Southwest Florida residents who have pondered how they can assist Sanibel and Captiva Island recover and rebuild from Hurricane Ian are invited to the inaugural Get Inspired! SanCap Volunteer Expo hosted by the Charitable Foundation of the Islands (CFI) at Sanibel’s BIG ARTS on Dunlop Road on Thursday, March 30 from 4-7:30 p.m. The event is generously underwritten by the Sanibel-Captiva Trust Company.

 

The Get Inspired! SanCap Volunteer Expo was the idea of CFI’s Leadership Sanibel-Captiva Class of 2022 after they were forced to cancel the 2023 program due to Hurricane Ian. “The 2022 class wanted to help our community,” said Jane Majeski, Leadership Sanibel-Captiva Class of 2022 member and current Chair. “There was a great desire to help rebuild but some people don’t know where to start. We want to connect new residents or those not yet engaged with the nonprofit community, and to inspire people to get involved.”

 

Shared Dolly Farrell, Charitable Foundation of the Islands’ Executive Director. “To help with the personal recovery of nonprofit employees, we created the Nonprofit Employee Assistance Program and have already gifted $160,000 to over 60 nonprofit employees to help with their personal recovery. Through our Volunteer Expo and other programs, we intend to help the nonprofit organizations find all the help they need to fulfill their unique missions.”

 

The SanCap Volunteer Expo will include an inspirational discussion at 5pm led by long-time Sanibel residents Porter Goss and his son Chauncey Goss. Porter was the first mayor of Sanibel in 1975, representing Southwest Florida in the U.S. House of Representatives for 16 years and served as Director of the CIA under President George W. Bush in 2004. Chauncey Goss grew up on Sanibel, served on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., was a candidate for the House of Representatives, sits on many area Boards and has been highly involved with water quality issues and the South Florida Water Management District. They will be joined by Captiva Community Panel’s David Mintz.

 

“It is an honor to host an event like this,” said Al Hanser, Founder and Chairman of the Sanibel-Captiva Trust Company. “There has never been a more important time for our community to come together to ensure the future sanctity of our islands.”

 

Participating in the event will be more than 15 local nonprofits and community organizations from Sanibel and Captiva, serving those who live and work on Sanibel and Captiva and nearby.  Guests will receive a directory with an overview of the participating nonprofits and will learn about volunteer opportunities available at the many nonprofits supported by CFI. Organization representatives will answer questions and sign up interested volunteers from 4pm-5pm and 6:15pm-7:30 pm.

 

Online registration is required and space is limited. Please register at www.mycfi.org. For details, call Dolly Farrell at (239) 355-8614 or email [email protected].