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This version of NSU News has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of NSU News, visit news.nova.edu.
This version of SharkBytes has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of SharkBytes, visit sharkbytes.nova.edu.
NSU Tampa Surprises One of Its Own
NSU Tampa Surprises One of Its Own
NSU is fortunate to have Ricardo Garcell, a part-time staff member of the maintenance crew at the Tampa Campus.
In January 2017, Michael Abraham, assistant director at the Tampa Campus learned that Garcell’s wife had suffered from burn injuries at home and spent three months in the hospital. As such, he started a GoFundMe campaign page for the Garcell family with a goal of reaching $2,500 by February 1. Despite his circumstances, Garcell always came to work with a smile on his face and never asked anyone for help. His story was shared by word-of-mouth to help create awareness and collect donations as well as being shared on social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn.
NSU Tampa also hosted in-house fundraisers, such wearing jeans to work for $3. NSU employees, not only from Tampa but from across the state, friends, family members, and even community members were all notified of Garcell’s circumstances. The initial goal was surpassed and on February 15, Garcell was handed $2,559.00 in cash to help with his wife’s care, medical expenses, and other needs. He was extremely grateful, as he had no idea the fundraiser ever took place. Garcell’s wife is now home, but she has a long road of recovery ahead of her.