SRQ Daily: Gulf Coast Community Foundation Offers Help and Hope After Hurricane Ian

The following guest column by Gulf Coast President|CEO Mark Pritchett appeared in the October 15, 2022 edition of SRQ Daily:

It has been over two weeks since Hurricane Ian devastated hundreds of square miles throughout our Gulf Coast region. The pain and scars are everywhere you look in southern Sarasota County, including Venice, hard-hit North Port, Englewood, Charlotte County, Lee County, and DeSoto County.  There are still flooded streets, torn down signs, and destroyed homes. Families have lost everything and businesses we once frequented will take months, maybe years to rebuild.  

At Gulf Coast Community Foundation, we heard the call for help and responded quickly.  So far, in just a short week, we have provided grants totaling over $483,000 to multiple nonprofits and churches who are providing life-sustaining help to our families and elderly. And this is only the beginning.

Our first grant was awarded to All Faiths Food Bank. The $50,000 grant will support hunger relief efforts in south Sarasota County and Charlotte County.

A $10,000 grant to Lift Church in Venice is providing food and shelter to community members, linemen, and first responders.

We heard from one grant recipient, Tidewell Foundation that despite the enormity of their own disruption to homes and lives, their colleagues still showed up heroically to take care of patients. One nurse whose home flooded slept in her car and showed up with nothing more than the clothes on her back and shoes on her feet to care for her patients who needed her. We thank the dozens of organizations who are helping the victims of this horrific storm. 

Nonprofit organizations serving Venice and its surrounding communities can easily request funds to assist with their disaster relief efforts here.

To help these nonprofits, please donate through our Hurricane Ian Disaster Relief Fund to provide hyper-local, rapid response assistance to those who suffered the most devastation. We have received contributions from across the nation and throughout our region. Our donors have been extremely generous.  We are most grateful that nearly half a million dollars in donations has been received in just a few days.

Our bold Board of Directors has provided initially up to $800,000 that will be fully matched by our donors and community. 100% of our Hurricane Ian Disaster Relief Fund will go directly to support our communities. No fees. No overhead. We are prioritizing immediate humanitarian and health and human services needs in the hardest hit areas.

Our team at Gulf Coast Community Foundation is still answering the call for help. We continue to provide financial support to nonprofits who are providing food, housing, clothing, and medical assistance.  We hope that you will join us as we begin the recovery and rebuilding processes.

Together, we are stronger.

Mark Pritchett is President and CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.