Emerald Torch Awards Gala
The annual Emerald Torch Awards Gala brings Palm Beach State College and the community together at a glamorous green and gold affair to benefit students and scholarships.
Come celebrate and support Palm Beach State College in its role as an engine of opportunity for Palm Beach County.
2025 Event Details
Saturday, November 15, 2025, at 6pm
SoFi Center | Palm Beach Gardens campus
3160 PGA Boulevard, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410
Campus Map & Driving Directions
Our 2025 gala is sold out! We're grateful to all our steadfast supporters. We're looking forward to gathering with you in the one-of-a-kind SoFi Center for an evening of dining, dancing and celebrating honorees who reflect the excellence and promise of all that a Palm Beach State College education has to offer to students and the community. This annual green and gold affair is poised to be the best one yet. Thank you for supporting PBSC!
If you’re unable to attend but would still like to support the cause, please consider making a gift. Make a Gift
Premier Venue: SoFi at PBSC
Palm Beach State College’s 2025 Emerald Torch Awards Gala welcomes guests to the SoFi Center, the exclusive home of TGL, the new professional golf league from TMRW Sports and in partnership with the PGA TOUR. TGL presented by SoFi fuses advanced technology and live action to create a unique experience at this first-of-its-kind venue.
Launched by Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and TMRW Sports CEO Mike McCarley in January 2025, TGL tees off in December for season two at the SoFi Center, a 250,000 square-foot, purpose-built complex that boasts a data-rich virtual course, five-story simulator and tech-infused green, and a rotating turntable powered by nearly 600 hydraulic jacks to alter the contour of all 18 holes.
SoFi Center provides an extraordinary backdrop for Palm Beach State’s 2025 Gala, a one-of-a-kind experience, showcasing state-of-the-art technology, dazzling LED displays and cozy hospitality lounges frequented by high-profile celebrities, media executives, and players and owners from the world of professional sports.
Amid the excitement, we’ll shine a spotlight on individuals who lead the way for excellence, opportunity and transformation in our community. From an inspiring awards presentation to an elegant dinner and specially prepared menu to the fellowship of leaders, visionaries and changemakers, the Emerald Torch Awards Gala is where the who’s who of Palm Beach County come together to celebrate the impact of higher education and the spirit of community.
Palm Beach State College is delivering exceptional education through innovation as TGL has reimagined golf through innovation, broadcasting live on ESPN from Palm Beach State College’s Palm Beach Gardens campus.
Join us at SoFi Center for this historic evening as we honor achievement, build connections and ignite the future — together.
Master of Ceremonies
News anchor Jim Grimes will serve as the master of ceremonies for the 2025 gala. He co-anchors CBS12 News
at 5, 6 and 11 p.m., covering stories impacting families and communities around South
Florida. Grimes is deeply committed to public service and community engagement. He's
excited to celebrate the achievements of Emerald Torch awardees at PBSC's green and
gold affair.
2025 Awardees
Lifetime Achievement Award: Gary Player
Gary Player is a South African professional golfer who is one of only six men in history to capture the career grand slam - winning all four of golf’s Major Championships. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 1974, and during his career, Player won nine Major Championships on the Regular Tour and nine Major Championships on the Senior Tour. He is the only golfer in history to complete the career Grand Slam on both Tours. He has won more National titles than Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer combined, and he has won the most tournaments of any professional golfer alive today.
Nicknamed the Black Knight, Mr. Fitness, and the International Ambassador of Golf, he is also a renowned golf course architect with hundreds of design projects throughout the world. Player has authored or co-written 37 books on golf instruction, design, philosophy, motivation and fitness. In 2016, he captained the South African Olympic Golf Team in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Player has received numerous accolades including the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award, the PGA Tour's Lifetime Achievement Award, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the United States.
Gary’s life was profoundly shaped by his childhood experiences. After his mother passed away when he was young, Gary found refuge and strength in his school in South Africa. His father was working in the mines, and his brother was off at war, leaving Gary feeling alone. Yet, his school was a safe haven—a place where he was able to thrive, belong, and find hope for the future.
The work of the Gary and Vivienne Player Foundation began many years ago on the Player farm and continues today in South Africa as the Blair Atholl preschool. After the passing of Gary’s late wife, Vivienne, Gary and Vivienne established the foundation in the United States, driven by a shared desire to give back. Upon learning that 1 in 6 children in this country live in poverty — with millions at risk of homelessness, hunger, and neglect — they felt called to act. The foundation was re-named and re-established to focus on providing vulnerable and underprivileged children with a safe, nurturing environment where they can thrive.
Gary and Vivienne wanted to give back to the communities that contributed to Gary’s incredible journey and success. The GVPF’s mission is to lift children out of poverty through targeted education, health, and housing initiatives. Over the past three years, the foundation has touched the lives of more than 36,000 children. The needs are great, and the work is vital.
At the Emerald Torch Awards, we celebrate the man and the incredible dedication and impact of the Gary and Vivienne Player Foundation — an organization driven by love, hope, and a shared commitment to change lives.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler
Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler is a celebrated educator, civic leader, philanthropist, and trailblazer in Florida’s public service. She was the first African American woman appointed to the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners in 1979 by Governor Bob Graham and later became its first African American chairwoman from 2002 to 2004, marking groundbreaking progress in the region’s governance.
Born Barbara Jean McCollough in Fernandina Beach, Florida, she graduated as valedictorian from Peck High School in 1957. She earned a Bachelor of Science in speech from Florida A&M University in 1961 and a Master of Arts in communication from Ohio State University in 1962. While serving as an educator, she later completed a Master of Education at the University of Miami in 1969 and a Doctorate in Educational Supervision and Administration from the University of Florida in 1978.
Throughout her 25-year tenure on the Miami-Dade Commission, Carey-Shuler became known for her strong advocacy on urban transit, historic preservation and affordable housing. She was instrumental in establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a local holiday before it became recognized nationally and oversaw the creation of major transit-oriented developments like the Brownsville and Overtown Transit Villages. Her legacy includes championing the restoration of The Historic Lyric Theater, the Hampton House, and the founding of the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts.
Beyond public office, Dr. Carey-Shuler’s philanthropic work has shaped communities across South Florida. At Palm Beach State College, she founded and endowed the Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler Student Success Center, dedicated to creating pathways for opportunity and upward mobility for all students. She continues her husband’s legacy at Shuler’s Memorial Chapel and remains active on several nonprofit boards, including Pathways to Prosperity and the Spady Museum.
For her lifelong commitment to civic leadership and education, Carey-Shuler has received numerous accolades, including the 2023 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award from President Joseph R. Biden and multiple civic honors from Miami-Dade County, which renamed a section of Northwest 22nd Avenue as “Dr. Barbara Carey-Shuler Boulevard” in her honor.
At the Emerald Torch Awards, we celebrate Carey-Shuler’s impact on Palm Beach State College and the entire South Florida region.
Emerald Torch Award: David Ladd (PBSC alumnus)
David Ladd is a PGA golf professional and the director of Golf and General Manager at the Champions Club at Summerfield in Stuart. Recently, he qualified for the 2025 Senior PGA Club Professional Championship as well as the 2024 Senior PGA Championship and the 2024 National PGA Club Professional Championship.
Ladd has competed in tournaments for the last 25 years, garnering numerous wins at the professional level. Ladd’s professional wins have come on the Golden Bear Tour, Gateway Tour, and South Florida Tour.
His accomplishments include: Low Professional at the 2012 Florida State Open; 2012 PGA Apprentice Champion; Qualified to play at the 2013 U.S. Senior Open; Won the 2013 National Car Rental South Florida PGA Assistant Championship; and was T-3rd in the 2014 FSGA Senior Open.
A Boynton Beach native, Ladd credits his mother for always finding a way to keep a golf club in his hand. He attended Palm Beach Junior College – an opportunity he says changed the course of his life.
During his time at PBJC, he had a great golf coach and remembers Dean Moss and Watson B. Duncan's class. He says the College and the people there at the time truly impacted him. Now he says, "It's my turn to help." He assisted with early testing at the SoFi Center for the TGL before the first season started.
Emerald Torch Award: George Gentile (PBSC alumnus)
George Gentile is a senior partner and a principal of Gentile Holloway O’Mahoney 2GHO Inc., where he is responsible for the daily management, operations and marketing of the firm as well as managing and participating in all project design and direction. Gentile has over 48 years of experience in landscape architecture, land planning and environmental consulting.
He continues to represent projects before public agencies and has had principal responsibility for the implementation of these projects as well. His extensive experience in the professions of landscape architecture and planning continues to provide valuable input to both public and private projects alike.
After graduating from Suncoast High School in 1971, Gentile obtained an Associate in Arts degree in Architecture from Palm Beach Junior College in 1973. He then got married and moved to the University of Florida where he obtained a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture degree in 1977. A year later, he obtained his license to practice landscape architecture after passing the State Board of Landscape Architecture exam. His most memorable projects include the Palm Beach County Dyer Landfill reclamation design and recently the design of the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter.
He also served on the board of the PBSC Foundation from 2013 to 2019, acting as its Chair from 2015 to 2019. Even after his formal service ended, he remains a close friend to both the Foundation and the College.
Emerald Torch Award: Wolfgang Brunet (PBSC alumnus)
Wolfgang Brunet is the founder and CEO of Ideal Nutrition, a leading Florida-based company specializing in fresh, healthy, ready-to-eat meals. With a strong vision for making convenient nutrition accessible, Brunet transformed Ideal Nutrition from a small operation into a multimillion-dollar enterprise with retail stores, a central kitchen and distribution networks that serve customers across Florida.
Before entering the food and nutrition industry, he dedicated seven years to serving as a police officer, an experience that shaped his leadership, discipline and commitment to community well-being. Drawing on this background, Brunet has built a company culture centered on accountability, professionalism and service.
Under his leadership, Ideal Nutrition has grown to employ over 300 team members and generates more than $45 million annually in sales. The company is recognized for its high standards in food quality, operational efficiency and customer service. Brunet has also overseen key innovations, including extended meal shelf life, expanded delivery services and the opening of multiple retail locations throughout Florida.
Brunet’s hands-on leadership style and dedication to excellence have earned Ideal Nutrition a place on the INC 5000 list, solidifying its reputation as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the United States.
Beyond business growth, he is passionate about promoting healthier lifestyles and empowering his team to embody the company’s mission: to make healthy eating easy, affordable and enjoyable for everyone.
Brunet completed his Associate in Arts degree in Business Administration and Management at PBSC from 2005 to 2008 before going on to Florida Atlantic University to obtain a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration and a Master of Arts degree in Marketing.
