Bright School Receives Bright Apple

United Way Presents 8th Bright Apple Award to J.D. Floyd Elementary School

Spring Hill, FL – (February 27, 2018) – For 8 consecutive years, United Way of Hernando County has proudly presented the Bright Apple Award to a deserving Hernando County School that has excelled in giving back and providing a bright future for their students. This year, United Way is excited to announce J.D. Floyd Elementary as the winners of the 2017 Bright Apple Award traveling trophy.

During J.D. Floyd’s faculty meeting on February 7th, United Way surprised the staff with the Bright Apple Trophy and engraved plaque. Teachers were thrilled to accept this award but were surprised, left asking, “What did we do?”

It’s all about participation and impact, the United Way staff explained. In 2017, teachers increased their contributions to United Way’s Community Investment Campaign. Seventeen donors pledged over $700. Eight J.D. Floyd teachers also volunteered for Stuff the Bus back in the summer. This gave teachers the platform to advocate for their classroom needs and helped raise school supply donations for their school. Around the holidays, teachers were also encouraged to enter their students into United Way’s fall coloring contest. Two J.D. Floyd students won and were featured on United Way’s Holiday Card.

“With providing Stuff the Bus for our teachers every summer, United Way feels like we’re hands on with our schools,” shared United Way’s Executive Director, Angie Bonfardino-Walasek. “But all you have to do is attend one faculty meeting to realize how much more we can be doing for our educators and their classrooms,” Angie explained after congratulating the staff members for receiving the Bright Apple Award at a brief J.D. Floyd faculty meeting. She said, “The flu, lack of tools, mental health awareness, school safety, and parent communication are fresh on my mind just to name a few areas. At United Way we’ve always taken pride on our ability to mobilize resources, but we’re jumping into 2018 with a heavy emphasis on our schools. Recognizing strong leadership is step one. Step two is supporting those leaders. The culture J.D. Floyd has created is credited to every teacher who’s striving hard to keep up and truly make a difference. We see you! And we’re here when you need us."


J.D. Floyd Elementary Principal Joyce Lewis proudly accepted the 2017 Bight Apple Award with Assistant Principal Melissa Tomlinson and teachers.

For a list of past recipients and more information on United Way’s Bright Apple Award, visit www.UnitedWayHernando.org/BrightApple or call 352-688-2026.