Charitable Foundation of the Islands (CFI) - Sanibel & Captiva Islands, Florida

Soukup Strategic Solutions recently featured CFI’s Executive Director Dolly Farrell on the IMPACTability? podcast with Josh Hirsch, MS. Listen on your favorite streaming platform. #nonprofitleadership #philanthropy #inspiration https://lnkd.in/e2ne3D-G

Announcing Support for Island Small Businesses following Hurricanes Helene and Milton: Thanks to generous donors, CFI is deploying donations from the Sanibel-Captiva Recovery Fund for small business relief. This comes four weeks after CFI and Sanibel Captiva Community Bank announced Accelerate, the low-interest loan program. The program will support small businesses that have suffered economically from the impact of Hurricanes Helene and/or Milton. Gifts will be distributed based on the need for an independently owned business (an average of $5,000 as funds allow). We could not do this without our community partners! Sanibel Captiva Chamber of Commerce will participate in the review of applications and assist businesses in the completion of the necessary paperwork for both this program plus others available to our business. FISH OF SANCAP will oversee the distribution of funds. Small Business Support https://lnkd.in/eEhMUvV3 Accelerate Loan Program https://lnkd.in/eDAxAZC7 Chamber Website with Resources from CFI and Others https://lnkd.in/eh2__t3g

Registration is now open for community groups, nonprofits, and clubs serving the Islands of Sanibel and Captiva. Don’t miss this incredible event on January 16, 2025. Thank you to our presenting sponsor Pfeifer Realty Group and Eric Pfeifer and Mary Ellen Pfeifer Sponsorship opportunities are now open as well. Registration for Community Groups: https://lnkd.in/eCbTGWUn Please email [email protected] for more information.

It's not just Election Day! Join the Islands today at 4?p.m. to celebrate the CITY OF SANIBEL 50th Anniversary and opening of the time capsule at city hall. Click Here?to watch the livestream of the 50th?Anniversary Time Capsule Opening Event. https://lnkd.in/eUmTfRFv Click Here?to view the Time Capsule Opening program. https://lnkd.in/ewKAuGWM For more information on events celebrating the City's 50th Anniversary Visit the Sanibel Captiva Chamber of Commerce dedicated 50th Anniversary website!?50th Anniversary - Sanibel Island Chamber of Commerce https://lnkd.in/epdteAYH

Grants totaling $70,000 were distributed ro Community Housing and Resources and FISH OF SANCAP Friday thanks to the Shady Rest Foundation. Two $25,000 grants were awarded from the Shady Rest Foundation Fund to support care for older adults on the islands. Two $10,000 grants were made in response to Hurricane Helene as part of the Sanibel-Captiva Recovery Fund. FISH will direct their donation to providing mental health services to older adults. CHR is replacing a sump pump at one of their complexes which serves a majority of older adult residents. We are so grateful for our community’s support as our barrier islands were some of the hardest hit again following Milton and Helene.

Resiliency is a word we hear a lot about lately. For our Island nonprofits, charting the course ahead begins with collaboration. Last Friday, nonprofit executive directors shared lessons learned from the recent storms at a panel discussion hosted by the Sanibel-Captiva Rotary. Today, the group gathered again to welcome three new nonprofit leaders to our community and joined the CITY OF SANIBEL for a stakeholders meeting on traffic.

Thank you Sanibel Captiva Community Bank and Kyle DeCicco for your partnership! Thanks to generous investors, phase one will offer $1.2m in low-interest loans to our small businesses. https://lnkd.in/gYYSNC2z

Donations/Recovery Funds for Sanibel and Captiva Islands There are three active recovery funds currently open for your support! Community Housing and Resources (CHR) Recovery Fund - this is for our workforce housing nonprofit celebrating 45 years! Their?residents have multiple needs, including help with rent assistance, food, and?hotel costs. The CHR complexes held up well but did experience some damage related to drainage and elevators. Visit https://sancapchr.org/ FISH of SanCap is also taking donations for hurricane relief. This incredible organization focuses on meeting the individual needs of those who live and work on Sanibel and Captiva. FISH was a part of our first responders' team setting up relief stations in both Captiva and Sanibel They also provide direct assistance to individuals, operate a food pantry and arrange for mental health counseling.? Visit https://lnkd.in/dEXFqeD CFI Sanibel-Captiva Recovery Fund As the community foundation for Sanibel and Captiva, CFI activated this fund after Charlie, Irma, Ian, and now Milton. CFI will work with the community to identify the remaining unmet needs and projects that promote long-term recovery and resiliency, including small business recovery and economic revitalization. Visit MyCFI.org

Sanibel and Captiva Islands Update: While Captiva experienced some significant impacts, much of Sanibel and Captiva fared much better than we feared we would. The community is grateful that this clean-up may set us back a few weeks, not months or years, as our neighbors to our north are experiencing. Many of our residents and businesses were also able to mitigate catastrophic damage by preparing for stormwater surges. There is something to learn and share here with others (stay tuned). ?We absolutely will get through this together as we all have seen events like this tend to emphasize the strong unity within our community. Below is a list of volunteer opportunities on our Islands. Volunteer Opportunities FISH of Sanibel-Captiva?is taking volunteers every morning, 9 am?- please meet at the Sanibel Community House (2173 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, FL 33957). They are working in both Sanibel and Captiva, operating two relief stations and helping residents clean up their homes.?Maria Espinoza is the contact, [email protected] Children's Education Center of the Islands (CECI) is our pre-school on the island, celebrating 50 years. CECI is hosting a volunteer clean-up event this Saturday 10/19, 9am-11 am to clean up their playground. Michelle Keltner is the contact, [email protected] Rotary?is also gathering large teams of volunteers throughout Florida including our counties. We have a very active Rotary on Sanibel and Captiva and you can also request to volunteer with this club or any in the area. Here is their link to sign up: https://lnkd.in/eCWiBrD2

Our heart goes out to you and our community as we complete final preparations for Hurricane Milton today.?We witnessed firsthand how catastrophic this type of storm can be for SWFL two years ago. These moments certainly make you grateful to live in a community like ours, which cares?for one another and lends a helping hand. We are confident our community will respond again if circumstances warrant it.?#SWFLStrong #SanibelStrong #CaptivaStrong https://lnkd.in/e89WJj5K