Steve Rossman caps 3 years as national Easter Seals chair, supporting veterans, brain research

MIAMI - Nov. 6, 2013 - PRLog -- Contact: Steve Rossman, Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso, Spier & Connolly, 305-373-0708, rossman@rbrlaw.com. 300 dpi photo attached

MIAMI -- Nov. 6, 2013 -- Stephen F. “Steve” Rossman has concluded three years as Easter Seals (http://www.easterseals.com) chairman, during which the organization dramatically expanded services for military veterans and their families and launched critical partnerships in brain research.

Mr. Rossman, who lives in Coral Gables, is co-founding partner of the Miami trial law firm Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso, Spier & Connolly (http://www.rbrlaw.com). He assumed his new title as immediate past chairman at Easter Seals’ national meeting in Chicago in late October, and will continue his long service on Easter Seals’ board of directors.

Easter Seals, as one of the world’s largest organizations serving people dealing with disabilities, has touched more than 1.7 million lives through its 550 affiliates.

Mr. Rossman says that among his proudest accomplishments was Easter Seals’ partnership with The Staff Sergeant Donnie D. Dixon Center for Military and Veterans Community Services (Dixon Center) (http://dixon.easterseals.com) in Washington. The Dixon Center ensures access to services essential for military service members, veterans, their families and the families of the fallen to succeed in family and community life and civilian society. In the last two years, Easter Seals has raised $25 million to support returning service members.

The center is named for Donnie Dixon of Carol City, a tank commander who was killed by small arms fire in Iraq Sept. 29, 2007, at age 37, one month shy of ending his second deployment and his scheduled return to his wife and four children, and three years before he planned to retire. The center is run by Sgt. Dixon’s former commanding officer, retired Col. Donald Sutherland. The center’s efforts have won strong endorsements from retired Admiral Mike Mullen, the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“This work with veterans and their families is vital and will continue for generations,” Mr. Rossman said. “Since 2000, more than 250,000 veterans have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury. Nearly 50,000 men and women have been wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nearly 2,300 have committed suicide. More than 67,000 veterans are homeless any given night. The list goes on, and there are millions more American veterans who served in Vietnam, Korea and World War II among us. We may, over time, forget these wars, but not these men and women coming back.”

Easter Seals recently launched a Brain Health Center to create solutions and expand awareness of how emerging technologies can enhance the lives of people living with brain conditions. Its partners and technology incubators in fostering brain health include The Brain Plasticity Institute, Posit Science and Vista Life Sciences.

Mr. Rossman has served Easter Seals at both the affiliate and national levels for decades. At the national level, he has represented Easter Seals South Florida as a member of Easter Seals National House of Delegates in 1997-2007 and served on the Membership & Organizational Structure (MOS) Committee. Elected to Easter Seals International Board of Directors in October 2004 and re-elected in 2007, he has served as board 1st vice chairman, secretary, chairman of the Affiliate Services Committee, vice chairman of the Public Affairs Committee and a member of the Executive and Finance Committees. He was elected board chairman in 2010.

Mr. Rossman first became involved with Easter Seals in 1984 as the parent of a child at the Easter Seals Demonstration School in Miami when he served as co-chairman of Easter Seals South Florida’s capital campaign. Mr. Rossman joined the affiliate’s board in 1987, held the offices of vice chairman and chairman, and has served on numerous committees over the years. An enthusiastic supporter and staunch advocate of Easter Seals, its clients and services, Mr. Rossman has often opened up his home to host Easter Seals events and fundraisers and recruit new members to the affiliate board and the Presidents’ Council.

Throughout Mr. Rossman’s career as a trial lawyer, he has served as president of the Florida Justice Association, president of the Miami-Dade Justice Association, a member of the board of governors of the American Association for Justice, and a legal advocate of the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.

About Easter Seals
Easter Seals is the leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs. Since 1919, Easter Seals has been offering help and hope to children and adults living with disabilities, and to the families who love them. Through therapy, training, education and support services, Easter Seals creates life-changing solutions so that people with disabilities can live, learn, work and play. Support children and adults with disabilities at www.easterseals.com (http://es.easterseals.com/site/PageServer?pagename=homepage).

About Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso, Spier & Connolly

Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso, Spier & Connolly, P.A., founded by Stephen Rossman and Charles Baumberger in 1974, is a Miami civil trial law firm representing the catastrophically injured and their families throughout Florida and the Southeast. The firm has a long tradition of professional leadership and community service. Peers have selected Messrs. Rossman, Baumberger, Reboso and Spier for the publication Best Lawyers in America, and the firm is listed among the Best Law Firms in America. Learn more at www.rbrlaw.com.

Sent by:

Mark Sell

Wragg & Casas Public Relations

305-372-1234

Cell: 305-206-5937

msell@wraggcasas.com