We are so grateful for the Boca West Foundation!!
At its onset, the Boca West Community Charitable Foundation serviced four charities. Five years later, the foundation has raised more than $3.2 million for 19 charities.
The foundation was launched in November of 2010 by members of the Boca West Country Club who wanted to give back to Boca Raton and the South Palm Beach County communities. The foundation’s mission is to identify and fund projects to assist area children and their families.
“We’re looking to help more children, but we’re also looking to do even more for the children we’re already servicing,” said Arthur Adler, chairman of the Boca West Community Charitable Foundation.
This year, the foundation (www.bocawestfoundation.org) plans to extend its reach.
Just before the end of 2015, the foundation brought together 17 leaders from its 19 community nonprofit partners for a Leadership Council Breakfast to discuss unmet needs for area youth and identify strategies for collaboration among the organizations.
The goal? Bettering the communication between the charities that share a common goal – to help children in need.
“It’s so important for nonprofits whose work includes helping children to meet and discuss ways in which we can most effectively work together,” said Sharon Alexander of the Unicorn Foundation. “We were delighted to participate in the meeting and hear about additional ways that the Boca West Community Charitable Foundation plans to provide turnkey fundraising opportunities, such as the Concert for the Children (in) April and an over-the-top raffle.”
Another critical initiative which arose from the meeting was the need for a stronger social media presence to increase awareness of the charities under the foundation’s umbrella.
On Jan. 7, the Buzz Agency, a public relations company in Delray Beach, hosted a seminar for the 19 leaders of the charities with the topic: How to enhance your promotions through social media.
The foundation plans more collaborative efforts in 2016 where the different organizations it serves can share and learn from one another.
“The interchange between all parties was just what we had hoped it would be,” Adler said. “We are sure that, moving forward, we will all benefit from what has just begun.”
Also new this year is the addition of three nonprofits to bring its total to 22. The foundation now services the JAFCO Children’ Ability Center, the Junior League and Boca Raton Children’s Museum.
The other 19 organizations are American Association of Caregiving Youth, Boca Helping Hands, Boca Raton Police Athletic League, Boys & Girls Club of Boca Raton, The Caridad Center, FAU Elementary Band Camp, Florence Fuller Early Childhood Development Centers, The Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation, The Giving Tree, Jewish Adoption & Foster Care Options, Jewish Foundation of South Palm Beach County Safety Net Services, KidSafe Foundation, Nat King Cole Generation Hope, Place of Hope at the Haven Campus, SCOPE, SOS Children’s Village, Unicorn Academy, The Wayne Barton Study Center and Youth Activity Center.
Each year, the foundation serves over 5,000 children and its volunteers have given 55,000 hours of their time to the charities with which the organization works.
The foundation provides clothing, food, shelter, increased pre-school options, after-school mentoring programs and summer camps.
A raffle to benefit all the nonprofits was announced at the Leadership Council Breakfast. Raffle items include a $7,500 shopping spree at Saks Fifth Avenue, a seven-day all inclusive vacation at the St. James Club Morgan Bay in Antigua and an eight-day river cruise from Basel to Amsterdam aboard the new luxury ship, the Scenic Opal. Raffle tickets are $100 for five tickets.
Adler is all about moving forward, but looking back, he’s humbled by the number of children the foundation has helped in its initial years.
“The children have been there all this time, it’s our ability to service them is some way which has been so important,” Adler said. “I’ve done a lot of things in my life — worked with the New York Yankees and other large organizations — but these last five years have been the most fulfilling years of my life.”
For more information on the foundation or to purchase raffle tickets, call 561-488-6980 or email amorales@bocawestccorg. The website is www.bocawestfoundation.org.
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