Member Robert "Bob" Barnett, 83, died on August 9. His obituary, which appeared in the Sun-Sentinel, stated that he taught at Northeast HS and Coconut Creek HS for 20 years after he moved to Ft. Lauderdale in 1971.

Dorothy Ferrell died on August 23. Her Sun-Sentinel obituary stated, "Dorothy Ferrell spent her life raising her children and, as a dedicated teacher, always giving and providing an excellent role model for others. In her retirement, she traveled extensively and simply enjoyed life itself. She was a loving mother and trusted friend who would be dearly missed." A memorial mass was held in her honor at St. Coleman's Catholic Church Monday, August 27th.

Allene Rollins passed away on August 25. After getting her B.S. degree she taught in N.C. where she married Perry Rollins, also a BCREA member, who preceded her in death. They met on their first night at college where they had all classes together. After one year of marriage, they moved to Florida where they taught in Key West and Melbourne before coming to Broward County in 1960. Allene taught at Driftwood Elementary and Middle Schools (two time Teacher of the Year), West Hollywood Elementary School, Perry and Walter C. Young Community Schools (Teacher of the Year in Adult Education) and Hollywood Hills and Cooper City High School adult programs. A Memorial Service was held Friday, August 31, 2007 at Fred Hunter's funeral home in Hollywood. Read her full obituary in the Sun-Sentinel Obituaries at http://sun-sentinel.com.

Member John P. Drag Sr. e-mailed the following: "I was just informed by Kathy Morris that Gian Berchelli passed away > in his sleep last night (September 11). Kathy had been very kind and visited with her > mentor and former principal many times, taking him to lunch and had > invited some of us to join them. I was very fortunate to go to lunch > recently with them. Gian was very interesting and honest with his > declining health. It is sad to lose friends like this but I will > always remember him as he introduced the Singing Principals.

Member Ed Boyack , age 70, died Tuesday, May 8, 2007. He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Nancy E. Boyack as well as 2 children and 4 grandchildren. A funeral Mass was held on May 14th at Good Shepard Catholic Church in Tallahassee where he had resided for several years. Born in Chicago, he spent most of his life in Fort Lauderdale and Tallahassee. He graduated from Fort Lauderdale High School and received his B.S. in Education from Florida State University and his Masters in Administration from Florida Atlantic University. He held several administrative positions with the Broward County School System. Ed taught science and coached both junior high and high school football. He also was a principal at the middle school, high school and elementary school levels. He retired from the Broward County School System in 1988.

Moore , Reva Dee, 93, of Cooper City, FL passed away on September 10, 2007. Reva served as BCREA Scholarship Chairman for 11 years. She relinquished the position in May, 2005 due to her increasing difficulty in walking. Her mind was sharp right to the end and she was quite proficient at sending lots of good e-mail "Forwards." Among the last ones she sent was one dated September 1 entitled "The Stranger," which described a stranger who had moved into the writer's home who wasn't required to observe the usual family rules against profanity, vulgarity, etc. At the end it was revealed that the "stranger" was....Television! Her services were held on Sunday, October 16 at Forest Lawn Funeral Home, Ft. Lauderdale. A brief obituary was published in the Sun-Sentinel on 9/12/2007.

Robinson , Bernice, 80, of Ft. Lauderdale, FL passed away on September 12, 2007. Roy Mizell & Kurtz Funeral Home, Ft. Lauderdale. Published in the Sun-Sentinel on 9/19/2007.

I coordinate the volunteer programs at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. We are starting our new season and always look for excellent volunteer ushers which made me think of your organization, Broward Retired Educators Association. We have many former teachers among our volunteer ranks and I would like to know the best way to communicate our volunteer opportunities to your members. I see that community service is an essential part of what you do.

As a former Broward teacher, you may be familiar with the SEAS program for school children. SEAS (Student Enrichment in the ArtS) is our signature program in its 16th year where school children from all over Broward County come to the theater as a school field trip and see shows for free. Volunteers come in the mornings to help usher the kids to their seats. It's a great program and it's fun for the volunteers too. We have found that teachers make some of the best SEAS volunteers! (SEAS volunteers work 8:45 AM - 1 PM and enjoy complimentary breakfast too!)

We will have orientations for new ushers on August 29 at 6 PM, September 8 at 10 AM and September 25 at 6 PM. Applications can be found and filled out online at our website: Broward Center Volunteers. Also, SEAS will invite interested volunteers to attend SEAS shows the first week of October. I hope that some of your members will be able to join us!

Becky Irwin, Manager of Volunteer Services
Broward Center for the Performing Arts
201 SW 5 Avenue, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33312
(954) 468-2683

The Inaugural Senior Health Expo, co-sponsored with the Florida Health Care Coalition was held on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at the War Memorial Auditorium in Ft. Lauderdale. Notices were sent out from the School Board to notify retirees that it would be held. Hundreds of senior citizens took advantage of the free health screenings. Several BCREA members attended including Lorene Broxton, Joanne Davis, Mary Hiers, Bev Hoppe, Nancy Howell, Evelyn Lewis, Catherine Phoenix, Marvia Simmons, Frances Smoot and Rosetta Watkins. Among the most popular booths were the osteoporosis screening, cholesterol screening, and the lung capacity check.