About Us

Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast, Inc is a grief resource for people of all ages and stages of life.

The Wings Center Homosassa Springs, FL  

 Friends of Citrus met the growing need to improve mental well-being and quality of life for more than 5,000 families, children and seniors in 2023.  The Wings Center was home to   300 workshops and support groups, 400 wellness programs, social support activities, movies, educational programs and 6 children's grief support camps.  Generous volunteers   donated 18,000 hours of service at an estimated value of $529,498 as group facilitators, couriers, camp coordinators, office support, Board of Directors, Advisory Board and Thrift   Shoppe operations.

  All services are offered at no cost and dependent on donations, fundraising and a Thrift Shoppe in Homosassa.  Thrift Shoppe customers donated over     4,000 pounds of nonperishable food to Citrus United Basket (CUB)

Board of Directors

Citrus County Court Judge Charles Helm, President

Charles is a native Floridian and has lived around the greater Tampa Bay area most of his life except for a short time where he left to attend law School in Virginia. Charles holds a Juris Doctor from Liberty University School of Law, where he served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review. He also has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Florida. Charles has been an attorney since 2015 serving as an Assistant State Attorney in Florida’s Fifth Judicial District and then as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Middle District of Florida before being appointed as a County Court Judge by Governor Ron DeSantis in September 2021. Charles currently presides over dockets consisting of civil, criminal, and traffic matters within the jurisdiction of the County Court. Additionally, Charles conducts first appearance for misdemeanors, felonies, and juveniles, and conducts all Circuit Court criminal, civil, and domestic relation matters assigned to him. Before law school, Charles left a decorated service as a law enforcement officer where he received numerous commendations and awards for outstanding performance and community policing initiatives. Charles strives to remain active in his church and the community. Among other things, Charles is also a bronze certified USA wrestling coach and volunteers as an assistant coach with a local youth wrestling club for children of all ages. When he is not in the Courtroom, he can usually be found with his family where they are frequently beside a wrestling mat somewhere around the state.

Dr. Dixon is a Graduate of Columbia University, New York Medical College and the USF College of Business Administration. He was an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Georgia before entering private practice. He served in the Army as a surgeon and as a Special Forces Officer, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Dr. Dixon is involved in senior care and the development of assisted living facilities.

Broker/Owner Top Performance Real Estate Consultants
Born and raised in the New England State of Massachusetts, Debbie Rector moved to Citrus County, FL in 1987 to run her family clothing business. In 1994 she joined the Real Estate industry by becoming an assistant to a top producing agent. She worked as an assistant learning the ins and outs of the business from one of the best before she became her Buyer’s Agent in 1996. This Realtor saw the work ethic and potential in Debbie and encouraged her to become a full partner. In 2000 Debbie bought her partner out and opened her own Real Estate Brokerage on April 1, 2012 and was awarded the Broker of the Year award in 2013 & 2019. Debbie believes in giving back to both her profession and her community. She has served on the Hospice of Citrus County & Nature Coast Board of Directors & Finance Committee since 2005 and now serves on the Friends of Citrus & Nature Coast Board of Directors. She joined the Realtors Association Board of Directors and became the Associations President in 2015. She served as her FL Realtors District Vice President & is currently serving as FL Realtor RPAC Trustee Chair. She donates money and time to many local charities including being a Major Investor (Crystal R) of the Realtors Political Action Committee (RPAC). You will most likely see Debbie Rector smiling or laughing with a friend or colleague.

Before moving to Citrus County from Atlanta 28 years ago, Suzanne worked in the International Banking Department of Wachovia Bank & Trust. She then spent over a year working for the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) preparing Atlanta for the 1996 Olympic Games. At ACOG she worked in the Governmental Affairs Division lobbying the State of Georgia’s General Assembly. She moved to Citrus County in 1993 and joined Raymond James & Associates’ Crystal River office and was a Registered Client Service Associate. Suzanne retired 2 years ago and enjoys boating, fishing, traveling with her husband, Rudy, and tending to her banana and pineapple plants. She is on the Advisory Committee for Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast and volunteers with Save Crystal River supporting the Kings Bay Restoration Project.

Carol graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. She is employed at Citrus Surgery Center in Lecanto. Prior to this position, she was instrumental in starting and administrating an ophthalmology practice in Citrus County. Her home state is Michigan which she enjoys visiting quite often. She attends First Presbyterian Church in Inverness and is involved in Bible Studies. Carol has been a Board member and Secretary for Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast, formerly Hospice of Citrus County since 1991.

Jack Moring

Jack practices exclusively in the area of marital and family law, and family-law related appeals. He has been Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Marital and Family Law since 2007, and he is the first and currently only Citrus County, Florida, attorney to hold this distinction. He is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Law. He was admitted to practice in Florida in 1985. He began his legal career with the firm of Bradshaw and Mountjoy, P.A., in Inverness, Florida. In 1994, he and Patricia Myers formed Myers and Moring, P.A., Jack and Patricia married in 1996, and they renamed the firm to Moring & Moring, P.A. Jack is a member of The Florida Bar and the American Bar Association. He is a member and a Past President of the Citrus County Bar Association. He was instrumental in creating the Family Law Section of the Citrus County Bar Association in 2006. He was the recipient of the Citrus County Pro Bono Attorney of the Year award in 2004. He was the recipient of The Florida Bar President's Pro Bono Service Award for the Fifth Judicial Circuit (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion and Sumter counties) for 2008. He has been recognized in Super Lawyers in Florida for marital and family law every year since 2016. Jack is a member of the Family Law Section of The Florida Bar, and he serves on several committees of the Section. He also serves on the Family Law Section’s Executive Council. He is a past editor of the Section’s newsletter, FAMSEG. He has served on the Fifth Circuit Unlicensed Practice of Law Committee, and he is a past chair of the Committee. He is a member of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC) and is a member of the Florida Chapter of the AFCC. He served for seven years on the Board of Directors of the Florida Chapter of the AFCC and was President of FLAFCC in 2014. He is also a past member of the Citrus-Hernando Inn of Court. He is in his third term as a member of the Supreme Court Steering Committee on Families and Children in the Court. Jack has served on the Board of Directors of Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida, Inc., the Legal Advocacy Center of Central Florida, Inc., the Citrus County Family Visitation Center, Inc., and the Children's Advocacy Center of Citrus County, Inc. (Jessie's Place). He currently serves on the board of directors of Friends of Hospice of Citrus County of the Nature Coast. Jack devotes a significant part of his practice to representing children in dependency court, either as guardian ad litem or as attorney ad litem. He also serves as guardian ad litem in family law matters. Jack is also a family mediator.

Jimmie T Smith is the Coalitions Director for Concerned Veterans for America – Florida. A native of New Jersey, Jimmie moved to Citrus County Florida in 1975. He enlisted in the US Army at the age of 17 and served in such distinguished units as the 101st Airborne (Air Assault) Division and the 82nd Airborne Division before retiring in 2003. Jimmie was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2010 and served three terms representing the 34th and 43rd districts. As a Member of the Florida House of Representatives, Smith was Chair of the Veterans and Military Affairs Sub-Committee as well as a member of the Local and Federal Affairs, Agriculture and Natural Resources, Government Operations and Local Government Affairs Sub-committees. Jimmie has served on the Board of Directors for Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast since 2018. He lives in Citrus County with his wife Victoria and their children Gabriella and Christopher. He has three grandchildren Christopher, Eva and Damon.

Advisory Board

Cindy Lewis

A prominent Realtor^® in Citrus County since 2000, Cindy Lewis has devoted the past 11 years to serving clients at Trotter Realty, and she previously enjoyed a decade-long association with Plantation Realty. Active in all aspects of life in Citrus County, she has served on the Affordable Housing Board (4 years) and the Code Enforcement Board (2 years) has volunteered with Junior Achievement and United Way. More recently, she joined Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast as a volunteer and member of its Advisory Board. Cindy has contributed as the real estate member for the "Panel of Experts" that shares vital how-to-survive-on-your-own information with those facing new challenges following the loss of a spouse or partner. In addition, she has been a get-it-done proponent for fundraising activities, and she brings a wealth of knowledge about our community to program development efforts, also contributing expertise in finance and mortgage matters gained earlier in her career during 23 years as a mortgage loan officer and supervisor at several local banks.

Kimberly Brooks

Kimberly has been a resident of Citrus County since the early 2000's but visited the area since she was a child. Her love of water and nature brought her back to live in the nature Coast. She originally joined the Citrus Concert Band, which formed into the Nature Coast Communty Band and also played clarinet with the Weeki Wachee Winds. She loves to keep the fine arts alive in Citrus County. Kimberly loves teaching kids, especially outdoors, so when she discovered Camp Good Hope Teen Encounter, over 15 years ago, she signed up to volunteer. Kimberly has a toddler, a husband and she is a banker. She began as a teller with BB&T bank in 2006, then a branch banker, branch manager and is currently the Mortgage Loan Officer with Truist Bank.

Susan Derkatsch

Peggy Gause

Patricia Van Vliet

Frank Androski

Management Team

Bonnie L Saylor, Executive Director

Bonnie holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from National Louis University, Chicago, IL and certification in ALF Core Training, Alzheimer’s Care, Extended Congregate Care, Food Service, CPR and First Aid. She moved to Florida 48 years ago and participated in the development and growth of comprehensive mental health services, health and hospice services, community senior services and volunteer development for a variety of local non-profit organizations. She developed new programs, provided oversight and grant writing and created training programs for volunteers, including visiting clowns and therapy dogs. She has served on many advisory Boards, managed a Little League girls softball team that became District Champions and served as a Guardian ad Litem for over 10 years. Her son is a retired Master Chief, US Navy Band, and her grandson is a teacher.

Jonathan Beard, Program Manager

Jonathan holds two degrees from Johnson University, Knoxville, Tennessee
(B.A. Bible/Preaching 1989; M.A. New Testament Exposition/Preaching 1993) and a M.B.A. Degree from Brenau University, Gainesville, Georgia in Healthcare Management 2009. He is a State of Florida-approved Alzheimer’s/Dementia trainer. Having served as a hospice chaplain, Jonathan worked directly with patients and their families at times of greatest need. His ministry experience includes five years of youth ministry and twelve years of preaching in the Christian Church. Since 2001, Jonathan considers his work of helping people, healing lives through all ages and stages of life as an extension of his ministry. Jonathan is thrilled to share life with his incredibly gorgeous wife, Kim, of 27 years, along with their beautiful daughter, Sarah (26) and their handsome son, Nathan (23).

Edward Green, Environmental Services Manager

Ed joined the Environmental and Distribution Team in January 2019 and serves as the Environmental Services Manager. He coordinates the pick-up of large item Thrift Shoppe donations and delivery of large item purchases. He maintains repair, safety and security at both physical locations and coordinates vehicle maintenance. Ed has a background as a service technician, over the road driver for 12 years and building maintenance. Watch for Ed and his team in the “Big Truck” and follow them to Herry’s Thrift & Gift Shoppe.

Jack Millian, Thrift Shoppe Manager

Jack joined Friends of Citrus and the Nature Coast in 2019 as a Thrift Shoppe Coordinator. After demonstrating a focus on customer care and championing the shoppe’s volunteers, celebrating their achievements and appreciating their contributions, he was named Thrift Shoppe Manager in 2021, responsible for overall operations in Homosassa.. His experience in retail sales and operations, customer support and satisfaction, and team leadership dates back 20 years, encompassing several long-term associations with well-known retailers and training/development providers.

Kristen Floto, Assistant Thrift Shoppe Manager 

Jessie Keefer, Executive Administrative Assistant

Jessie is a true Floridian, born in Tallahassee and graduated from Citrus High School, Inverness, FL in 1988. She started with the organization as a temporary employee in January 2019 and became permanent in August 2019. Jessie maintains the organization’s master mailing list. She is responsible for volunteer personnel files and records of donated time. She assists with marketing of Thrift Shoppe merchandise, scheduling large item pick-ups and correspondence to donors. Jessie states that she has learned, and is still learning, about the process of grief. “We all grieve in different manners, there is no time limit, nor does grief have an end.”

Peggy Beacom, Executive Administrative Assistant

Peggy has been a member of the Accounting/Payroll Team for over 14 years. She is responsible for maintaining employee personnel records and outsourcing of bi-weekly payroll information. She maintains records for Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable and assists management with reports as required.
She supports the mission of help, hope and healing to people in grief.

Facilitator Team

“Chair Yoga" and "Beginners Yoga"
Hans was born in Bholenbergerfeld Germany and came to New York in 1951.  He served in the US Army for 42 years and moved railroad and airfreight.  He moved to Florida with his wife in 2015 and they both are very active volunteering to help others.

Lewis Interman

"Beginners Yoga"
Lewis retired at age 91 and volunteered as a tax preparer until he lost sight in his left eye.  Lewis is a co-leaader with "Beginners Yoga" classes twice a month.