Parkland Cares

About Parkland Cares

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Days after yet another deadly school shooting, grief counseling was available at the school and at walk-in facilities around Broward County, Florida, but those resources are only temporary. Parkland Cares is designed to be a collaboration of partners striving to bring counseling services and information to communities in one location. With a variety of crisis counseling and intervention services, short and long term therapy, community referrals and more available – the goal of Parkland Cares is to provide a centralized and continuously updated list of all the resources available to those coping with tragedy.

“I’ve been overwhelmed at how many wonderful agencies and people who want to help, but they lack the coordination to convert their best intentions into real benefits for the survivors and community.”

Howard Dvorkin, CPA and chairman of Debt.com

When Howard Dvorkin, a 30-year Parkland resident and chairman of the locally-based business Debt.com, heard about the tragedy that happened only a few miles from his home, he contacted Henderson Behavioral Health immediately for guidance. “We are embarking on a project to not only counsel people in our backyard, but to create a model that can be used again – because unless something radically changes in this country, such a tragedy will happen again,” says Dvorkin.

“Once the police are done investigating, and the media is done reporting, the only professionals left behind are the counselors and those that need the help may not be aware of where to find them” says Debt.com President Don Silvestri, who lives a mile from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. “Our goal is to make it easier for the survivors, their families and the community to easily find the resources needed to piece their lives back together again.”

“Debt.com plans to support this collaboration in any way they can,” Dvorkin says. “This means funding a substantial amount to pay for the services required to help victims and their families and using our existing staff to help organize efforts. We plan to fund as much as is needed to make a meaningful and direct impact on the lives of all those affected by this horrific tragedy. In the business world, we strive for best practices and maximum efficiency. I’ve been overwhelmed at how many wonderful agencies and people want to help, and now we want to coordinate the best intentions into real benefits for the survivors and beyond.”