PCSO Lieutenant Wins 2020 Mr. Central Florida
by James Coulter
By day, Lt. Jim Ostojic works diligently through law enforcement to keep his county and community safe. Over the past few weeks, he served his community even further by volunteering and fundraising for a local hearing clinic. His hard work has since been rewarded after being named Mr. Central Florida last week.
During a livestream on Thursday evening, Lt. Ostojic was named the winner of Mr. Central Florida, the annual fundraiser for the Central Florida Speech and Hearing Center in Lakeland.
Lt. Ostojic raised more than $83,000 for the fundraiser. Not only did he raise more funds than the 20 other contestants, even running neck-to-neck with two others, but he single-handedly shattered past records, a press release from the Center explained.
Second place went to Tony Corraro, representing CPS Investment Advisor, who likewise broke the top fundraising record by raising more than $55,000. Third place went to Tom Lloyd, representing Bank of Central Florida, who raised $34,000.
Lt. Ostojic was handpicked by Sheriff Grady Judd himself to represent the Polk County Sheriff’s Office in the Mr. Central Florida fundraiser. As someone who knew people who had benefited personally from the Center, he was proud to raise money for a good local cause.
He owes his success to his community and the people in it for allowing him to raise as money as he did. He would not have been able to obtain this honorable title without the help of family, friends, and complete strangers, he said.
“It has been a great opportunity,” he said. “I think getting out in the community, doing sports with the kids, and meeting such wonderful people who want to help me raise money…I think it is a great cause, and I look forward to everyone doing it next year.”
On Oct. 29, The 8th Annual Mr. Central Florida event, sponsored by The Ruthvens, was hosted via livestream, the very first virtual event of its kind. The livestream was hosted on its website and streamed at the Silver Moon Drive-In in Lakeland.
Proceeds from the event will go towards the services provided by the center to help facilitate the speech, language, and hearing care for children and adults in Polk, Hardee, and Highlands County.
“Central Florida Speech & Hearing Center and the patients we serve are thankful beyond words for every single contestant, the planning committee, the volunteers, and our community who opened their hearts to make sure that we can continue to provide the human connection – communication,” their press release read.
