OKEECHOBEE- Hospice of Okeechobee earned the Community Award at the 2020 Okeechobee Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Awards on March 10.

Overall five businesses were honored in five different categories by the chamber, which included Business Development, Leadership, Community, Entrepreneurship, and the MVP Award which was chosen by social media users.

In the Community category the Okeechobee Chamber of Commerce was looking to recognize a business or organization that participates in public activities, engages in various causes, and promotes Okeechobee as the best place to live, work and play.   

“We really appreciate this,” said director of Hospice of Okeechobee Gail Gerntrup after receiving the award. “It’s almost 40 years since we’ve been taking care of the community. It’s a privilege for us to be able to take care of our neighbors. The people that work here have been working so hard this past year, working through a pandemic with masks and goggles on. I very much appreciate the acknowledgement of those individuals and their caring hearts.”

Gail was presented with the award by Okeechobee County Commissioner Terry Burroughs.

In December of 2020 Hospice of Okeechobee hosted a Lanterns on the Lawn event to celebrate individuals who were lost with an evening of remembrance. Each lantern lit carried the name of someone under the care of Hospice of Okeechobee in the previous two years.