In a rooftop garden ceremony at the Jessie Ball duPont Center, the United Way of Northeast Florida and community leaders were presented with an $8,000 State Farm Good Neighbor Citizenship grant.
Over the past three years, State Farm has contributed $35,000 to United Way’s RealSense initiative, which provides free financial-stability resources to Northeast Florida residents.
The grant will be used to support tax preparation, financial education and integrated services at RealSense Prosperity Place.
During this tax season alone, RealSense filed nearly 21,000 free tax returns, saving clients close to $5.3 million in tax-preparation fees with refunds totaling more than $27.2 million.
For more information about RealSense, visit unitedwaynefl.org/realsense.
JAX Chamber helps at food bank
JAX Chamber employees volunteered April 28 at Feeding Northeast Florida’s Northwest Jacksonville distribution center as part of the chamber’s quarterly day of service.
Chamber staff worked together to sort, bag and package dry goods and fresh produce.
The team was able to process 19,343 pounds of food that will provide meals for 16,557 people.
The group pulled food items and built agency orders for partner organizations that were then sorted on pallets and distributed to agencies.
They also sorted and bagged fresh produce to ensure high-quality food would be sent to Feeding Northeast Florida’s partner organizations.
“It’s great to see what can be accomplished in one day by working together,” said Daniel Davis, president and CEO of JAX Chamber.
Horschel helping feed hungry people
Three-time PGA Tour winner Billy Horschel will donate $1,000 for every birdie and $5,000 for every eagle he makes during The Players Championship to Feeding Northeast Florida.
Horschel decided to use this year’s event to help raise awareness about hunger in Northeast Florida.
Feeding Northeast Florida, the community food bank for 17 counties in North Florida, has created a model aimed at solving hunger for families and children.
Each day, the organization sends trucks to grocery stores, manufacturers and farms to pick up food that would normally be thrown out.
The food is inspected and sorted by volunteers, then distributed to those in need.
When the food bank is able to provide a family with the food they need at no cost, it allows that family to afford their rent, gas, medication and education expenses.
Fans can make a donation of their own during the tournament by visiting feedingnefl.givecorps.com/projects/13210-billy-horschel-tpc-challenge.
$10,000 for treatment center at Wolfson
Coastline Federal Credit Union presented a $10,000 check to Wolfson Children’s Hospital for its Diabetes and Endocrinology Center of Distinction endowment.
The money will be matched 100 percent through Baptist Health’s endowment matching gift program.
The fund was established to support the Diabetes and Endocrinology Center of Distinction at Wolfson, which offers diagnosis, treatment and management of diabetes, endocrine disorders and metabolic syndromes.
Comcast, City Year help spruce up Ribault Middle School
More than 300 local Comcast employees, their friends and families, City Year Jacksonville members and community volunteers worked to revitalize Jean Ribault Middle School.
Volunteers cleaned, painted and planted new shrubs.
Comcast Cares Day, which is in April during National Volunteer Month, is Comcast NBCUniversal’s companywide celebration of its year-round commitment to service. The company said it is the country’s largest single-day corporate volunteer effort.
Since its inception, the Comcast Foundation has donated nearly $140 million to organizations in the communities that Comcast serves. More information about the foundation and its programs is available at comcast.com/community.