Charner's Challenge
Dear Davis Islands Residents,
At the Annual Fall Civic Association Celebration Nov. 12th, Charner Reese announced a challenge tothe residents of Davis Islands to match her $5,000 pledge toward $10,000 needed by the DavisIslands Civic Association to establish a Davis Islands Capital Improvement Fund account at theCommunity Foundation of Tampa.
The Community Foundation, a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization, requires a minimum balance of$10,000 to establish and maintain an account. The advantage to such an account is the fact that theorganization has 501(c)3 status, which allows donors to the Davis Islands Capital Improvement Fundto deduct their contributions from their federal income taxes.
Once the Davis Islands Civic Association establishes the DI Capital Improvement Fund account at theCommunity Foundation, an association-led campaign to raise funds for improvements to thecommunity will begin. The Association will seek donations to the Fund to pay for capitalimprovements identified in the community-approved DI Community (Vision) Plan and prioritized in theaccompanying Strategic Action Plan. To read these documents, you can go to the Civic Association’swebsite at davisislandscivic.com and look for Davis Islands Community Plan and Strategic ActionPlan.
Identified improvements include completing the envisioned greenway trail and walkway from theTampa General Hospital to Seaplane Basin Park beach, restoring the historic Roy Jenkins swimmingpool, and building a recreation/community center, among others.
Raising significant private funds is the surest way to make these improvements, given the City’s manypriorities and limited funds. The preferred funding approach will be to partner with the City, therebysharing the costs of improvements and leveraging dollars.
Charner’s $5,000 pledge toward the needed $10,000 will stand for 6 months starting November 12,2008. If within the 6-month period, total pledges reach a minimum of $5,000, she will contribute$5,000 toward creating the DI Capital Improvement Fund at the Community Foundation of Tampa.
If you are interested in making a pledge to help match Charner’s challenge and raise a total of$10,000, please email or call the Davis Islands Civic Association at davisislandscivic@gmail.com or251-5421 with your name and contact information, and a board member will contact you. Nodonations will be collected by the Civic Association until the additional minimum amount of $5,000 intotal pledges has been reached.
Sincerely,
Your Civic Association Board of Directors
Charner Reese is a longtime resident of Davis Islands and member of the DICA Board of Directors.