Veronica Miller

32 - Business Administration Manager for the City of St. Cloud

As Business Administration Manager for the City of St. Cloud, Veronica Miller balances a wide range of responsibilities with her staff of seven wonderful ladies. She manages the customer service, office, administrative, business management and compliance functions of the Public Services Department, which includes Public Works and Environmental Utilities. Some of those responsibilities include Conservation, Permit Compliance, Grant Writing and Compliance, overseeing the data management/service order program, and working with South Florida Water Management District and all major Central Florida utilities for water supply planning. Miller also successfully led the department as the interim Public Service Administrator from 3/2011 to 6/2011. On November 30, 2011, the 2010 Annual Water Quality Report she coordinated was awarded a Best in Class for Public Education/Community Relations by the Florida Section of the American Water Works Association at the Water Conservation Awards of Excellence.

Aside from her career accomplishments, Miller is a constant fixture in the community. She recently graduated from Leadership Osceola 2011, was named the Chair of the Osceola County Horticultural and Natural Resources Extension Advisory Committee and co-organized a bake sale in December to support the St. Cloud Fire Rescue Department’s Toy and Food Drive. To relax after a stressful day, she likes to spend time with her family. Veronica is married to Jason Miller a Lieutenant with the St. Cloud Fire and Rescue Department and they have two small children and a cat named Shrek. Miller’s personal goal for 2012 is to pursue a certification in public management. The best advice she has ever received is the quote, “If it were easy, everyone would do it,” which serves as her inspiration to stay motivated.

Virginia Costa

35 - Director of Student Success and Instructional Improvement for the Osceola County School District

As the Director of Student Success and Instructional Improvement for the Osceola County School District, Virginia Costa has an important role to play-educating teachers. Costa assists in developing staff education to improve teachers’ instructional skills and professional knowledge, a big piece of the puzzle to helping every student succeed. The teaching profession requires constant learning, and Costa’s team provides opportunities for teachers in Osceola County to gain knowledge about how to best impact their students with the skills they need to be successful beyond school. Costa “finds it thrilling to watch the fruits of an educator’s labor result in the high achievement of our future leaders (our students).” 

As she enters 2012, Costa’s personal goal is to “learn the art of parenting”, as she expects her first child in March. For 13 years, she was told she wouldn’t conceive without medical assistance, but early this fall they discovered that she was pregnant with no medical intervention! Costa says, “Already, here she is, out of nowhere, this little human has beaten the odds. She is going to be a strong and resilient force of nature.” As such, she will take after her mother, part-owner of a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy. Costa taught conditioning classes herself until she became pregnant. She credits her motivation to witnessing her parents display good work ethics, integrity, and a strong value system even in difficult times. Integrity is evident in her favorite piece of advice: “Speak of others as if they are standing next to you.”

Dr. Sandra Jara

37 - Gastroenterologist and Internist, Florida Hospital Kissimmee

Dr. Jara was born in Queens, New York.  Fortunately for Osceola County, she decided to move here to seize an excellent job opportunity.  What attracted her to this area is the family oriented community that also offers great diversity.

With her experiences starting in high school and continuing on in college and medical school, she chose her career path as a gastroenterologist and internist because she found it very exciting, interesting and most of all rewarding.  Dr. Jara has been on the expert medical staff at Florida Hospital Kissimmee since August, 2010.  She specializes in women’s health, inflammatory bowel disease, colonoscopy and endoscopy.  Her interests include biliary pancreatic and liver diseases.  

Dr. Jara enjoys treating patients by getting to know them in her clinic or at the hospital before performing endoscopic or other diagnostic procedures to treat digestive diseases.  With the variety in this field of medicine, she enjoys the satisfaction of successfully treating her patients. 

Having one son, and another one on the way, Dr. Jara says that her personal goals for 2012 are to be a great mother and wife, a wonderful doctor and a good friend.  This is something that she already seems to be, so it should be a great 2012 for her.  The best advice she has ever been given is, if you shoot for the stars and hit the moon, it is ok.  But, you’ve got to shoot for something as a lot of people do not even shoot.

Mary Guidone

29 - Utility Information Coordinator, Toho Water Authority

Anthony J. D’Angelo said, “Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.” This quote is a favorite of Mary Guidone, and they are words she lives by as the Utility Information Coordinator for the Toho Water Authority. As such, Guidone is the primary media liaison and spokesperson for the utility organization. Additionally, she is responsible for providing professional marketing, public relations and communications services both within the company and to the public and media organizations. Above and beyond her job responsibilities, Guidone is also a member of the Florida Section American Water Works Association (FSAWWA), and a member of the Poinciana Area Council of the Kissimmee/Osceola Chamber of Commerce. 

Originally from Orlando, Guidone is married to husband Chris and they have three “fur babies”- dogs Miles, Matilda and Gidget. To relax, she enjoys spending time with her family and using her new Kindle ereader. Guidone’s personal goal for 2012 is to become a Bookmark Buddy and give back to the community she lives and works in. The Bookmark Buddies program is an initiative of the School District of Osceola County that pairs up parents, local business people and other concerned community members with 3rd grade students from 12 local elementary schools to help struggling readers. Her favorite advice is from Jim Rohn, “If you don’t like how things are, change it! You’re not a tree.”

Heather Moore

34 - Sales and Membership Representative, Osceola Center for the Arts

She may not be Superwoman, but Heather Moore certainly makes a difference in the lives of many people around her! As the Sales and Membership Representative at Osceola Center for the Arts, Moore engages with the community every day, helping to extend and preserve cultural influences in Osceola County. Moore also serves as the President of the Osceola County Historical Society, the Boy Scout Golden Eagle Dinner Leadership Committee, and other avenues for her passion of serving the community. She believes Osceola County is special because she “adores the fact that even though we are a small community, our little County still focuses on the arts, preserves history and culture.” Heather is also extremely active with her Church. She has been a proud member of City of Life since September 2010.

Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Moore moved to Osceola County when she was 6 years old. Now her daughter Laryssa attends Osceola High School, the second generation of her family to be an Osceola student. A single mother, Moore understands how difficult it can be to juggle all of the responsibilities of family, work and community involvement, but she does so with a sense of humor. Her advice to other single mothers is to “Never ever ask ‘why me?’ Why not you? Be you and be comfortable knowing that you are doing something remarkable that many people never get to experience. If you must look down, make sure you’ve recently had a pedicure. Pretty toes help woes.”

Heather Gantz

25 - Office Administrator, Lakeshore Dental Care

Heather Gantz knows all about starting at the bottom and working yourself up through the ranks. Currently the office administrator at Lakeshore Dental Care, Gantz began as a part-time filing clerk when she was still a high school student. Through her 7 years of employment at Lakeshore, Gantz has learned a tremendous amount about business and leadership. She was recently elected to serve as secretary for the Board of Directors of the Osceola Business Partners Leads Group, a network of the St. Cloud Greater Osceola Chamber of Commerce. The Leads Group offers networking opportunities, promotes a feeling of good will among its members, and seeks to advance the welfare of each member’s business.

Beyond her professional responsibilities, Gantz participates in several community activities. Most notably, she is involved in choreographing both the Miss Silver Spurs and Miss Rodeo Florida pageants. Gantz also serves on the planning committee for Miss Rodeo Florida. To unwind, she and her husband Patrick like to spend time at home or go hunting. Gantz also has a passion for photography that fills some of her free time. One of her 2012 goals is to develop her photography skills and expand her knowledge in that area.

Rachel Slone

28 - Social Studies Teacher, Osceola High School

Many teachers find that in their profession, there is never a dull moment. This is definitely true for Rachel Slone, a social studies teacher at Osceola High School. Originally from Michigan, Slone chose to move here after college to teach, having fallen in love with Central Florida over years of family visits. She says, “I always knew I wanted to work with high school students, who are truly on the brink of making a difference in the world.” Currently, she does that both in the classroom and through sponsoring extracurricular activities, serving as Senior Class sponsor, the school Wellness Coordinator, running the Fashion Club in the 21st Century after school program, as well as providing additional tutoring and homework help to students. 

When she is not at school, Slone enjoys exercising; especially taking a family walk with her “better half” Aaron and their dog Samson. She also loves to read, mostly nonfiction books and the newspaper, and has over 75 scrapbooks! Slone looks up to many people in her life, including her mother, the strong women of her family, her colleagues at OHS, and even some of her students who have gone through much more than she did growing up, and who continue to amaze her daily. In these harsh economic times, she sees firsthand the negative impact the slow economy has on most of her students and their families, but Slone keeps fighting to help her students “look to the past as they seek guidance.

Denise Roberts  

34 - Public Information Officer and Community Outreach Sergeant, St. Cloud Police Department

If you are interested in community involvement, you probably won’t find anyone more involved than Denise Roberts. Roberts who’s current assignment is the Criminal Investigation Unit’s Sergeant, was recently appointed to Administrative Sergeant and will serve as the Public Information Officer and Community Outreach Sergeant for the St. Cloud Police Department in early 2012.  Roberts is involved in a long list of committees and community events such as: Children’s Advocacy Center, Law Special Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics, and Relay for Life, among others. Professionally, she is the Team Leader of the Hostage Negotiation Team for SCPD, and works with various groups to share information with other Florida law enforcement agencies. Roberts has been with SCPD for 10 years, prior to a 3 and half-year stint with the Kissimmee PD.

In addition, Roberts is married to Ron Roberts, a Deputy with the Osceola County Sheriff’s Department and together they have a 3-year-old daughter. Looking ahead to 2012, Roberts shared that her personal goals are completing her Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice Administration and being a role model for her daughter. When asked who helped to shape the woman she is now, she gave credit to her parents, her older sister Melisa and her husband, Ron. Roberts also shared this quote: “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone and the courage to make tough decisions and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. They never set out to become a leader, but become one by the quality of their actions and the integrity of their intent. In the end, leaders are much like eagles… they don’t flock; you find them one at a time. -Anonymous”.