Rotarian sails the lagoon, once bagged an ample alligator

Rotarian is all about books, baseball and working smarter

‘Service Above Self’ motto strikes chord with longtime Rotarian

'It's hard to remember when I ever did anything else.'

Helping others succeed, from Japan to the Space Coast

Careers take Rockledge Rotary’s president-elect to the Pacific Northwest, the Middle East and the Space Coast

Local Rotarian returns to Florida after insurance business keeps him on the move for 23 years

Cheryl Cominsky just wanted to do a little volunteering for The Children’s Hunger Project – that’s all. It turned out to be more than that. In April 2020, she became the nonprofit organization’s executive director. “I started as an office volunteer and then it just became my heart,” said Cominsky, a Rockledge Rotarian . “It was never my aspiration to be executive director. I didn't walk in here with that idea in mind.” The Children’s Hunger Project in Cocoa is addressing a gap in schoolchildren’s meal programs. While in-school breakfast and lunches are available during the week, some children go hungry on weekends. In response to this problem, volunteers for the organization get together and pack weekend food packages that teachers place into the children’s backpacks. The packages contain nutritious, easy-to-prepare foods these children can bring home on Fridays. Volunteers meet at the Cocoa location to prep the weekend food packages. A number of businesses, civic groups and faith communities in the area support the effort with generous donations. “It’s just wonderful to be supported and surrounded by so many good people,” Cominsky said. The Children’s Hunger Project has been in Brevard County for 11 years. It started out serving 27 students. Now, the program is in 46 elementary schools helping to feed about 2,700 every week. In the early days of the pandemic, the number of meals served reached 6,000 but has since tapered off. “We're 72 miles of beautiful beaches with spaceships and rocket launches , but we still have families and children who need help,” she said. A New Jersey native, Cominsky moved to Florida with her husband and son in 2000 (a second son was born in 2002). The move came after she spent years in Pennsylvania managing sales for a software-reselling business. After that job brought the family to the Florida east coast, her husband's job prompted a move to Tampa. Seven years ago, they relocated to Viera . For much of her adult life, Cominsky has been involved in volunteer efforts, helping organize events, fundraisers, and functioning in other child-advocacy capacities. “You’ve got to care for other people,” she said. “Everybody needs some help sometimes.”

When Nelson Green sold his house to scrape up the funds to start a retail flooring store in 1979, he had a most unlikely stroke of luck: a hurricane barreling into town. A radio station decided to interview Green, who was busy storm-prepping his establishment as Hurricane David’s eye zeroed in on Melbourne. The free publicity was helpful to the fledgling business. The storm’s aftermath was, too, as many homeowners encountered serious flooding and had to replace their soggy floors. “I had only $10,000 and didn’t know that wasn’t nearly enough,” said Green, owner of Great Southeast Flooring America . “There was a $40,000 bill due at the end of the month and the business that resulted from the hurricane helped me to meet that obligation.” Born in Huntsville, Ala., Green came to Brevard County in the 1950s when his father took a space program job. Green enjoyed the Sunshine State during his elementary and high school years. A distinct turning point occurred when he was doing janitorial work at Patrick Air Force Base. “Working as a janitor made me realize I was definitely going to college,” he said. “My boss was miserable. I was 16 years old and I said, ‘No, I'm not going to do this the rest of my life.’” After graduating from Satellite High School , Green earned a degree from the University of Florida (he calls it “the Harvard of the South”), where he studied advertising and marketing. He took his newfound expertise to Lancaster, Penn., and landed a job in -- of all places -- the flooring industry. Four winters in Pennsylvania were enough for Green, who’d grown up accustomed to Florida weather, and he began moving farther and farther south, still working in management positions for major, national flooring companies in their ad departments. Those jobs took him to Greenville, S.C., and Rome, Ga. Then he had the bug to return to the state he loved so much in his younger days. “At that time, I decided I would really like to go back to Florida to raise children in Brevard County , because it's such a wonderful place,” he said. Despite not having any retail experience, Green made a go of it and relied on his industry knowledge. His flooring business started on a shoestring budget. Green and his brother, Ken (still employed there 42 years later), gathered scrap lumber to build some of the store’s early displays. Green married his wife, Karen, in 1980. She was instrumental in helping make the business what it is today as a trusted advisor and sales person for many years. Her experience as a carpet designer was invaluable in working with clients. Their sons grew up to assume leadership in the company: Chris Green is the general manager, running day-to-day operations, and Zach Green works as the sales manager. Today, Great Southeast Flooring America is a mainstay in the community. The company has thrived, even amid the pandemic . Green said the store had a better year in 2020 than in 2019, despite a bumpy April. And 2021 is looking even stronger. He theorizes that the lockdown may have actually helped drive business. “People were sitting at home quarantined, looking at their ugly floors,” he said. “They hadn’t been traveling or going out to eat as much, so there was a lot of excess income. A lot of them decided that if they were going to stay home, they wanted it to look nice.” The business has widespread support from the community, winning Florida Today’s Best of the Best award nine years in a row and consistently achieving an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau . It’s important to Green that his flooring business return the favor by supporting the community. Great Southeast Flooring America has an annual scholarship program for 16 Brevard high school graduates attending college. So far, that program has awarded $45,000 to deserving students. Next year will add another $16,000 to the total. The business also helps support the Children’s Hunger Project, Space Coast Derby Day and other worthwhile endeavors. In the end, Green credits the business’s unwavering commitment to the customer as the primary engine of its success. “It's a cliché but it comes down to taking care of your customers doing what's right, always doing what's right,” he said.