AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS d'ELEGANCE FOUNDATION GIVING TOPS $3.5 MILLION
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Every year during the second week of March, more than 20,000 individuals descend upon a small Northeast Florida barrier island to participate in a celebration twice named "Motoring Event of the Year" by Octane Magazine. The energy is palpable. Vintage cars parade along the busy Fernandina Beach streets, hotels reach capacity, and the Island's restaurants serve countless meals. Then, almost as soon as it begins, Concours winners are declared and The Amelia is over.
But in many ways, even after the last historic vehicle begins the journey home, The Amelia is only beginning.
Since 1996, The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance Foundation has donated a strong percentage of the event's proceeds to The Foundation's principal charity, Community Hospice & Palliative Care (formerly Community Hospice of Northeast Florida). Over the years, the foundations contributions to Community Hospice of $2.5million have made the non-profit Community Hospice's largest individual contributor.
In 2014, The Amelia's founder was formally recognized with the establishment of The Jane and Bill Warner Center for Caring located at 1348 S. 18th St. in Fernandina Beach. The center was created to provide a neighborhood location for individuals who require hospice care. The island location helps alleviate the travel burden faced by family members and friends.
The staff of The Amelia, along with a strong representation of board members and volunteers, gathered at Community Hospice & Palliative Care's headquarters on June 14, 2017 to present the organization with a check for $100,000. The gift will help to serve the mission of Community Hospice
to improve the quality of life for patients and families, and to be the Compassionate Guide for end-of-life care in our community.
"Every year we gather to celebrate the work of Community Hospice and to present a check on behalf of The Amelia Foundation," said Warner. "After a few minutes with the staff and management I am reminded that the real gift is the work hospice does to serve those facing their darkest hour."
The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance Foundation also supports Spina Bifida of Jacksonville, the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society of Jacksonville, the Nassau County Sheriff's Office and Fernandina Beach Police Department's annual Shop With Cops Christmas programs, are also on the roster of the Amelia Concours' roster of recipients.
"Knowing that The Foundation is serving the community of Amelia Island throughout the year makes all of the work that our small staff and The Amelia's seven-hundred volunteers invest into the second weekend in March worthwhile," said Warner. "We may frame The Amelia around the cars, but it is people that take center stage.
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About The Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance
Now in its third decade, the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is among the top automotive events in the world. Always held the second full weekend in March, "The Amelia" draws over 250 rare vehicles from collections around the world to The Golf Club of Amelia Island and The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island for a celebration of the automobile like no other. Since 1996, the show's Foundation has donated over $3.0 million to Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, Inc., Spina Bifida of Jacksonville, The Navy Marine Corps Relief Society, Shop with Cops, and other deserving charities.
In 2013 and 2016 the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance won Octane Magazine's EFG International Historic Motoring Event of the Year award.The 23rd annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is scheduled for March 9-11, 2018. For more information, visit
www.ameliaconcours.org.
Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance
3016 Mercury Road
Jacksonville, Florida 32207
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