Neighbors helping neighbors
Friends of Callawassie Island provides financial grants to not-for-profit charitable organizations
Your donation can help us make a difference in the lives of those in need. Every little bit counts! To make a donation, please make a check payable to FOCI and mail it to:
Friends of Callawassie Island
176 Callawassie Drive
Okatie, SC 29909
Friends of Callawassie Island, otherwise known as FOCI, is a 501 (c) (3) charitable
organization that is managed by a board of Directors. FOCI’s mission is to enrich the
lives of people living in both Beaufort and Jasper counties by providing financial
support to worthy not-for-profit charitable organizations who serve the needs of the
disad
Friends of Callawassie Island, otherwise known as FOCI, is a 501 (c) (3) charitable
organization that is managed by a board of Directors. FOCI’s mission is to enrich the
lives of people living in both Beaufort and Jasper counties by providing financial
support to worthy not-for-profit charitable organizations who serve the needs of the
disadvantaged and/or underserved individuals in their communities. We
concentrate our efforts on organizations that support education, health and human
services, hunger, literacy, housing, and recreation. To receive a Grant from FOCI, the
requesting entity must be a 501 (c) (3) organization that meets our objectives.
Over 20 years ago a group of Callawassie Island residents, seeking to give back to neighboring communities in a meaningful way, formed Friends of Callawassie Island, Inc. (FOCI). In 2001 FOCI received federal 501 (c) (3) status as the island’s nonprofit philanthropic organization. Since then, under the stewardship of an all-volunteer Boa
Over 20 years ago a group of Callawassie Island residents, seeking to give back to neighboring communities in a meaningful way, formed Friends of Callawassie Island, Inc. (FOCI). In 2001 FOCI received federal 501 (c) (3) status as the island’s nonprofit philanthropic organization. Since then, under the stewardship of an all-volunteer Board of island residents, the mission of FOCI remains unchanged - to enhance the quality of life for those residing in the Lowcountry. To date, FOCI has distributed over $1,000,000 to more than 80 worthy organizations that provide much-needed services to underserved and disadvantaged individuals and families living in local Lowcountry communities.
Our team is made up of dedicated volunteers who are passionate about making a difference in Beaufort and Jasper Counties. We work tirelessly to ensure that our grants are donated to 501 (c) (3) charities in need. The FOCI Board exercises due diligence in evaluating the request to ensure that the group’s demonstrated need and purpose f
Our team is made up of dedicated volunteers who are passionate about making a difference in Beaufort and Jasper Counties. We work tirelessly to ensure that our grants are donated to 501 (c) (3) charities in need. The FOCI Board exercises due diligence in evaluating the request to ensure that the group’s demonstrated need and purpose for the grant are linked to FOCI’s mission. Typically, FOCI concentrates on the needs of numerous small organizations in underserved communities who depend on contributions to sustain their work and where small-dollar grants can fill an unmet need or fund a specific project that might otherwise fall through the cracks.
Brian Jennings and Scott Comes visited Memory Matters on Hilton Head Island to present a FOCI grant of $3000.
Memory Matters (MM) was founded in 1997 to provides in-house services to individuals living with Alzheimers Disease and Dementia and to provide support services to caregivers, family and healthcare professionals within our local area. MM helped over 5,000 people dealing with cognitive decline in 2023 (approx. 25% increase from 2022) with significant growth expected in 2024. Their wonderful work is facilitated through the hard work of 12 paid employees and over 60 volunteers.
Jeff Funke and Susan Silver visited the Good Neighbor Clinic in Beaufort to present a FOCI grant of $5000. The visit exceeded our expectations in terms of capability, streamlined processes, professionalism, and the depth of partnerships they’ve established with medical partners and patients.
With 4 exam rooms and volunteer doctors and nurses, GNMC can see up to 20 patients per day, focusing on primary & preventative care, all free of charge. In-clinic services include: non-surgical cardiology, diabetic education, ENT, general surgery, GI, gynecology, podiatry, and physical therapy. Patients must be between ages 18-65, demonstrate financial qualification by being below 250% of the Federal Poverty Level, and have no insurance.
GNMC has a small core of employees that manage the operation: Executive Director, Medical Director, Clinical Director, Development Director. Over 100 volunteers handle the patient care, reception, and record keeping. They are hoping to add a full-time RN to enable the clinic to handle walk-in patients.
Allen Cellar and Scott Comes visited the Family Promise facility in Bluffton. They met with Ms. Tamika Blake, the Executive Director, and several members of her staff Family Promise’s mission is to provide temporary shelter, family stability, and permanent affordable housing for families with children under 18 years old. It is a national organization with over 200 affiliates in 43 states. A typical family is a single mother in her mid 20’s with 2 or 3 children and no support from the father. Although the mother may have a high school education, she is likely working low-paying, irregular jobs and may not have access to a car.
Family Promise provides the family a safe place to live while they coordinate with them to improve their financial situation and work towards a more permanent housing solution. They are currently supporting four families at a cost of $3000 per week for housing at a hotel. The hotel living arrangement was necessitated by COVID when they lost the ability to house families in church-sponsored parishioner housing. Unfortunately, post COVID they have been unable to secure the necessary 14 churches dictated by Family Promise policy to avoid burdening any one parish (they have commitments from about 4). Therefore, they are rapidly draining their financial resources paying for the hotel arrangement.
Don Orso and Scott Comes visited the USCB office of Student Life to see their Student Pantry. We met with Ms. Samantha Haering, the Coordinator of Leadership and Service, and Ms. Mary Lurry, Director of Development.
The pantry provides food, paper products, and school supplies for any students who need them.
USCB has an enrollment of about 2000 students. About half are first-generation college students, so they are attending college without the benefit of prior family experience and, in many cases, without many financial resources. About 40% of the students are eligible for Pell Grants. And, over half the students are commuter students, many with families. All of these situations demonstrate the value of the pantry at USCB to assist those who need a little help meeting the needs of campus life.
Ms. Haering is an enthusiastic leader of the pantry effort. But, as the head of the USCB Student Life program, her efforts also go beyond that. She runs numerous community outreach programs, encouraging students to participate with local non-profit organizations to provide the students a more expansive education and enable them to “give back”. For example, they recently held a kick-ball game with children at PEP (Programs for Exceptional People). She also setup a campus-wide yard sale in conjunction with students and the local community. This raised money for Student Life activities and gave the students an opportunity to offload some of their stuff and make some money themselves.
On February 2, 2024 Jim O'Brien had the opportunity to meet with Melina Lee, Chair of the Board, and Terry Geitner, Director of Services for ABLE. This wonderful facility is County owned and encompasses 10 acres for their use. ABLE’s purpose is to work with children thru adulthood that have Autism, Severe Brain Damage, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome or Spinal Cord Injuries.
The grant that FOCI provided will go towards their Heritage Outreach Program. They use this money to get the participants out into the world. Recently they visited an Oyster Farm on Lady’s Island and they learned all about how the oysters are grown and harvested. Some even tried to eat one. This funding will also help them go to the zoo, go to Gullah Grub restaurant to learn how they cook, visit a rice field, and go to Hunting Island because some have never been to the beach. ABLE could not stop thanking FOCI for their help.
Jim O'Brian and Allen Cellar presented a check for $5000 to Sisters Canise Adams and Marcine Klocko to be utilized for their needs in the food pantry. The food pantry benefits low income and unemployed workers and their families as well as elderly, disabled, medically fragile and homeless individuals. The food pantry provides weekly food orders for 80 families , delivers 20 bags of food per week to homebound residents and delivers 30 bags per week to the Senior Center.
Hopeful Horizons is an all encompassing non-profit that includes programs such as Children's Advocacy, Domestic Violence and Adult Sexual Assault Services, Shelter and Housing, Legal Services, as well as Prevention and Outreach.
It is the only children's advocacy, domestic violence and rape crisis center serving a five-county area in the low country. Kristin Dubrowski, CEO and Kim McFann, Attorney, were most appreciative that Hopeful Horizons was recently awarded a $3500 FOCI grant that will be used for legal services, such as hiring court appointed servers for their clients.
St. Stephen’s Outreach Food Bank, Ridgeland SC , feeds approx. 1,000 people per month (12.5% increase in the past two years) through the tireless efforts of Helen Shuler and her eight volunteers. Helen has been the person responsible for Marketing, Fund Raising, Food Acquisition, Food Distribution and most of all, the face of human kindness to those who would otherwise go hungry, over the past 24 years. FOCI was able to provide St Stephens Food Bank with a grant of $5000. Helen will gratefully take donations of Money, Food, Clothing, Books, Furniture, Appliances and
anything else of value. She can be reached at (843) 263-5779 or by email
On December 28th, FOCI’s $5,000 contribution certificate to AGAPE Family Life Center in Hardeeville was delivered by Don Orso. CEO Deloris Young gratefully accepted Callawassie’s donation and was extremely thankful praising our continuing support. AGAPE’s mission is to support less advantaged persons with food, education, and wellness. Monthly, they serve nearly 2,000 people from preschoolers to seniors.
Dottie Foote and Jennifer Withrow presented The
Pregnancy Center with a grant for $5000. In operation for thirty-three
years, the center has provided pre-natal care for women during their
first four months of pregnancy. Currently, there are three locations in
the Low Country area. All offices employ
interpreters for the Latino population, which comprises seventy percent
of their clients. After delivery, the mothers receive after care as well
as supplies for the newborn.
Your support and contributions will enable us to meet our goals and fund our mission. You can donate by a check made payable to FOCI and sent to Friends of Callawassie Island, 176 Callawassie Drive, Okatie, SC 29909.
President - Susan Silver
Vice President - Jeff Funke
Treasurer - Scott Comes
Secretary - Allen Cellar
Corresponding Secretary - Dottie Foote
Brian Jennings
Jim O'Brien
Don Orso
Jen Withrow
Please email us at FOCI.grants@gmail.com to apply for a grant.
Copyright © 2024 Friends of Callawassie Island - All Rights Reserved.
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