Throughout the year Southwest Florida Water Management District employees volunteer their time and donate money to help support a variety of charitable organizations, but the greatest support comes during the holiday season.
The District’s employee committee coordinates the holiday season benevolent efforts, which begin in the fall with an auction to raise funds for the “adopt-a-family” program that helps employees, their families, and their friends and neighbors. Families are anonymously referred, then “adopted” by individuals, departments, or other groups of employees who want to make someone’s holiday a little brighter. This year’s auction raised nearly $6,000. With these funds, 34 families were adopted.
“This is the 12th year of coordinated efforts at the District,” said Joyce Morra, the District’s holiday benevolent coordinator. “The most generous people work here. If you tell them about a need and ask for help, they will be there.”
In addition to “adopting” families, District staff in Brooksville also held food drives and sponsored 25 foster children for the holidays. The food drives benefited the Arcadia Center for the Needy and the First Baptist Church of Brooksville’s “Helping Hands” food bank. Approximately 1,600 pounds of food and personal care items was collected for the Arcadia Center for the Needy along with clothing, toys, books household items and artificial Christmas trees. Between 500 to 600 pounds of food and personal care items were collected for the First Baptist Church of Brooksville’s “Helping Hands” food bank.
District staff in Bartow collected food and personal care items through a Thanksgiving food drive for Bartow Church Services. Bartow employees also provided food for three families and gifts for 15 children through the organization for Christmas.
The District has more than 700 employees who work in Brooksville, Bartow, Tampa and Sarasota.