The Lee County Bar Association (LCBA) was pleased to induct its 2016 Executive Council officers during a swearing-in ceremony at its monthly Membership Luncheon on Jan. 8 at the Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center in Fort Myers. New leadership was also installed for the LCBA’s Young Lawyers Division (YLD), and an initiative called LCBA Cares was formally established.
The new LCBA president typically sets a theme that encompasses certain objectives for the year ahead. Incoming President Scott Atwood, however, has worked with his fellow leaders to craft a three-year strategy called LCBA Cares to focus on professional development and meaningful referral networks for members and community outreach to benefit area youth and populations in need of legal services.
In addition to Atwood, who is now the sixty-eight president of the LCBA, the Executive Council is composed of Vice President Kelly L. Fayer; Secretary Daniel J. Endrizal III; Treasurer John C. Webb; board members Spencer Cordell, Scot D. Goldberg, Jenna Persons and Shannon M. Puopolo; President Emeritus Anne Dalton and YLD President Thomas G. Coleman. The balance of the YLD officers are Vice President Kayla E. Richmond, Secretary Candice L. Smith and Treasurer Kristalyn J. Loson.
Recognizing the extensive scope of the LCBA Cares theme, Atwood, Fayer and Endrizal collaborated to identify ways to continute to enhance members’ experience with the bar while benefiting worthy community causes.
Under the leadership of now-Magistrate Kimberly Davis Bocelli in 2015, the YLD coordinated fundraising activities that consistently exceeded goals for the Guardian ad Litem Foundation. The “big bar” will now capitalize on the momentum of the young lawyers, and benefit that important foundation, which provides a voice to children in the court system, with the annual LCBA Charity Golf Tournament. In partnership with the Children’s Network of South Florida the LCBA will provide opportunities for at-risk youth to do regular “kid stuff.” A new event is the Try-Athalon, where children can try three activities that might be new to them: bowling, mini-golf and fishing. A greater emphasis on family-friendly events is also on the agenda for the next three years.
President Atwood said, “We owe it to the future of the county to provide as many opportunities as we can, in terms of funds and volunteer hours, to elevate the status of its youngest, most vulnerable members.”
About the Lee County Bar Association
The Lee County Bar Association, a 501c6 not-for-profit organization, has served the citizens and legal community of Lee County since 1949 and has a current membership of almost 800. For more information, visit www.leebar.org or contact President Scott Atwood, Esquire at (239) 898-4130 or scott@atwoodlawfirm.com or Executive Director Sharon Brotherton at (239) 334-0047.
