Miniaci Family to be Honored by NSU with President’s Award for Excellence in Community Service

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FORT LAUDERDALE-DAVIE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern University (NSU) President Dr. George Hanbury will present the President’s Award for Excellence in Community Service to the Miniaci Family at the university’s annual Celebration of Excellence gala on Jan. 30, 2016. NSU also plans to announce the public phase of its major philanthropic campaign, Realizing Potential, as part of the festivities.

Established in 1997, the President’s Excellence in Community Service Award recognizes extraordinary professional engagement activities by members of the South Florida community who have and continue to “give back” to the community and make a difference in the lives of others. The award encourages the ongoing pursuit of service and exemplifies NSU’s “community” core value.

“The Miniaci Family represents generations of commitment to important causes throughout our community,” said President Hanbury. “Their philanthropic support and volunteer leadership has helped guide Nova Southeastern University to where it is today. In addition, they have helped countless individuals and other not-for-profit agencies throughout the state realize their potential.”

The Miniaci family matriarch, Rose and her late husband, Alfred inspired their family to lead through their generous and instrumental support of NSU and the South Florida community. The family’s generous contribution to NSU helped create the Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center. In addition, just to name a few, the Alfred and Rose Miniaci Foundation, Inc. provides assistance to children and adults in the fields of art and music, health care and hospitals, preservation of history, religious organizations, scientific research, sports organizations and cultural organizations.

Started by Rose and Alfred’s older son, Albert J. Miniaci and his wife, Beatriz, the Albert and Beatriz Miniaci Family Foundation offers educational scholarships and supports local organizations pertaining to children, families and cancer research. The Miniaci family’s philanthropy includes an endowment fund for the Broward County Public Schools’ Student Enrichment through the Arts program and the Rose Miniaci Family Fund at the Community Foundation of Broward.

Albert serves as a NSU Trustee and an Ambassadors Board member. He and Beatriz are both Fellows Society members and frequent visitors to NSU’s Art Museum Fort Lauderdale. They created NSU’s Albert & Beatriz Miniaci Razor’s Edge Endowed Scholarship and personally donated to the university a handcrafted Buddhist Prayer Wheel blessed by the 14th Dalai Lama in 2004.

Rose and Alfred’s younger son, Dominick F. Miniaci is currently a member of the St. Thomas University Board of Trustees and is co-chairman of its Athletics Advisory Board. He is also a board member of the Jack and Jill Children’s Center, the Saint Anthony Foundation, the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Discovery and Science, the Broward Performing Arts Foundation, and serves in leadership roles for various other organizations. He has received numerous awards for his volunteerism, including being named Man of the Year by Saint Anthony Catholic School Foundation for Education in 2008, Man of the Year by City of Hope in 1990 and was recognized for 35 years of service and dedication to the Fraternal Order of Police in 2011. His wife, Meike Miniaci is a former Board of Trustees member of the Miami City Ballet, among other leadership and volunteer roles.

The Miniaci family has been widely recognized for civic mindedness. In 2003, Rose was named Outstanding Philanthropist by the Fort Lauderdale/Broward Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. In 2004, the American Diabetes Association honored Rose with the Valor Award. In 2005, she and her son Albert received the Humanitarian of the Year Award for their contributions to educational, performing arts, and service organizations. She also received a 2007 Patron of the Arts Award. Albert was the 2012 winner of the Sun Sentinel’s Excalibur Award for Small Business Leader in Broward County, and he was inducted into NSU’s Entrepreneur Hall of Fame.

The Celebration of Excellence signature event, hosted by President Hanbury and the NSU Board of Trustees, will be held on NSU’s main campus in a special venue on the quad in front of the Alvin Sherman Library on Jan. 30, 2016. The reception will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by dinner and the awards ceremony at 7:30 p.m.

Tables are $2,500 and include nine seats, plus a sponsored seat for a student guest. Individual seats are $150 per person and can be obtained online at www.nova.edu/celebrationofexcellence, or by contacting NSU’s Office of Special Events at specialevents@nova.edu. Proceeds benefit scholarships for students.

Community sponsors of the event include*: Mako Sponsors: Mrs. Lorraine Thomas, Grycon, LLC., ANF Group, Inc., and The Sun Sentinel; Champion Sponsors: ACAI, AT&T, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, and JM Family Enterprises; and Leader Sponsors: Barnes & Noble and Fahlgren Mortine.

Previous Community Service Award Winners:

• 2015: Judy Silverman and Barry Silverman, M.D.
• 2014: Winifred and Joseph Amaturo
• 2013: Guy Harvey, Ph.D.
• 2012: Ron and Kathy Assaf
• 2011: Mike Jackson and David Horvitz and Francie Bishop Good
• 2010: John C. Johnson and Don Taft
• 2009: I. Lorraine Thomas
• 2008: Claire and Dan Marino
• 2007: Frank Till, Jr. Ed.D., and David H. Rush
• 2006: Alvin Sherman, August Urbanek
• 2005: Wayne and Marti Huizenga
• 2004: August and Toni Paoli, Morton and Geraldine Terry
• 2003: Jim and Jan Moran
• 2000: Robert and Millicent Steele
• 1999: William and Norma Horvitz
• 1998: Leo Goodwin, Sr.
• 1997: Abraham L. Mailman

*Sponsor list last updated Dec. 15, 2015.

 

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About Nova Southeastern University (NSU): Located in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a dynamic research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and first-professional degree levels. A private, not-for-profit institution with more than 24,000 students, NSU has campuses in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Miramar, Orlando, Palm Beach, and Tampa, Florida, as well as San Juan, Puerto Rico, while maintaining a presence online globally. For more than 50 years, NSU has been awarding degrees in a wide range of fields, while fostering groundbreaking research and an impactful commitment to community. Classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, NSU is 1 of only 37 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification, and is also the largest private, not-for-profit institution in the United States that meets the U.S. Department of Education’s criteria as a Hispanic-serving Institution. Please visit www.nova.edu for more information.

 

Contact Information:

Julie Spechler, M.A. | Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5348 (office)
954-591-3361 (cell)
julies@nova.edu

Jeremy Katzman, M.B.A., APR | Office of Public Affairs
954-262-5408 (office)
954-661-7000 (cell)
j.katzman@nova.edu

 

 

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