by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
In light of the 2008 budget cuts, the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce is doing its part to support Jacksonville’s non-profit organizations.
At Nov. 14.’s Chamber Trustee meeting, a booklet was given to trustee members and guests that included “wish lists” from 25 non-profit groups.
Lelia Duncan, vice president of Member Recruitment and Development, came up with the idea of putting together the booklet.
“She is very involved with our members and she is well aware of the current issues affecting them,” said Katy Wood, manager of Marketing & Communications at the Chamber.
The Chamber pulled the list of non-profit Chamber members from its database and e-mailed them asking for their “wish list.”
A letter on the front of the booklet said, “With the 2008 budget cuts looming, several if not all of the local nonprofit agencies will be affected.” The Chamber stresses the importance for the community to help support these organizations.
Inside the booklet are short letters from the 25 organizations, their wishes and their contact information. The Chamber asks that anyone looking to get involved contact the specific organizations.
“Many of Jacksonville’s nonprofits are also Chamber members,” said Wood. “Through work in the community and our programs are where we have our influence.
“We touch everyone indirectly.”
Just a few of the organizations included in the booklet are:
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida
• Clara White Mission
• Community Connections
• Dreams Come True
• Jacksonville Humane Society
Some lists were long and others were short. Some were more elaborate than others, but they all stated an appreciation for any help they get.
Joy Hardaker, executive director of Ronald McDonald House of Jacksonville, said she appreciates what the Chamber is doing to reach out to the non-profit organizations.
“The Chamber is a wonderful resource to reach out to get help from the corporate community,” she said. “The more awareness built the better.”
Debbie Verges, president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida, also appreciates the Chamber’s help.
“What I appreciated most was that hopefully it will give businesses ideas of what kinds of things we need,” she said. “We had some different things on our list that people don’t realize we need.”
Some of the items on their list include sporting goods, computer training and school supplies.
Wood said the Chamber’s councils, such as the Downtown Council and the Professional Women’s Council, are where a lot of the fund raising and volunteer hours come from. IMPACTjax, the Chamber’s young professionals group, also plays a big part in the Chamber’s fund raising and volunteer efforts.
Juan Diaz, program chair for IMPACTjax, said the group holds events throughout the year geared towards raising money for nonprofit organizations.
The group’s holiday party is one of its biggest fund-raisers of the year. This year, they are partnering with the USO to raise money to help the USO buy phone cards for the troops overseas for the holidays. Last year’s holiday party raised money for the Ronald McDonald House.
In 2006, IMPACTjax raised more than $11,000 for a variety of non-profit organizations.
Another way IMPACTjax supports the local nonprofit organizations is through their volunteer hours. In 2006, IMPACTjax’s members performed over 600 volunteer hours for nonprofits like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northeast Florida, HabiJax and North Florida School for Special Education.
“A lot of our contributions come in the form of volunteer time,” said Diaz. “We’re just doing what we can do. It’s not always big money, but it’s also those volunteer hours.”
Because of the budget cuts, Diaz said IMPACTjax will look more closely at what organizations they work with.
“Nonprofits in Jacksonville are strapping and competing for support from the community,” said Diaz. “It is important for us to take a look at who we are partnering with.
“Our goal is to have consistency from year to year.”
Diaz added that it is important for young professionals to get involved in the community and take that with them through their professional career.
“We want to instill a sense of community,” he said. “We want our members to become acclimated in the culture of giving back.
“We have a lot of members out there doing a lot of good things.”
The Chamber has helped IMPACTjax and the area councils to become involved in the community, he said.
“There are really good leaders at the Chamber, and they encourage us to be involved in the community,” said Diaz.