Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Announces Fourth Annual NOVO Award Winners.

MIAMI -- The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Not-for-Profit Taskforce presented the fourth annual NOVO Awards on Wednesday, April 6, 2005 at the Loews Miami Beach hotel during the Chamber's Board of Governors and Trustees Luncheon.

The NOVO Awards honor not-for-profit innovative excellence in two categories - non-profits with a budget of over $1 million and non-profits with a budget of less than $1 million. A cash award of $1,000 was presented to the top finalist in both categories.

In the over $1 million budget category, the NOVO Award was presented to Drug Free Youth In Town (DFYIT) - Drug Prevention Youth (12-18) Program. The DFYIT program targets at-risk youth, identified as middle and senior high school students from varying backgrounds, races and ethnicities who are perceived at-risk by the nature of their environment, school and/or community in which they live. The program provides prevention activities that include social competency, self-esteem, communication, conflict resolution, positive adult and peer relationship/mentoring, and community service learning opportunities. DFYIT uses a proactive approach to prevention that encourages, acknowledges, and rewards drug-free students. Today DFYIT operates in 41 local public and private middle and senior high schools in Miami-Dade County.

In the under $1 million budget category, the NOVO Award was presented to Dr. Bruce Heiken Fund, Inc. - Heiken Children's Vision Fund. The Heiken Children's Vision Fund provides free comprehensive eye health/vision care and eyeglasses to financially disadvantaged K-12 students enrolled in Miami-Dade County schools that are determined to have vision deficits. The Heiken Fund began over 10 years ago, in response to the knowledge that many school children, who failed school screenings, never received a professional eye exam. The priority of the Heiken Fund is to improve the lives of children and families with comprehensive eye health and safety programs, targeting children in lower socioeconomic neighborhoods with an emphasis placed on schools identified as underperforming.

The sponsors of the 2005 NOVO Awards program by category - Presenting: Health Foundation of South Florida and Tropical Financial Credit Union; Gold: Wachovia; and Silver: Hands on Miami, Inc.

The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce is an association of businesses and professions organized to create economic progress in Miami-Dade County. Its mission is to make South Florida the most business-friendly region in the Americas and to promote members' competitiveness through state of the art benefits and services, support for sustainable economic development, and advocacy to enhance the business environment. To carry out this mission, the Chamber serves as the voice of business enterprise and involves the private sector in community leadership.