Venice Yacht Club Charitable Foundation

Dear Fellow Club Members:

These past couple of months were rather busy ones for the Club’s Charitable Foundation (VYCCF) albeit at a summer pace! A $5,000.00 grant was given out to The Haven (highlighted below) and also to Children First (profiled in the last newsletter). Chair Sylvia Hollister and the board worked behind the scenes on updating the VYCCF website, putting together the annual fund campaign, and revising and preparing for the 2024 grant cycle.

We would love our fellow Club members to learn more about the great organizations the VYCCF (i.e., ALL of us) supports with our donations and fundraising. So, this month, we will focus on The Haven.

The Haven was founded in 1954 as the Sunshine School and initially operated out of an airport hangar at SRQ. Today this wonderful organization is located on 32 acres in downtown Sarasota, has 110 staff members, 120 volunteers and even a satellite branch right here in Venice, which opened in 2022!

In a nutshell, the organization strives (and succeeds!) in serving and enriching the lives of adults and families with “unique abilities by encouraging independence, championing inclusion, and advocating for individual rights.” The Haven boasts six single-style houses (with two more planned) for adults 18 and older with intellectual and developmental disabilities. There is 24/7 staff to assist residents with all aspects of their daily lives. Assistance and education might include areas of cooking, money management, health and self-care - and anything needed for full and active living. Residents even enjoy a vacation club and have traveled to Nashville, Chicago and San Antonio as well as throughout Florida!

But perhaps the core of The Haven is its daily adult day training, both in Venice and Sarasota. Between the two campuses, 340 participants are part of a nurturing community where they’re encouraged to develop and hone vocational skills - and offered help in job placements. Life skills for independent living and social integration into the community are the cornerstone.

In short, The Haven is a true haven for our community and we at the VYC are proud to help support these wonderful efforts and the many success stories they have fostered.

We are looking forward to seeing you all back in Venice during the coming weeks and especially looking forward to our next big Foundation events, so mark your calendars now:
October 12, 2023: Mike Imbasciani, BluzRockerz - Dinner & Show (see ad on this page).
Wine Auction, January 10, 2024: An impressive collection of wines will be available at this event, provided by the generosity of a recently passed VYC member.

Appreciatively,
Barbi Richardson

Please follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/VeniceYachctClubCharitableFoundation/

updated: October 2023 Currents