The Board of Directors of Gulf Coast Community Foundation has a new Chair. David Green, who succeeds Pauline Wamsler, officially began his one-year term on July 1st and has served on the Gulf Coast Board since 2018.  Prior to retiring to the Gulf Coast region, Green spent his 45-year career in marketing and branding with major international consumer brands. For 30 years, he worked for McDonald’s Corporation, most recently as its senior global marketing officer. Green introduced many iconic marketing campaigns at McDonald’s, working with some of the best agencies and minds in the business. He helped develop Ronald McDonald House as a national, then international charity, and made Happy Meals a cultural phenomenon. This week, Green took some time to talk with us about his new role and his desire to give back post retirement.

You retired from the corporate world many years ago. Why not just sit back and enjoy life in paradise? 

I loved my time in the corporate world but when I retired it was clear I wanted to continue to be active and challenged. Working in the non-profit world has been the most rewarding and joyful experience of my career.

What are you most looking forward to accomplishing in your new role?

I am so proud of the donors, staff and leadership of Gulf Coast Community Foundation. The board is a terrific group of diverse and smart people. My job as Board Chair is to do everything possible to keep the success and momentum of the organization going, especially in the areas of mental health resources, workforce housing and the environment. I believe that philanthropy is a team sport where generous and passionate people work with excellent non profits, governmental agencies and collaborators/conveners like Gulf Coast to make transformational projects happen.

Tell us about your philanthropic spirit. What has inspires this desire to give back so much?

There is no higher calling than trying to make a difference in your community, making life better for as many as possible. No matter if you volunteer or donate $50 or $50,000, you get a great feeling of being a part of the solutions rather than the problems.

Do you have a favorite mantra?

When I retired an old friend sent me a note and ended it with this: Never let your memories be greater than your dreams! I've tried to follow that ever since.

In addition to the Gulf Coast Board, you also serve as a board member of the Sarasota Orchestra and a trustee of the Hermitage Artist Retreat. When do you find time for yourself and what do you enjoy doing in that time?

I love flying my airplane, hiking, canoeing and spending time with my wife and kids who are not really kids anymore. But I find that the joy of seeing such great institutions as Gulf Coast, the Orchestra and the Hermitage flourish adds greatly to my life satisfaction. 

Pictured: David Green, Board Chair, Gulf Coast Community Foundation. Photo courtesy of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.

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Neal Land & Neighborhoods, a Manatee and Sarasota-based master-planned community developer, organized a community-wide food drive at North River Ranch in support of Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee. In addition to over 550 lbs. of food items collected, a $2,500 donation was made as part of the Pay It Forward commitment. With this donation, the organization will provide 2,500 meals and serve over 80 families. Neal Land & Neighborhoods has donated a total of $15,000 to date to the Meals on Wheels cause and continues the Pay It Forward program at North River Ranch. Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee provides nutritional assistance and caring, supportive services to homebound seniors and disabled residents throughout Manatee County. Since 1972, Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee has delivered over 11 million meals to homebound seniors, distributed tens of millions of pounds of food to local families and provided social services for local seniors. Neal Land & Neighborhoods is a founding member of Step-Up Suncoast’s Founding 50 – Step Up is a non-profit organization which helps over 12,000 individuals and families to achieve long-term economic stability through education, support services and community partnerships. North River Ranch supports the Healthy Kids Running Series, a five-week running program in the spring and fall for kids, Pre-K through 8th grade.

Pictured: John A. Neal with Maribeth Phillips, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee

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State Street Eating House + Cocktails recently participated in an invitation-only Celebrity Chef Dinner culinary event, hosted at Pops Sunset Grill in Nokomis, Florida. Sponsored by the James Beard Foundation, the event featured some of the best chefs in the country, including State Street’s own executive chef, Michelle Wolforth. At the intimate waterfront establishment, Wolforth and her colleagues dazzled the 200+ ticketholders with inspired courses that showcased a delicious survey of styles and cuisines. Notable James Beard Foundation award winners at the event included Martin Rios from New Mexico, a three-time finalist for Best Chef in the Southwest; Rabii Saber of Four Seasons Resort in Orlando, a 2019 semifinalist for his pastry work; and Justin Aprahamian of Milwaukee, a frequent finalist for and one-time winner of the national Best Chef award. For State Street’s offering, Chef Wolforth created a special agnolotti pasta dish, a branch of the repertoire she’s used to help take the downtown Sarasota establishment to new heights. Stuffed with pea and ricotta, and served with petite spring vegetables, jamon and green romesco, its colorful presentation was matched only by the depth of its flavor profile. “Michelle is just a master of blending flavors and reimagining traditional preparations,” says State Street owner Chris Voelker, “and we’re extremely proud that she mastered such a creative, tasteful dish upwards of 200 people.” For Wolforth, meanwhile, the opportunity to work side by side with such distinguished colleagues gave her an opportunity to talk shop with esteemed colleagues. “As chefs, we all kind of operate in our own bubbles where we’re concerned about our restaurant’s sourcing, menu, personnel, et cetera,” says Wolforth, “so to get a chance to spend time with chefs I admire on top of cooking for a cause is really fulfilling for me. In my mind, this is what cooking is all about.” 

Pictured: State Street Executive Chef, Michelle Wolforth. Photo courtesy of State Street Eating House + Cocktails.

The Child Protection Center (CPC) has been awarded $10,000 from the William and Harriet Sturdevant Memorial Charitable Trust for ongoing support of our Personal Safety and Community Awareness (PSCA) program. Statistically, 1 in 3 children online will be contacted by someone they don’t know, which in turn creates an opening for unsafe conversations and behaviors to occur. “Teaching children internet safety skills is vital to their growth and development, and to ensure they know what to do if they come across something that makes them feel uncomfortable online.” Says Michelle McSwain, Program Director of the PSCA. “The internet has opened a whole new arena for perpetrators, and it’s our job to educate our community on how to spot red flags and feel equipped to tackle the issue head on.” According to THORN’s latest Online Grooming Study, teens share that they consider online connections with people they don't know to be some of their closest friends. “This abuse prevention education is a critical part of the services we provide at the Child Protection Center,” says Doug Staley, Executive Director of the Child Protection Center. “Without prevention, we act like a hamster running on a wheel. Specifically, PSCA is hard at work addressing the issues of online safety for children across Sarasota County.” With the help and support of the William and Harriet Sturdevant Memorial Charitable Trust, PSCA will be able to continue to provide internet safety lessons to protect children that are susceptible to abuse. The Child Protection Center’s mission is the Prevention, Intervention, & Treatment of Child Abuse, as the organization envisions a community where children are safe from abuse and free to thrive. For over 40 years, CPC has been serving Sarasota and DeSoto Counties in the State of Florida, and is accredited by the National Children’s Alliance. For more information on CPC or to book a personal safety workshop, visit www.cpcsarasota.org or call 941-365-1277. 

Vote-by-mail (absentee) ballots are now available for the August 23, 2022 Primary Election, Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner announced. Voters may request their ballot online at SarasotaVotes.gov/VotebyMail or by calling 941.861.8618. The deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot be mailed to a voter is 5 p.m., Saturday, August 13. Under Florida law, all registered voters are eligible to vote by mail. Voted ballots may be returned by mail or in person but must be received in the elections office by 7 p.m. election night to be counted. The cost to return a ballot by mail is one Forever stamp or $.60 postage. Turner said voted ballots may be dropped off in person at secure ballot intake stations, located inside elections offices in Sarasota, Venice and North Port as follows: Now through Friday, Aug 12, weekdays (M-F), 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Saturday, Aug 13 – Monday, Aug 22, daily (including weekends), 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Tuesday, Aug 23 (election day), 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Sarasota County elections offices are located at: Terrace Bldg., 2001 Adams Lane, Sarasota; R.L. Anderson Admin Bldg., 4000 Tamiami Trail S., Rm. 114, Venice; Biscayne Plaza, 13640 Tamiami Trail, North Port; Ballots may also be dropped off during early voting (Aug 13 - 21, including weekends, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) to a ballot intake station located inside the following early voting sites: Terrace Bldg., 2001 Adams Lane, Sarasota; R.L. Anderson Admin Bldg., 4000 Tamiami Trail S., Rm. 114, Venice; Biscayne Plaza, 13640 Tamiami Trail, North Port; North Sarasota Public Library, 2801 Newtown Blvd., Sarasota; Fruitville Public Library, 100 Apex Road, Sarasota; The Devyn Event Center, 7113 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. Turner urges voters to follow the instructions included with vote-by-mail ballots to ensure their ballots are counted. Voters should complete and sign the Voter’s Certificate on the ballot return envelope and the voter’s signature should match the signature on record. Voters may track their vote-by-mail ballots and sign up to receive vote-by-mail ballot status notifications at SarasotaVotes.gov/VotebyMail. Voters with questions may contact the Vote-by-Mail team by calling 941.861.8618. 

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Shannon Staub and Andrew Rennie have joined the Board of Trustees at HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital. Staub is a long time Sarasota County resident with a strong track record of community service, who previously served on the hospital board. She served on the Sarasota County Commission from 1996-2010. Her district included Englewood, North Port and Venice. When she retired from government service she focused on her passion for libraries. She is the namesake of the Shannon Staub Public Library in North Port and was the founding president of the Library Foundation of Sarasota County. She also chaired the Positive Youth Development Council for many years. Andrew Rennie is the student representative on the board. He is a student at the Florida State University College of Medicine and will graduate with his doctor of medicine degree in 2023. He graduated with honors from the University of South Florida Honor College with a bachelor of science in biomedical science and a minor in nutrition. He has earned the Chapman Humanism Award for students who demonstrate compassionate patient care and serve as role models in medicine. He is also a volunteer at the All Faiths Food Bank in Sarasota. Staub and Rennie join other community leaders and physicians on the board advising hospital leadership on quality and operations. The board follows standards set by The Joint Commission, which accredits hospitals, in supporting the hospital’s mission to care and improve human life.  

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