The Community Foundation of Sarasota County has awarded 12 local nonprofit organizations through its annual Animal Welfare competitive grant cycle to promote the humane care of domestic, farm, wild and exotic animals across four counties. More than $196,000 will be awarded to support emergency veterinary treatment and capacity building for nonprofits that center on caring for animals with generous support from the Helen C. Schwieder Fund, the Robert Parker Fund, the Martha Leiter and Nancy Streetman Fund I, along with others. Awards this year reflect the diverse needs across animal welfare. Challenges are on the rise in both domestic and wild animal care, as factors ranging from environmental disasters to economic strain have impacted the health and humane care of animals of all types.

“Animals are an essential part of our ecosystem, and as their habitats are compromised, we must invest in organizations that can administer specialized care,” said Kirsten Russell, Vice President of Community Impact at the Community Foundation. “That said, there is also emphasis placed on supporting shelters as they provide care for the growing number of domestic animals seeking forever homes.” The following organizations are supported by this year’s grant cycle:

Farmhouse Animal and Nature Sanctuary Inc., a group that cares for animals in need by offering them a place to live out their lives in as natural a setting as possible; Save Our Seabirds Inc., an organization with a mission to rescue, rehabilitate, and release sick and injured wild birds while educating the community about preventing injuries and preserving habitats; Wildlife Center of Venice Inc. d/b/a The Paul A. and Veronica H. Gross Wildlife Center of Southwest Florida, protecting and preserving Southwest Florida's native wildlife through educational outreach in Sarasota, Manatee, Lee and Charlotte Counties; Honor Sanctuary, Inc. d/b/a Honor Animal Rescue, saving the lives of homeless pets by changing the way our community views animal sheltering and shelter pets;  Animal Welfare League of Charlotte County Florida Inc., an advocate group for animal protection and welfare with a vision to achieve a community void of homeless animals; Animal Rescue Coalition Inc, providing affordable, accessible, high-quality spay/neuter surgeries and veterinary services; Humane Society of Sarasota County Inc and Humane Society at Lakewood Ranch, Inc., nonprofit, no-kill, animal rescue and shelter organizations that provide assistance and care for at-risk animals until forever homes can be found; Satchel’s Last Resort, Inc., a no-kill rescue based in Sarasota on 12 acres of land; Venice Cat Coalition, a group that helps control the community cat populations through Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return and cat/kitten adoptions; Meals on Wheels of Sarasota, Inc., provides and delivers meals to Sarasotans who are homebound, mentally or physically disabled or elderly, and unable to prepare meals for themselves; St. Francis Animal Rescue of Venice, Inc., whose mission is to rescue and care for homeless cats and kittens until we find them loving homes.

To learn more about Animal Welfare Grants or view available grant opportunities, visit www.cfsarasota.org/nonprofits/grants.

Pictured: Animal Rescue Coalition Inc. is one of 12 local nonprofit organizations supported by The Community Foundation of Sarasota County grants. Photo courtesy of ARC.

Gulf Coast Community Foundation (Gulf Coast) is thrilled to announce that registration has opened for its outdoor, free, fun, casual, reimagined event: Better Together. Better Together will take place on Thursday, March 16 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. on the 1500 block of State Street in downtown Sarasota. The Better Together State Street block party will include free activities that celebrate education, arts, health and human services, and the environment. The entire community is invited to celebrate our nonprofit region and the impact of philanthropy. Food and beverages will be available for purchase, along with live performances, music, art activities, and fun for all ages. Parking is available at the State Street parking garage. Registration is requested for the event and can be done via the Eventbrite link here. To learn more about Better Together, visit: https://www.gulfcoastcf.org/bt23. Gulf Coast will have check-in tables for registration at either end of State Street, near the parking garage and Hyde Park Steakhouse. You do not need to bring your Eventbrite ticket with you to attend the event. Make sure your family and friends register for Better Together via Eventbrite at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gulf-coast-community-foundations-better-together-2023-tickets-536113348457. 

As a part of its signature Done in a Day project, the Junior League of Sarasota established a lending library at Resilient Retreat, a recently-opened non-profit providing free and confidential support for survivors of abuse, first responders and helping professionals, such as nurses and teachers. On January 14, 25 active and sustainer members of the local organization worked together to install a lending library in the Great Room at Resilient Retreat’s new facility. Junior League members purchased more than 150 books from the non-profit’s wish list, as well as an iPad and mount, valued at more than $3,000. The volunteers also installed book plates in all books and set up a digital catalogue system called Libibpro to streamline book check-out by retreat participants, volunteers and staff. The Junior League of Sarasota is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. The Done in a Day Committee plans and coordinates projects that can be completed in one day, providing hands-on service opportunities for League members by partnering with other organizations to improve the surrounding community. 

On February 3, Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties presented its prestigious 2023 Youth of the Year title to local high school student, Nathan W., a senior at Pine View School, during its Steak & Burger, Youth of the Year Celebration. Five other outstanding teens were in the running for Youth of the Year. Each exemplified the Boys & Girls Clubs’ mission and are proof of the impact the Clubs make in transforming lives: Madisyn C. is a senior at Venice High School and attends the Gene Matthews Club in North Port; Rah’Nia H. is a senior at Booker High School and attends the Newtown Estates Club in Newtown; Stephanie B. is a senior at Venice High School and attends the Robert and Joan Lee Club in Venice; Mykayla G. is a senior at Booker High School and attends the Roy McBean Club in Newtown; Nazariah S. is an eighth-grader at DeSoto Middle School and attends the Louis and Gloria Flanzer Club in Arcadia. The Clubs’ Steak & Burger, Youth of the Year Celebration was presented by the Louis and Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust. Additional sponsors include Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, Intertape Polymer Group, Caldwell Trust Company, Shumaker, Drs. Robert and Patricia Gussin, Armstrong Fleming & Moore, Inc., Mark & Kathy Morrison, Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Blistex, Ken and Patricia Freeman, Synovus, Jeff Roberti, CoolToday, Bowman, George, Scheb, Kimbrough, Koach & Chapman, P.A. Attorneys at Law, The DeLieto Team at MS&C Commercial, Sabal Trust, Lee Wetherington Homes, and Marilyn Naiditch. Proceeds from the event support the organization's award-winning slate of programs designed to empower youth to achieve their full potential. 

To learn more click here.

The Patterson Foundation has matched $187,500 total in investments into four earned-income plans created by regional nonprofits participating in its Margin & Mission Ignition endeavor. The matches strengthened fundraising efforts toward the startup costs of the earned-income plans developed by each organization through Margin & Mission Ignition, a 30-month process to help nonprofits build organizational capacity, boost revenue and strengthen mission impact. The Patterson Foundation created Margin & Mission Ignition in 2015 to help nonprofits in our region adopt and implement earned-income strategies, giving them the opportunity to build entrepreneurial capacity and generate revenue that increases their opportunities to serve the community. No Margin, No Mission, a social enterprise and national consulting firm engaged by The Patterson Foundation, provides extensive guidance to each participating organization throughout the 30-month process as they create and launch a new or expanded revenue stream aligned with their mission and work. The matches covered up to 50 percent of the startup costs outlined in each organization’s earned-income plan, which catalyzed investments from other donors. Through these investments, the four following participating organizations were able to launch or expand services: Charlotte County Homeless Coalition, Resilient Retreat, Selah Freedom and Venice MainStreet. Visit thepattersonfoundation.org to learn more about Margin & Mission Ignition, or join the conversation using #TPFMarginMission on social media.  

Doug Staley, Executive Director of the Child Protection Center, Inc. (CPC), was the recent recipient of the Paul Harris Fellow Award by the Rotary Club of Gulf Gate. The award was presented by Rotary president, Sue McConnell. The Paul Harris Fellow Award is the highest award an individual Rotarian can receive and is given as a token of appreciation for a member who's contributed significant time and funds to their local Club. Notable recipients of this award include President Jimmy Carter, astronaut James Lovell, and Jonas Salk, the developer of the polio vaccine. Staley has dedicated his life and work to protecting the children of our community. He joined the Child Protection Center full-time over 27 years ago, the last 12 of which he’s led the nonprofit in the prevention, intervention, and treatment of child abuse as the Executive Director. Karen Valentino, a transformational donor and previous CPC Board Chair, said, “[Doug] is so compassionate, yet disciplined, unyielding in his fight against child abuse, and a heart of gold; the ultimate humanitarian.” 

Gulf Coast Community Foundation (Gulf Coast) has surpassed $500 million in grants awarded marking a significant moment in the foundation’s 27 year history. On the heels of providing over $3 million to help families and businesses through its Hurricane Ian Recovery Initiative, Gulf Coast reached this milestone together with its donors. Established with an $85 million endowment from the sale of the Venice Hospital, Gulf Coast’s $500 million achievement reflects the incredible power of partnership, philanthropy, and endowment. Gulf Coast has grown to nearly 1,000 funds that support a wide range of nonprofit organizations in addition to its endowment. In reflecting on its impact, the foundation noted that, together with their donors, they have provided over $300,000 in monetary support and countless hours of advocacy and partnership to realize the continued expansion of the Legacy Trail; Gulf Coast has provided over $1.5 million dollars in their historic partnership with Venice Area Beautification, Inc., including $400,000 in grants to support the Venice Urban Forest; and as a founding partner, Gulf Coast has invested over $1.7 million in our regional workforce development program, CareerEdge. Surpassing $500 million in grants awarded shows the impact Gulf Coast has had on transformative change in our region. To learn more, visit https://www.gulfcoastcf.org/.

Pictured: Cyclists and the public gather at the Legacy Trail North Port Connector Ribbon Cutting in September 2022. Courtesy of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.

Three up-and-coming community leaders have been named to receive the first-ever Emerging Leader Awards, sponsored by community advocates Bill and Barbara Little. An award presentation at the Collaboration Celebration luncheon on February 28, 2023 kicks off the program, where each recipient will receive a $1,000 grant to develop their leadership goals. The awardees are Kelly Duyn, Assistant Director of Education and Community Engagement at Venice Theatre awarded in the category of arts and culture; Dana LeBlanc, Assistant Director at Faces of Accomplishment awarded in the category of human services; and Tiona Settles, Community Health Worker at CenterPlace Health awarded in the category of physical and behavioral health. Sponsors Bill and Barbara Little have spent decades serving the community. “During my career in health and human services and Barbara’s time in public health and nursing education, we both worked with many talented individuals who, early in their careers, demonstrated a passion and capacity to be an engaged and collaborative leader,” said Bill Little. “This is our way of continuing to encourage and support emerging leaders of today who will guide our community in the future.” Tickets for the February 28 Collaboration Celebration are $90 and can be purchased at gs-humanservices.org/event/celebration2023 through February 17. The event will take place at Michael’s On East (1212 S East Ave, Sarasota) from 11:30am – 1:00pm. 

Pictured: Emerging Leader Awardees, left to right: Kelly Duyn, Dana LeBlanc, Tiona Settles. Courtesy of The Glasser/Schoenbaum Human Services Center.

Neuro Challenge Foundation’s “Cause 4 Hope” is honored to have special guest, John Cullen, as the keynote speaker at their CAUSE 4 HOPE Gala to share his story of his lifelong athletic career, his founding of It’s Just Parkinson’s, and his journey as a Person with Parkinson’s (PWP). John Cullen was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2015. An avid athlete his whole life, John has participated in over 100 running and cycling races, and over a dozen obstacle races. After his Parkinson’s diagnosis, physical exercise became crucial. In 2019 John started powerlifting. To his surprise he discovered that lifting heavy weights stressed his central nervous system, which helped set back some of his Parkinson’s symptoms. Although not a cure for Parkinson’s, John finds that frequent powerlifting exercises allow him to control some of the symptoms associated with the disease. John founded “It’s Just Parkinson’s (IJP), a movement to help people from all walks of life. John sees IJP's mission is to be a rock for those who are facing a battle, to be a light for those lost in the dark, to bring hope to those who feel defeated. John is featured in the documentary, “It’s Just Parkinson’s” written by Mary Dartis and Directed by Diane Akim. The film profiles Cullen, 62, an athlete who refuses to let his Parkinson’s define him as he chases after epic goals with his incredible mindset in a story about grit, perseverance and never giving up in the face of insurmountable odds. The gala, “Cause 4 Hope,” is presented by Amicus Foundation. The event starts at 5:30 p.m. February 17th at Michael’s On East Ballroom, 1212 S. East Avenue, Sarasota. Individual tickets are $250. To purchase tickets visit: www.neurochallenge.org/events/cause4hope or call 941.926.6413. 

To learn more click here.

Fifth Third Bank, National Association, a recognized leader in environmental sustainability, announced that it has completed solar panel installations at five of its financial centers in Florida. The installations mark the first time that Fifth Third has added solar panels to its own properties. The installations further Fifth Third’s commitment to sustainability by reducing its environmental footprint and location-based greenhouse gas emissions. The Bank had already achieved its 2017 goal to purchase 100% renewable power through a long-term virtual purchase agreement since the opening of an 80- megawatt solar facility in North Carolina in 2019. The installations were led by SEM Power, a veteran-owned business headquartered in Tampa, Florida. Together the five locations are expected to generate more than 200,000 kilowatt hours of renewable power annually (covering more than 80% of annual electric needs at some locations). The financial centers include: Lely Financial Center in Naples,  University and Tuttle Financial Center in Sarasota, Englewood Financial Center in Englewood, Stickney Point Financial Center in Sarasota, Estero Financial Center in Estero. A leader in environmental sustainability, Fifth Third has a $100 billion environmental and social finance target and bold operational sustainability goals to be achieved through 2030. Through Dividend Finance, the Bank is a national market leader for sustainable home improvement products and services for consumers. 

Join us on March 7, 2023 at Michael's On East for a dynamic luncheon symposium centered on conversations focused on regional philanthropic topics. The luncheon will include a panel discussion to explore the ever-changing world of non-profits and honor outstanding individuals who have made a meaningful impact within the community. 

Reserve Your Tickets Here

Read Here!