niche with service members

from Jacksonville Record & Observer 2/25/21

CHRISTOPHER BROCHU

BY MAX MARBUT • ASSOCIATE EDITOR After graduating in 2018 from Florida Coastal School of Law, Christopher Brochu worked in a small business litigation law firm until April 2019, when he struck out on his own and opened the Law Office of Christopher J. Brochu PLLC.

What inspired you to become a lawyer?

I always had an inclination that I wanted to help people. While in college, I interned for an assistant prosecutor named J. Scott Hucks, who let me attend hearings, interviews, trials and assist him with trial preparation. Although my law practice involves civil ligation, my experience with Mr. Hucks gave me an inside look at our judicial system and helped cultivate my passion for litigation. To this day, Mr. Hucks remains a great mentor and close friend.

What have you learned since graduating

from law school? Law school helped to teach me how to think, but I gained practical experience while working at firms and practicing law. Through my experiences, I have learned that many service members and military families do not know about their legal rights or benefits. For instance, a majority of service members pay for traumatic injury coverage under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance Traumatic Injury Protection and may qualify for compensation, yet a majority have never heard of it. As a result, I’ve made it my firm’s mission to help as many military families as possible.

How do you relate your undergraduate

degree to your practice of law? My communication degree presented the opportunity to focus on public speaking and effective communication styles.

Special to the Daily Record

What’s your strategy for growing your law

firm? Networking. Jacksonville is filled with wonderful attorneys and I’m showing many firms ways to maximize their military clients’ claims. One of my mentors, attorney Bill Scott, has provided valuable insight about growth and networking. Bill has introduced me to many attorneys. I enjoy networking with any attorney and I’m blessed that so many attorneys trust me with their military clients. Most firms have a desire to maximize their clients’ claim value and my firm helps put more money in their clients’ pockets.

If I could change anything in the legal

system, I would ...The military should do more to educate service members about their legal rights and our legal system should provide greater access to veterans’ courts, with a focus on alternative forms of treatment and punishment for military members living with mental health issues and PTSD, along with finding alternatives to prescription drugs and opioids.

What volunteer service do you perform

and why? One of my favorite activities is working as a mentor with the Jacksonville Bar Association Young Lawyers Section Ribault High School Young Lawyers Program. It is designed to help students apply to college, register for the SAT/ACT and compete in a mock trial competition and provides mentees with general support and guidance. Over the course of my life, I’ve had tremendous support, mentors and role models. I don’t know that I have done enough to earn it all but I’m grateful for the opportunities that have been afforded to me. I feel a great responsibility to give back to our community and I believe that our society should invest in our youth. It’s my honor and privilege to have the opportunity to support our next generation of students and leaders.

CHRISTOPHER J. BROCHU

Managing attorney Age: 29 School: Coastal Carolina University, bachelor’s in communication; Florida Coastal School of Law, J.D.

Hometown:

Arundel, Maine

Family: Fiancé, Sara

Favorite book:

“Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell

Book I’m currently reading:

“Doesn’t Hurt to Ask” by Trey Gowdy

Favorite app:

Venmo

Favorite nonwork

activities: Playing golf, investing, reading, eating at local restaurants, traveling and watching sports.

Dolphin Pointe developer Gregory Nelson dies at 71

He was a member of the JU basketball team that made it to the NCAA Tournament championship in 1970.

BY MAX MARBUT ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Gregory Nelson, Jacksonville University alumnus and developer of a medical complex in Arlington, died Feb. 4 at Baptist Hospital after a stroke. He was 71.

A member of JU’s basketball team that lost in the NCAA Tournament championship game in 1970, Nelson graduated in 1971 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He was a member of the university’s board of trustees from 2010-16.

In 2014, Nelson was named among the “80 Alumni You Oughta Know,” in honor of the 80th anniversary of JU’s founding.

In 2017, Nelson’s Ohio-based development and health facility management company broke ground on Dolphin Pointe Health Care, a 120-bed skilled nursing center on a 55-acre site between University Boulevard and the St. Johns River north of the JU campus.

In January, the city approved a mobility fee calculation certificate for the second phase of the health complex, Dolphin Reef, a 112-bed assisted living and rehabilitation facility.

“Nelson was a faithful friend and staunch supporter of his alma mater. For decades, he partnered with the University in expanding opportunities for students and investing in the revitalization of the Arlington community,” JU said in a statement.

JU President Tim Cost, a 1981 graduate of the university, said he remembers watching Nelson and Artis Gilmore lead the Dolphins to the final game of the NCAA Tournament.

“Greg was a visionary and a collaborator, always bringing people together to accomplish things that seemed impossible to many,” Cost said. “His leadership and steadfast support has been transformational for our University and for Arlington.”

Gilmore said he and Nelson “had a great relationship that started on the court. Everybody on the team worked really hard, but Greg was certainly one of our leaders and a big reason behind our success.”

JU Athletic Director Alex RickerGilbert said Nelson and his teammates helped reshape Jacksonville and reinvigorate the campus community.

“He was an incredible ambassador of not only athletics but of Jacksonville University and his transformational contributions beyond his time as a student-athlete will live on for decades to come,” Ricker-Gilbert said.

Memorial services will be scheduled this spring in Jacksonville and in Dayton, Ohio.

Special to the Daily Record Artis Gilmore, Frances Bartlett Kinne and Gregory Nelson at the groundbreaking for Dolphin Pointe Health Care in 2017.

Adecco

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

where we are deeply rooted in the community. We are proud of our long history and dynamic partnerships in the market, and we look forward to building on the strong presence we have established over the years,” Ripoche said in an emailed statement.

Before the buyout by Adecco, MPS was headquartered in the 37-story Downtown building now known as the Wells Fargo Center, which is a signature building of Jacksonville’s skyline. The tower was then named for MPS’ major subsidiary, Modis.

However, Adecco moved its offices out of the Downtown tower in 2011 to a suburban building in Deerwood South at Butler and Southside boulevards.

In 2014, that building at 10151 Deerwood Park Blvd. became Adecco’s North American headquarters as it consolidated operations from its previous headquarters office in Melville, New York.

“Adecco Group North America will remain a significant community and corporate partner with their business services center and more than 600 employees in the Jacksonville region,” JAXUSA Partnership President Aundra Wallace said in an emailed statement.

“We will continue to work with their leadership on investment opportunities in Northeast Florida for Adecco Group’s various business lines,” he said.

File image Adecco’s North American headquarters at 10151 Deerwood Park Blvd. in Deerwood South.

MBASCH@JAXDAILYRECORD.COM

DEVELOPMENT TODAY

These are the largest commercial building permits by job cost issued Feb. 23 by the city of Jacksonville.

INDUSTRIAL

Powerline Hardware, 7485 Fullerton St., contractor is Tim Young Construction Inc., 42,060 square feet, new building, $2 million. Kudzue 3 Trucking Inc., 10655 General Ave., contractor is Pars Construction Services LLC, asphalt plant foundation, $100,000. Phoenix Products, 1544 E. Eighth St., contractor is Bradley’s Construction Enterprises Inc., 5,710 square feet, new building, $800,000.

SIGNS

Hall’s Ace, 5645 Blanding Blvd., contractor is Florida Sign Co. Inc., wall sign, $2,400.

OFFICE, BANK, PROFESSIONAL

1A Auto Inc., 12090 New Berlin Road, No. 1, contractor is The Kenyon Co., 86,800 square feet, renovation, $1 million.

STORES, MERCANTILE

Walmart, 11900 Atlantic Blvd., contractor is FMGI Inc., full store renovation, $500,000.

Get In Touch!

904-725-4355 6747 Southpoint Parkway Jacksonville, FL 32216 www.nefba.com

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Keith Ward

President

Thomas May Construction

Josh Garrison

First Vice President

Miranda Contracting

Mark Paulsen

Secretary/treasurer

Drees Homes

Linda Hutchins

Second vice president

LMH Realty LLC

David Hacker

Third vice president

Construction Specialties of North Florida

Nate Day

Immediate Past President

H. Smith, Inc.