Wheels in Motion — March 2026

Chapter President Steve Kirk

ANNUAL REPORT ANNUAL REPORT 2024/2025 2024/2025

Officers and Directors

Officers and Directors

OUR MISSION STATEMENT Paralyzed Veterans of America Central Florida, a congressionally chartered veteran’s service organization, provides a platform of advocacy, education and research, communication, adaptive sports, and recreation for veterans paralyzed as a result of spinal cord injury or dysfunction, in an effort to afford them with the highest quality of healthcare and life experiences.

OUR COMMITMENT Paralyzed Veterans of America Central Florida strives to keep veterans, with spinal cord injuries or dysfunction, connected through core programs that assist them in obtaining veteran’s benefits in a timely manner, by providing them with a liaison with VA Medical Centers or other institutions where members receive healthcare, by publishing a monthly magazine that keeps them informed of what is happening nationally and locally in legislature that directly effects them and their families and by providing opportunities in adaptive sports and recreation in an effort to enhance a lifetime of health and fitness, in order to offer a better quality of life.

Message from the President Steve Kirk On May 2, 2024, I had a serious automobile accident that nearly cost me my life. Although I am thankful for Seminole Hospital for initially doing what was necessary to keep me alive during the first few days after the accident. It went downhill from there. I ended up in Autonomic Dysreflexia twice within 36 hours and both times needed to be resuscitated, resulting in a tracheotomy and having a pacemaker put in. Thankfully, while at the PVA National Board of Director’s meeting in Minnesota, our Chapter Executive Director met with the PVA leadership of Medical Services and things were put into action to get me moved from the local hospital in Sanford to the VA Hospital in Tampa, where I stayed until December 22, 2025. My recovery continues to be slow but despite some setbacks throughout the year, there is light at the end of what has been a long tunnel. I am finally home and beginning to work my way back to what is going to be a new normal. In the meantime, our chapter Executive Director and I have been having regular phone conversations, and the work of the chapter has continued without interruption. I am certain 202 6will be a much better year for me and for our chapter.

Message from the Vice President Tim Wolfe My primary responsibility of this role is to ensure continuity of leadership during the President’s absence. As Vice President, I will serve on the Executive Committee and will oversee all chapter program activities. I act under the authority of the President and the Board, participating as a member of the Board with both voice and voting rights. I am expected to attend all Board meetings, have a comprehensive understanding of the organization and the President’s duties, and be prepared to assume the President’s responsibilities when required. Additionally, I will collaborate closely with the President, serving as a consultant and advisor, and maintain a strong, cooperative relationship with the Executive Director and the President. I am also responsible for carrying out special assignments from the Board and the President and will investigate any member complaints related to violations of duties, in line with the organization’s Administrative Guide.

Message from the National Director Amy Patterson As I complete my first year as the National Director of the Central Florida Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, I am proud to reflect on a period of significant learning, growth, and commitment. Over the past year, I have worked to fully understand the responsibilities entrusted to me, gaining a deeper appreciation for the mission of our organization and the vital role I play in supporting it. I have approached this position with a strong sense of ethical responsibility, striving always to represent and serve our membership to the best of my abilities. Advocacy for our veterans has remained at the forefront of every decision and action I have taken, ensuring that their voices, needs, and rights continue to guide our priorities. As we look to the future, I remain dedicated to strengthening our organization, expanding our impact, and safeguarding the legacy and forward progress of the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

Message from the Secretary James “Eddie” Hawks My name is James (Eddie) Hawks and I am the Secretary for the Paralyzed Veterans of America Central Florida Chapter board of directors. My duties are to record all board meeting minutes and to participate in any board decisions that require a vote. I also participate in adapted sports representing our chapter. I attended the National Veterans Wheelchair Games in Portland, Oregon where I received one Gold, one Silver and two Bronze medals. I attended the National Veterans Winter Sports Clinic in Aspen, Colorado for the first time. I also participated in the PVA bass tournament in Waldorf, Maryland. I helped organize and participated in the annual Jerry Dugan Golf tournament fund raiser for the chapter.

Message from the Government Relations Director Tim Wolfe Government Relations remains a vital part of our mission. Through this work, we communicate the needs and priorities of our members to local, state, and federal legislators. We monitor how government agencies manage programs that directly affect the healthcare, benefits, and overall quality of life of our membership. We also collaborate with lawmakers to ensure that existing laws are properly implemented and to advocate for future legislation that supports our members and the broader disabled community. Over the past year, I represented the chapter at monthly meetings of the Florida Veterans Council and the Association of Chapter Government Directors. Additionally, I spent four days in Washington, D.C., meeting with our congressional representatives and U.S. senators to address key issues impacting our members.

Message from the Executive Director John DeMauro It has been another awesome year here at the Central Florida Chapter of PVA. This has been the 12th year I have served the Chapter as its Executive Director. It has been and continues to be a joy to work with the staff, board of directors and members of this great organization. I can proudly say that I believe we are one of the best chapters in the country and it is because of the staff and leadership and their commitment to the membership of the Chapter. I want to just highlight some of the things that have transpired this past year. In January we received a Certificate of Occupancy for the new warehouse we built on our existing property. The warehouse houses our van and our box truck as well as the durable medical equipment donated to the Chapter. This equipment is then given away to the disabled community. We do not charge for that which we give away. However, we do encourage the recipients to make to a donation to the organization, if they would like. As a result, we received over $13,000 in donations along with an additional $40,000 in grants to help support the program. A few volunteers conducted a rummage sale in January and raised over $2,000 for the Chapter. In March, the same volunteers raised over $6K with another rummage sale. Also in March, we spent $13K on some roof repairs and we hired Stacie Woodworth as part time Administrative Assistant funded by the Harper Family

Foundation. We also named Joanne as Chapter Administrator. In April, we conducted our 11th Annual Jerry Dugan memorial Charity Golf Tournament and raised $86K. These funds are used to help support the administrative and program expenses of the Chapter. 2026’s tournament will be on April 25th at Venetian Golf Club in New Smyrna Beach. Our Goal is to raise $100K. In April we also initiated a Woman Veterans and Caregivers Program to reach out and support women veterans with spinal cord injuries and dysfunction. We are working on planning a retreat sometime in 2026 for this special group of veterans. In May, I traveled to Austin Texas to PVA’s Annual Meeting where I met the love of my life. We have been dating for the past 8 months and she attended the Chapter Holiday Party as my plus one. In June, Joanne, Tim, Amy and I traveled to Washington DC to advocate for multiple issues that affect paralyzed veterans daily. In August, the chapter staff assisted a member who could not get to his community mailboxes. After some investigation and research, we were able to get the Postal Service to arrange for him to have his mail delivered directly to his home. In September we received a donation of 10 air-rifles and 4 air pistols. We were then able to assist another PVA Chapter by donating to them 4 air-rifles and two air pistols to help shore up their Air-Rifle Program. In October, we received $15K from an estate to help fund our programs, we received $3K from the Lake Mary Rotary Club as well. We also received a $15K commitment from Florida Adaptive Sports to help support our Sports and Recreation Program and expand it to include the disabled community. We also received an in- kind donation of NASCAR memorabilia worth over $8K (which we will market in an effort to raise funds for the chapter. In November, One of our members spoke at an employee conference in Ft. Lauderdale where the employees had a team building event building manual wheelchairs. The 38 wheelchairs were then donated to our REEP Program. Finally, this past year we had over 100 volunteers volunteer over 1000 hours. In the State of Florida each volunteer hour is valued at $33 per hour. That is a value of $33,000. We appreciate our volunteers. We couldn’t do all that we do without them. As you can see 2025 was a busy year and 2026 will be just as busy and just as productive for our membership. We look forward to all that we have planned for the coming year.

Message from the Chapter Administrator Joanne Poretti It has been another exciting year here at PVA Central Florida Chapter! Let me start by once again thanking our outstanding group of Volunteers! We absolutely could not do half of what we do here at the Central Florida Chapter, if it were not for our dedicated volunteers. From the endless hours you have all donated, to the constant year-round preparation it takes to organize our Annual Jerry Dugan Memorial Charity Golf Event, to simply showing up when something needs to be cleaned, set up, moved, picked up, delivered, or sorted! We sincerely thank you all for your dedication to our Veterans and our Chapter!

This year, REEP (Repurposed Equipment Exchange Program) helped our community with $759,534.50 worth of equipment to 5136 needy people. I am truly humbled each time we provide a life-changing piece of equipment to someone in need. It is such a great feeling to see self-confidence in someone’s eyes when they regain just a sliver of independence, or for a caregiver to receive a piece of equipment that helps to make their day just a little bit easier.

Since this program began in 2015, we have distributed over $ 2,759,534.50 worth of durable medical equipment to people in need in our community. We received monetary donations from 56 donors totaling $ 23,489.25. This total includes a $ 10,000.00 donation, again this year, from a local foundation to help facilitate expenses for this program. This is the seventh year this foundation has helped support this program. A local partner of PVACF, AGED, has been a big asset in helping with this program. We are participating in donation days at the AGED office in Longwood again this year; we are going to move the event to our Facility next year. We are planning to keep this on our agenda annually to help ensure that people in need get the equipment they need. We received funds from local generous donors and profits from some events held by local organizations in and around the Sanford area. Checks totaling $ 18,336.60 were presented to us last year. We are gearing up for the 12th Annual Jerry Dugan Memorial Charity Golf Tournament, with the continued generosity of our outstanding group of volunteers, sponsors, members, and our community. We are hoping to top last year’s total of $85,000.00 that we raised at the event. We are also looking forward to expanding our sports and recreation program with the help of our Members, Volunteers, and our local community!

Message from the Treasurer David Rountree

This is the Paralyzed Veterans of America Central Florida Chapter financial report for the 2024/2025 fiscal year. The accounting firm of Schafer, Tshopp, Whitcomb, Mitchell & Sheridan, LLP 541 S. Orlando Avenue, Suite 300 Maitland Florida 32751 conducted an audit. The Chapter successfully fulfilled all the mandates of our charter, with service to our members and our community. We thank our Board, Employees, Volunteers, and Donors for making this possible and look forward to continued success.

Where Miracles Happen Every Day

Statement of Support, Revenue, Expenses and Changes in Fund Balances 2024/2025

Support and Revenue 2024/2025 2023/2024

Contributions $ 105,855 $ 108,739 Donated Equipment and Services 378,625 368,391 Membership Dues 0 0 Rental Income 0 0 Grants 30,000 0 PVA Grants (including GIVE Program) 184,927 166,155 Fundraising 84,918 88,965 Other 2,460 9,844 Total Support and Revenue $ 786,785 $ 742,094

Expenses 2023/2024 2023/2024 Program Services Membership and Benefits $ 306,914 $ 270,486 Public Affairs 367,945 366,844

Total Program Services $ 674,859 $ 637,330

Support Services

General and Administration $ 117,561 $ 112,371 Fundraising 22,847 20,911

Total Support Services $ 140,408 $ 133,282

Total Expenses $ 815,267 $ 770,612

Support and Revenue over/under expenses $ (28,482) $ ( 28,518)

Non-Operating Support and Revenue Dividend and interest income $ 43,351 $ 38,250 Realized capital gains (loses) $ 21,500 $ 76,913 Change in unrealized gain (loss) on investments $ 19,211 $ 99,104 Total Non-Operating Support & Revenue $ 84,062 $ 201,095 Increase (Decrease) in Unrestricted Net Assets $ 55,580 $ 172,577

In Memory

William Angstadt Richard Benner Earnest Blakney Daniel Byrd Steven Carr Myron Fineburg Andrew Jackson Gerald Keeth John Ksionzyk Rodney Strohm Greg Truckenbrod John Vastano