Rotary giving tops $1 million

LAKEWOOD RANCH — When single mother Juanita Graham looked out from the podium April 5, at The Polo Grill and Bar’s Fête Ballroom, she didn’t just see a roomful of faces staring back at her.

She saw superheroes.

After all, the crowd included more than 70 members of the Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch, the group that presented a $5,000 grant to Manatee Glens, which has been instrumental in helping Graham’s two children, Bobbie and Jon-Earle.

Both Bobbie and Jon-Earle were diagnosed early with several mental disorders, including ADHD and bipolar disorder. However, through Manatee Glens, both of Graham’s children have been able to receive treatment to help with the diagnoses, and Jon-Earle is even in the process of being mainstreamed into a regular classroom setting.

“I don’t really know where our family would be without Manatee Glens,” Graham told the crowd. “I am so very appreciative of what the Rotary Club has given in the long run for my children.”

Manatee Glens was just one of 33 local and international non-profit organizations that received grants from the Rotary Club during the club’s special luncheon. In total, the club donated more than $100,000, all of which was raised through its 2011 Suncoast Food & Wine Fest.

The latest grants bring the 11-year-old club’s giving total to more than $1 million.

This year, the club received more than 70 grant applications. Ways and Means Committee Chairwoman Jennifer Grondahl and committee members Rotary Club President John Freeman, Ladd Waldo, Mark Dahle, Laurie Hagberg, Gina Jordan, Denise Pope, Ted Lindenberg and Greg Mellors then whittled those down to 33.

The annual luncheon was a chance for all Rotarians to see how their work on the wine festival benefits the community at large.

“This is the time the members get to hear stories of inspiration from our grant award recipients,” Freeman said. “We get to see how we’re really affecting the local community.”

Chartered in April 2001, the Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch comprised 27 members. Its first event, a pancake breakfast, raised $2,500 to donate to local charities.

The 2012 Suncoast Food & Wine Fest will be held Nov. 10, at the Sarasota Polo Club.

To learn more about the Food & Wine Fest and the Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch, visit www.lakewoodranch-rotary.org.

Contact Michael Eng at [email protected].

2011 Grant Recipients
Adopt-A-Village in Guatemala Inc.: $1.250
Boys & Girls Clubs Sarasota County: $2,500
Child Protection Center Inc.: $5,000
Children First Inc.: $1,500
Easter Seals Southwest Florida: $6,400
Family Network on Disabilities of Manatee/Sarasota Inc.: $3,000
Family Partnership Center of Manatee County Inc.: $5,000
Feeding Empty Little Tummies Inc.: $1,785
Foundation for Dreams: $8,000
Harvest Methodist Pack-A-Sack: $2,400
Instride Therapy Inc.: $1,500
Manasota Buds Inc.: $1,350
Manasota Lighthouse for the Blind Inc.: $3,000
Manatee Elks, Elks feeding Empty Little Tummies: $1,500
Manatee Glens: $5,000
Manatee Technical Institute — East Campus $3,165
Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee Inc.: $2,000
Mothers Helping Mothers: $2,500
Orange Ridge Bullock Elementary School: $2,500
Rotary Camp Florida: $1,850
Rotary International Clean Water Project: $10,000
Rotary Gift of Life Florida Inc. $2,500
ShelterBox USA: $1,000
Southwest Florida Honor Flight Inc.: $2,000
Teen Court of Sarasota Inc.: $3,000
The Children’s Guardian Fund Inc.: $3,500
The Wellness Community-Southwest Florida Cancer Support: $5,000
Tidwell Hospice Inc.: $5,000
United Way 2-1-1 of Manatee County: $1,800
We Care Manatee: $5,000