Your passion. Your Collier.
2020 Winter Newsletter

By working with donors, we inspire ideas, ignite action, 
and mobilize resources to address community needs in 
Collier County. For Good. Forever.
Harrison Canaday and family celebrate his CFCC scholarship at RexAir Flight and Maintenance
Community Foundation Grants $16 Million in 2nd Quarter

The Community Foundation of Collier County has distributed $15,966,432 in 726 grants in the second quarter of the 2019-20 fiscal year ending December 31, 2019, to nonprofit agencies and scholarships for secondary education and specialized training.
 
The total for the first fiscal half-year is over $19 million, already exceeding the entire 2018-19 fiscal year total, another record breaker for the Community Foundation. Over $168 million in grants and scholarships have been distributed in the Foundation's 35-year history.

Included  in the distributions  is $227,486 for 131 scholarships for local students to attend secondary education and specialized training at many state colleges and universities such as Florida State University, University of Florida, Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida SouthWestern State College, and Hodges University as well as flight training centers such as Paragon Flight Training Co., RexAir Flight & Maintenance, Naples Air Center, and Sun Coast Aviation.

EBNI President Betsy Dawson displays pottery fired in their new kiln purchased with a CFCC Angel Fund grant
Pottery with a Purpose

CFCC grant heats up Naples event that battles food insecurity

This is the story of the donor-advised STEP Fund grant that keeps on giving 

It features Empty Bowls of Naples, a quintessential example of a non-profit whose beauty is its focus and simplicity.

For more than a decade it has marshalled volunteers from all walks of life, all year long, to produce one-of-a-kind handmade ceramic bowls - nearly 5,000 per year -- which are selected by buyers of tickets to a single event on a Saturday (Jan. 25 in 2020) at Cambier Park. Emulating a model started in Michigan in 1990, bowls are then used to sample soups donated by local restaurants and country clubs now numbering 50 as patrons stroll the grounds, bid on donated art in silent auctions and revel in the community spirit. Patrons keep the bowls as souvenirs and reminders of the mission.

A NAMI client signs paperwork for move in with Supported Housing Specialist Matt Zeiser
New Hope for Addressing Mental Health

Finding a Peace of Mind and a Way Forward Off the Street

It's become clear to Pamela Baker that local residents struggling with mental illness have become increasingly homeless by surveying the parking lot of NAMI Collier County.
 
Many of those sleeping in their cars appear to be women in their 50s. NAMI seems a safer alternative to the mean streets, and hot meals are provided daily at the Sarah Ann Drop-In Center (which averages 500 visits a month). "We're getting ready to put in a shower," notes Baker, NAMI executive director. It's not uncommon to see four or five different homeless faces at the drop-in center on a daily basis, she said.
 
To tackle the problem of homelessness head-on, NAMI recently received a $30,000 grant from the Community Foundation's Changing Needs Fund to hire a full-time supported housing program specialist. 


It's almost time to Give Where You Live, Collier!

Johnny enjoys cooking and family camaraderie at his home in Liberty Place
There's No Place Like Home

Angel Fund's Wings Spread Hope to the Developmentally Disabled

Sometimes, the biggest surprises come in small packages-a truth that a nonprofit helping disabled residents live independently has realized through the Angel Fund at the Community Foundation.
 
Residential Options of Florida (ROOF) empowers individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to live independently, increase their income, develop self-sufficiency and achieve long-term stability. It's a huge undertaking by any account, beginning with sky-high housing costs and wending through the complexities of individual disabilities and the maze of hoops involved with state, federal and healthcare programs.
 
ROOF is a statewide nonprofit with an advisory board in Collier County providing local guidance, and it has recently opened two supportive-living homes in Immokalee and one in Naples. ROOF Executive Director Sheryl Soukup said it wouldn't have been possible without CFCC Angel Fund grants 

Estrellita hopes to open her own upscale Mexican restaurant after graduation
Grateful CHEF

Estrellita Diaz is serving up a bright future with a CFCC Scholarship

My name is Estrellita Diaz and I am honored to be one of recipients of the CHEF scholarship. Thanks to generous scholarships like yours I will be able to graduate first in my family from The Culinary Institute of America.
 
I'm excited to be able to write that I will be graduating from The Culinary Institute of America. Not so long-ago this didn't seem achievable. I am graduating from the ivy league of all cooking schools and I consider myself tremendously fortunate. Not only was attending the CIA one of my biggest dreams but it was also a huge risk. I took the leap and decided CIA because the industry I was getting into is tough and competitive I needed to be better prepared. I wanted to be trained and have the tools to stand out. All the chefs I admired and knew were CIA-made and I wanted to learn the way they did.

2020 Board invitational

Our Board Members and their guests came together to learn more about the Community Foundation and our role as a community convener and premier philanthropic partner at the 2020 Board Invitational. 



Your  Passion. Your Collier.
The Community Foundation of Collier County has been partnering with public and private foundations, local government and nonprofits to invest in the health, safety, and enrichment of our community for almost 35 years through grants and scholarships with over $168 million distributed so far.

Over the upcoming year, we invite you to join us in marking and celebrating the 35th anniversary of connecting donors with causes they are passionate about through a variety of inspiring events and grant solutions announcements that will illustrate our mission and vision in action, in a way like never before. Because after all - it's your passion, your Collier.

Community Foundation of Collier County | 239.649.5000 | info@cfcollier.org | cfcollier.org
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