Foundation reps speak with civic association
Civic associations tend to serve their communities well as the people who volunteer often want to make their community great and so have the ability to make that change in neighborhoods and regions.
That’s what Sarah Owen, president and CEO of the Southwest Florida Community Foundation, told members of the North Fort Myers Civic Association during its monthly meeting Oct. 11 at the recreation center.
Owen’s mission was to recruit the association in its mission to make Southwest Florida a better place for people to live, work, learn and play.
“When I knew I was going to be here, I was really excited. I want you to know what it is we do. I always want to share information of how we can do things together,” Owen said. “There’s a synergy here that made us say there are ways we can help each other.”
Owen said her group is about creating change for the common good, and described it as “money launderers for good.”
“People who have resources time, talent, to come out and help what we’re doing. We take the money, put it in the stock market, and when it’s doing well or poorly, we put more out. We’re in it for the long haul,” Owen said. “We don’t touch the principal. We let it grow.”
Last year, the foundation put out $5 million, which helped kids go to college, civic engagement, hunger and most things people are interested in, Owen said. In total, there are more than 2,000 non-profit organizations in Lee County.
The object is to get all stakeholders at the table to discuss the things that are going on around them. This, Owen said, is the most important part of the foundation’s role.
The object is to also find long-term solutions to problems, not just giving the hungry food and a homeless person shelter.
“It’s not about what we need, but what we can create. We’ve really looked at how we make things sustainable,” Owen said. “Economic, social, and environmental sustainability.”
Tessa LeSage, the foundation’s director of social innovation and sustainability, said the idea is to do things in perpetuity that have the least negative consequences to the community.
“When we identify a problem where no other organization can step in, we take it on, and that’s where I step in,” LeSage said. “We have an initiative called Future Makers, which is a regional initiative that tackles the economy and jobs and equity empowerment.”
LeSage said jobs are especially important, which ties into education. By 2025, LeSage said 60 percent of jobs will require a college-level education. Nationally, it’s only 40 percent, which presents an economic and educational crisis.
In Southwest Florida, it’s worse, with only 27 percent with that level of training.
“We have a lack of talent here in Southwest Florida. To create a dynamic economic system, we have to work from cradle to careers. Those working now need to be retrained so we have the skilled workforce we need,” LeSage said. “The goal is to get to 40 percent by 2025.”
But is college the solution? One member said many of them are flipping burgers, while there is a severe lack of skilled labor such as plumbers and auto mechanics. Everyone wants to drive a BMW, but there’s nobody to fix one.
Owen said education is the key and making sure even the children who are in kindergarten don’t fall so far behind they can’t catch up, adding that a third-grade reading level is what they use to determine how many beds they need in prisons.
“This is a subject that requires that dynamic conversation. We are bringing them together and measuring the impact of what we do,” Owen said.
In other civic association business, president Michael Land encouraged members to brainstorm regarding a fundraiser to pay for liability and director’s insurance, a necessity for groups, as well as for events such as the July 4 Funfest and the Farmer’s Market, which starts up at the Shell Factory on Saturday’s next month.
Land also announced the Christmas tree lighting ceremony and caroling will be Friday, Dec. 16, at 6 p.m. at the rec center. A Dutch-treat dinner at Bianca’s is expected to follow.