KUA was announced as an award recipient on Nov. 12 at the FMEA Energy Connections Conference and Trade Show in Daytona Beach. The utility joins 19 other community-owned Florida public power communities in receiving this award.
“Florida’s public power utilities not only serve their communities, but they also help create a sense of community. Whether that’s inviting residents out for movies in the park to hanging holiday decorations to gathering items for a food drive, our utilities and their employees want their communities to be the best they possibly can because they live there, too,” said Amy Zubaly, FMEA Executive Director. “We applaud each of these utilities, including KUA and their employees for all their efforts to support and strengthen their communities.”
Local hospitals earn ‘A’ or ‘B’ grades for patient safety
All of AdventHealth’s Central Florida hospitals—and that includes AdventHealth Celebration and AdventHealth Kissimmee—earned an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit watchdog focused on patient safety, the hospital network has announced.
In addition, Orlando Health St. Cloud Hospital improved to ‘B’ grade through continued enhancements since joining Orlando Health in 2020.
“Patient safety is at the core of our mission at AdventHealth. I’m proud the commitment to excellence is embedded across all our hospitals in Central Florida,” said Brian Adams, president and CEO of AdventHealth’s Central Florida Division. “To once again be recognized by The Leapfrog Group speaks to our team members’ devotion and skill in providing whole-person care.”
