Annual Awards

Peace River Center Annual Employee Awards

Peace River Center is fortunate to have such dedicated and compassionate staff members, some who have been here for 30 or more years and some who have recently joined the Peace River Center family. Below are this year’s Annual Award recipients who go above and beyond to serve our community. Please join us in extending a heartfelt thank you for their selfless, compassionate work.

Support Staff of the Year (Clinical): Johanna Acosta, Program Assistant

Johanna Acosta Annual Award Johanna not only exudes positivity. She is hardworking, reliable, skilled in customer service, training her peers, and has a vast understanding of various Peace River Center (PRC) programs. Johanna always conducts herself with the utmost professionalism, works independently with little to no guidance, and is a proficient problem solver. She is always kind, encouraging, and willing to help.

Johanna is always willing to go above and beyond to assist everyone across all departments, whether they are a client or PRC team members. If we have a new hire, she is the first to offer to help with training our processes or whatever else is needed to get the individual situated and comfortable in their new role. Johanna strives to encourage staff and clients. She always comes into work with a positive, ready-to-work attitude. Johanna demonstrates initiative and great pride in her work, always putting the clients first, which is evident to anyone who has had the pleasure of working side-by-side with her. Johanna says her hard work and dedication are because “I care about the clients.”

Support Staff of the Year (Non-Clinical): David Blackwelder

Annual Awards - David Blackwelder David has been a valued staff member of PRC for more than 28 years. He always accepts every challenge that comes his way with a positive attitude and a desire to help. Renovating the Bartow Crisis Stabilization Unit (BCSU) created an interesting challenge with patient care and safety. From the onset to finishing the project, David never swayed from putting clients and staff as a priority. He and CSU staff had a vision which was carried through and provided a great product that will be utilized for many years to come.

Over the years David has maintained all PRC locations ensuring locations look clean and maintained to his best “budget” ability. In 2017, PRC engaged in a capital campaign to renovate an existing facility and add square footage to create the new Lakeland Crisis Stabilization Unit. David was a huge part of the team that ensured completion of the project. Additionally, he has managed additional grant funds to add to and or renovate facilities ensure quality, patient safety, and meeting deadlines.

Peer/Recovery Support Specialist of the Year: Heather Hutton

Heather has been a mentor with the Community Action Treatment (CAT) Team for nine years. She has worked for Peace River Center for a total of thirteen years, starting as a tech at the Crisis Stabilization Unit.

Annual Award Heather Hutton She provides mentoring and support for children and adolescents for the restoration, modification, and maintenance of social, personal adjustment, and basic living skills. Heather has an amazing ability to connect with clients from all different backgrounds. She has a gift for creating a safe space for a client to experience healing and further benefit from CAT services. Not only is she able to connect with almost any client, she does an excellent job at engaging parents in care. She is able to take on a supportive and encouraging role with parents who are feeling burnt out and uncertain, but also gently correct and give feedback to parents who need further direction.

When working in community mental health, being flexible is a very important skill. In her time as a mentor, Heather has proven to have an innate ability to adapt. She is able to effectively adjust her appointments with clients to exactly what they need; everything from teaching clients how to cook to encouraging clients to brush their teeth to helping clients create art. Heather has developed a deep arsenal of skills and a broad understanding of all that being a mentor means.

In everything that Heather does as a mentor and member of the CAT Team, you can clearly see the care and respect she has for all clients and for fellow staff.

Heather is able to not only be a mentor and support for clients, but also for the whole family. One parent shared that the lessons on parenting that they were able to learn from Heather, the parent was then able to share with other parents dealing with a similar situation. The work Heather does as a mentor for clients and their families has a rippling effect throughout the community.

Heather has been a tremendous asset to the CAT Team and Peace River Center. We are fortunate to have her as a part of our team and her clients and their families are fortunate to have her support.

-Mikayla Michaels, CAT Manager

Victim Services Advocate of the Year: Mindy Lee

Mindy Lee Annual Award Mindy is the Outreach Specialist for the Rape Recovery Program, dedicated to Hardee County. She is a strong advocate for our survivors. Mindy has been praised by the survivors she works with and their parents for being a good listener, understanding and empathetic.

During the last five years she has done exemplary work to increase community awareness about sexual violence. She has a great partnership with local law enforcement advocates and they often work together to provide the best support for survivors. Mindy’s diligence in outreaching to the school paid off when they agreed to call our program for any incidents or allegations of sexual violence reported on campus. She continues outreach efforts to every town in Hardee making information readily available to survivors in the community.

Mindy has also volunteered her personal time at other organizations in the community to be able to share information about our program services. She organized the very first Human Trafficking walk in Hardee County with help of the Chief of Police. Additionally, Mindy organized the first support group for survivors of sexual violence for the LGBTQ+ community, giving survivors a safe space to heal.

She embraces every opportunity to learn more about our field by continuing her educational goals for advocacy. During the pandemic our program had to learn new ways to meet the needs of the community, she would attend meetings via Zoom, called community partners to make sure they knew we were still open and serving survivors, provided telephone empowerment counseling to survivors, and she continued to do her outreach activities and events when possible.

Mindy has stayed the course even though it has been difficult getting the community to receive information and believe survivors as they come forth. Mindy’s efforts are breaking down barriers for survivors to feel safe and supported when seeking help in Hardee County.

-Melissa Irving, Rape Recovery Program Manager

Administrator of the Year: Amy Nelson, LCSW, CAP, CBHCMS, Director of Recovery Services

Amy has dedicated the past 16 years to ensuring adults with severe and persistent mental illness have access to quality, client-centered, and empowerment-based recovery services. Amy launched Peace River Center’s first Care Coordination services, and has supported oversight of Peace River’s Children’s Resiliency Team. As a member of the Clinical Services Leadership Team, Amy regularly volunteers for special projects to help increase the quality of care at Peace River Center. Additionally, as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who is also a Qualified Supervisor, Amy actively invests in the next generation of helping professions.

Amy was promoted to a Director role four years ago and is currently responsible for the oversight of Peace River Center’s Forensics Program, Adult Case Management Team, Supportive Employment Services, Supportive Living Services, Psychosocial Rehabilitation Program and Clubhouse Programs. As a Director responsible for many programs at a large community mental health provider, Amy has a big job to contend with. Despite the challenges that are presented, Amy is a problem solver who is professional and prepared at all times. She will research a request and present it with all aspects carefully considered and diligently follows through on all supplemental requests. Amy is truly deserving on the nomination for Supervisor/Administrator of the Year.

As someone with history working in adult crisis services, case management, and as a supervisor of a full continuum of recovery services, Amy is a firm believer that people with mental illness, when given the right supports, can and do get better.

“Amy is a tireless advocate for every single client/Club Success member at PRC. She empowers everyone that she comes in comes in contact with, including staff and members. I cannot express within the limits of this nomination, all of the reasons Amy is deserving of this award and much more. I count it as a huge blessing that I am fortunate enough to work side by side with her at PRC.”

– Miranda Mills, Club Success Director

Medical Professional of the Year: Stephanie Rambali, SRT RN Supervisor

Stephanie Rambali has been a valued nursing team member at Peace River Center for 10 years. Stephanie began her nursing career as an Licensed Practical Nurse, using her skills on the inpatient unit, and later moved to the FACT Team, where she provided services to the most severely and persistently mentally ill individuals in our local community. Upon obtaining her RN license, Stephanie had a desire to utilize her degree and stretch her skills and was recommended highly by her program Director, Donna Rininger, as an excellent candidate for internal opportunities. It was at this time that Stephanie joined the Inpatient Services Team.

Stephanie Rambali Annual Award Stephanie has fulfilled the role of RN Unit Supervisor through one of the most challenging times in our history to work in the medical field. Stephanie’s abilities to provide leadership to not only her own unit, but in support of PRC’s other inpatient units has been unwavering. Stephanie assisted in supervision at Bartow Crisis Stabilization Unit, Lakeland Crisis Stabilization Unit, and currently at the Short-Term Residential Treatment center. Always displaying excellent patient care, nursing skills and deliberate, heartfelt nursing practice, Stephanie organizes a kind approach to care for individuals who are dealing with the significant experience of being inpatient due to their potential to harm themselves or others related to their mental illness. She is able to effectively assess needs and preferences as she creates nursing care plans and communicates with respect and dignity to consumers and the entire care team.

Stephanie’s ability to provide strong leadership to the Crisis Stabilization Inpatient Program has been exemplary throughout the past three years. While dealing with unprecedented staffing shortages, Stephanie has led unit care in a safe and effective manner. She has acted as trainer to new staff and leadership, as direct care when staffing shortage occurs, and as a leader. She shows dedication to overall care and safety as she volunteers to fill open shifts herself and works nights and weekends to ensure the treatment environment is safe and secure. It is also common to find her backing up her leadership peers and helping to fill a shift at their facility, to allow them to take a much needed break. She is not only a great leader on the floor providing medical and mental health care, but a great role model.

Stephanie has an innate ability to connect with people and creates a teamwork foundation between administration, doctors, therapists, technicians and patients. She works with others to achieve patient goals and staff goals with a sense of heartfelt care and is successful at pulling people together to meet a shared vision.

Stephanie is an effective communicator and she is able to share her effective tools for communication with staff and so that they are role-modeling healthy interactions for patients. By doing so, she builds a connection of trust and support. She makes a difference in everyone she touches and goes the extra mile for Peace River Center every day. These are just a few reasons that I am proud to nominate Stephanie Rambali, RN, for Medical Staff of the Year.

Clinician of the Year Award (Adult): Rachel Sconiers, Psychosocial Rehabilitation Specialist

Rachel Sconiers Annual Award As a group facilitator for our Psychosocial Rehabilitation (PSR) program, Rachel has been an irreplaceable asset to our agency and an advocate for those we serve for over 30 years. She offers PSR recipients a group experience unlike any other through her years of expertise, knowledge of the community, and the high standards she expects from herself and others. Rachel’s sincere concern and unwavering support for others is instrumental as they navigate their paths towards recovery. Through her genuine relationships with members, it is obvious Rachel is invested in their success, acting as a pillar of support and accountability. She is quick to advocate for others and is the first to celebrate their accomplishments. Whether it is driving a 13-passenger van or holding the hand of a person in crisis, Rachel always shows up for Peace River Center and the people of our community, no matter the situation.

When COVID-19 arrived uninvitedly to Florida in March 2020, Rachel put herself even further on the front lines for the sake of our recipients. Following recommendations during such unchartered waters, Peace River Center’s group home residents were asked to quarantine and remain within the group home. Since the recipients were unable to leave the facility, Rachel selflessly volunteered to go to them to continue in-person PSR groups. By doing this, she ensured recipients would continue to have the tools needed for recovery, especially during such a time of uncertainty and isolation. While family members were unable to visit loved ones in the facility, Rachel offered what so many people were not able to receive; a familiar and friendly face. Rachel’s servant heart brought some of the most vulnerable people constancy and essentially, hope.

PSR group members, whose perspective of Rachel probably matter the most, have previously made note of her contributions to human services. Members credit her with helping them to understand day to day things such basic banking concepts and creating personal budgets, along with things that are more intrapersonal, such as coping skills. When reflecting on Rachel, many people note her kindness towards others and enthusiasm for each day.

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