FOE 2023 Midyear Update
Greetings friends,
In our third year of existence, Friends of Exuma has added programs and we are starting to plan for 2024. We are also exploring ways to assist the community within our areas of focus: Youth Development, Conservation and Sustainability, Cultural Preservation and Celebration, and Community Relief. When the organization was founded in late 2020, we defined our areas of interest as facilitating funding for local projects, programs, and organizations that encourage healthy living and sustainable growth in the community.
So what have we accomplished?
Over the past year, we have increased our support for youth programs in Exuma. We provided significant support to the Exuma Sailing Club, Skuller’s Rowing Club, Exuma Arts Network, and the Nelson Ranger Tennis Program. In addition, we are the sole outside funding source for the LN Coakley High School Farm and the Exuma Christian Academy after-school tutoring program. We also provide funding to support the education associated with Elizabeth Harbour and Moriah Harbour Cay National Park.
FOE also partnered with the Exuma Foundation of Canada to support their primary events, the Run for Pompey and the Tour de Turquoise bike event. Significant proceeds from those events supported a scholarship at LN Coakley High School, along with other programs at the school including funding for field trips and other improvements. US citizens can donate to those events through FOE. This year, the Run (and walk) for Pompey is scheduled for November 11, 2023. Click on the individual programs for more information or refer to our website for a dropdown menu of all of our initiatives and causes at www.exumafriends.org
Our main funds are defined as:
Community Fund: Used to provide base gifts for the charitable initiatives that FOE supports. Also covers a low overhead (accounting, legal, marketing, bank fees). In the past 12 months, we granted approximately $200,000 from the CF.
Harbour Conservation and Preservation Fund: This is a supersized designated fund that supports Elizabeth Harbour Partnership, Mariah Harbour Cay National Park, and other environmental causes. Over the past year, we funded a strategic plan and bathymetric survey, an oral history project for Moriah Harbour Cay National Park, and a grant for Harbour Management Initiatives.
Designated Funds: Once FOE enrolls a charity or an initiative, a donor can give funds to that charity to supplement our general fund giving, and take a US tax deduction.
Our role is to provide structure and credibility to the process, so donors have confidence, and recipients have a better chance of success by following some basic practices. FOE supports programs in Exuma, but does not currently operate any programs or have any paid staff. We play a role by engaging donors and creating a pool for base support. The FOE board of directors meets quarterly for two hours and recently met on June 7. We have six engaged board members and seek to grow to nine board members over the next 18 months.
Homeowner Weekend Events: One of the challenges of connecting donors with organizations is the realities of travel-timing, and also hosting our guests and families while on-island. We are going to promote two dates for homeowner gatherings to create social connections and awareness of initiatives on Exuma, as well as to have time to listen to ideas. Save the dates - November 11 & December 2 to connect on-island, in-person. More information to come, but please feel free to reach out at any time.
Thank you to our board of directors and those who are supporting Friends of Exuma and the organizations we enroll. We will soon be defining goals for 2024 and beyond. Our success is primarily dependent on donations from the second homeowners in Exuma.
We welcome your ideas and feedback to info@exumafriends.org.
Thank you,
Bob Coughlin, Board President
Bill Sanford, Treasurer, Bev Brigner, Secretary, and Board Members, Chris Joest, Rob Hall, and Kelly Tattersall