L. Gale Lemerand & Gloria Max to be Recognized as 2017 Humanitarians of the Year

Press Release (ePRNews.com) - DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Mar 30, 2017 - The Florida State Elks has selected L. Gale Lemerand and Gloria Max as the dual recipients of the 2017 Humanitarians of the Year. They will both be recognized on April 22^nd in Daytona Beach by the Florida State Elks at the organizations fourth annual Harry Anna Trust Gala of Hope. Dr. Pamela Carbiener was the recipient in 2016.

“Both Gloria and Gale are incredibly deserving of this award,” said Edward K. Jackson, Vice President of the Harry Anna Trust. “The pair have made an incredibly positive impact in the Volusia County community and we are excited about recognizing them both at our event on April 22^nd,” he added.

The gala is the premier fundraising event for the Florida Elks Youth Camp, Florida Elks Children Therapy Services, Army of Hope, and Hope Scholarships, all helping families of the military deployed.

The event will be held on April 22^nd, 2017 from 5:30pm until midnight at Hilton Daytona Beach Resort/Ocean Walk Village, located at 100 North Atlantic Avenue, Daytona Beach. The theme of the event will be a ‘Prohibition Ball’ with dinner, dancing, live entertainment by “Z” STREET BAND from Epcot, a live and silent auction and more. Sponsorships, individual tickets, and group seating are available by calling Ed Jackson at 732-221-5691, or on line at www.harryannatrust.org.

Sponsors of the event to date include CiCi and Hyatt Brown, Lohman Offices, LLC, Jim and Sharon France, Lewis Heaster Properties, Dr. Pamela Carbiener, Champion Containers, and Classi Auto Body.

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About L. Gale Lemerand

Gale Lemerand attended Williams Insulation in Chicago in 1968 and also served as a Merchant Marine in the United States Air Force. He is the inventor of the Sanidoor, a touch-free and germ-free bathroom door, as well as the co-founder and owner of Stonewood Grill and Tavern.

After working for others for years, he started his own business at the age of 40. He owned Gale Industries of Daytona, the biggest insulation sub-contracting firm in the United States. In 1995, Lemerand sold the company to the Fortune 200 business, Masco Corporation. Lemrand also owns interest in 29 other famous restaurants such as Houligan’s, Perkins Family Restaurant and Bakery, and Peach Valley Café.

Lemerand is also known for his philanthropy. He is a steady contributor to his high school, Escanaba High School as well as, The University of Florida. He was a major contributor for the 47,500 square foot basketball complex at UF. The University of Florida has awarded him with an honorary doctorate. He is the founder of the L. Gale Lemerand Scholarship Fund at the University of Florida. He has donated over $30 million to colleges, including $1 million to Daytona State College. In addition to all of this Lemerand wrote the best-selling book called To Win in Business Bet on the Jockey.

About Gloria Max

Gloria grew up bringing bags of food to the less fortunate with her father. He always said he was glad to be alive and if he could make this world a better place for people, he would try with all his might. In many ways Gloria has tried to emulate him.

Gloria has been employed at the Jewish Federation in Volusia County for 23 years. When she started the school supply project, there were just 30 Jewish children, now they help 7,000 local disadvantaged youths, regardless of race or religion in elementary, middle school and high school. She helps provide new backpacks filled with school supplies for children before the start of a new school year.

Over the past 20 years, they have helped over 81,000 youths, and in the last five years they have raised over half a million dollars. The school supplies go directly to the counselors of the schools since they know best who is in need. The Federation has always had a food pantry but when the recession began, the food bank expanded accordingly. It started giving out food to approximately four people per week, but now it feeds over 400 people weekly. Last Thanksgiving, volunteers helped 450 families receive 15 pound turkeys with all the trimmings. For Christmas they did the same thing. For Easter, over 200 people received 22lb. hams. They project has expanded, giving out toys during the holidays, including gift cards to tweens and teenagers. They has multiple other projects, including coat drives, a clothes closet, medical equipment donations, prescription medication donations, assistance with electric and rental bills and much more.