ABOVE: The Plus Project and Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, photo via the organization’s Facebook event.
TAMPA | The Plus Project announced the first recipients of its philanthropic efforts July 21, awarding $54,900 in grants to Tampa Bay nonprofits serving the LGBTQ community.
The grants were presented in partnership with the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, which has awarded more than $230.5 million in funds since 1990. It began administering the Plus Project’s donor-advised LGBTQ fund after its official launch.
The $54,900 was collected from one-time, ongoing and legacy donors in a process that concluded for recipients earlier this year. The Plus Project invited nonprofits to apply for grants in the $10,000 range through April 30, seeking applicants “that are addressing or plan to address current, emerging and/or unmet needs with regard to the LGBTQ+ community.”
The first round’s recipients were revealed during a virtual presentation, broadcast live via the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay’s Facebook page in a video seen below. Grants were given to Community Tampa Bay, Metro Inclusive Health, Equality Florida, Youth Improvement Services, Empath Partners in Care (EPIC) and the League of Women Voters.
“The Plus Project is so grateful to the many donors – one time, ongoing and legacy participants, that have made this moment possible,” the organization shared ahead of time. “And the timing could not be more relevant – the need more insistent.
“The Community Foundation of Tampa Bay has been an irreplaceable and steadfast partner to us every step of the way and, from our hearts, we thank them,” they continued. “[We] also thank the hard-working grants committee, who set about evaluating each applicant with a comprehensive and rigorous process, honoring the priorities and the goals set forth.”
The ceremony began with Board Chair Larry Biddle, who welcomed supporters and reflected on the Plus Project’s history and purpose. “We’re delighted that we have such a great group of organizations,” he shared. “We are going to be awarding almost $55,000 which is pretty significant – and we’re pretty proud of that.”
“The Plus Project was created by and for the LGBTQ community,” Biddle also noted. “These awards will reflect our basic goals which are inclusiveness, impact and innovation. “
Vice Chair Jennifer Yeagley further detailed the work of the Plus Project Grants Committee.
“The Plus Project exists to provide funding to those missions and those organizations that are serving folks in the LGBTQ+ community, and in particular, those individuals who may be particularly marginalized even within that community,” she said. “So people who are Black and brown, people who identify as transgender, youth, seniors and others who maybe aren’t always in the forefront or whose voices aren’t always amplified.
“We wanted to make sure that decision makers about who would receive funding reflected those communities,” Yeagley continued. “I’m very proud to say that our grants committee, who was empowered to make decision for where this funding would go, in fact is very representative of the community that we are serving and does reflect various aspects of intersecting identities to really make sure that we have full representation.”
The Plus Project subsequently introduced representatives from each organization receiving a grant. Speakers included Community Tampa Bay Executive Director Tammy Briant, Metro Inclusive Health Director of Development James Keane, Equality Florida Grant Writer Hal Trejo, Youth Improvement Services Executive Director Deroll Barrett, EPIC Generations Program Coordinator Susan Talbott and League of Women Voters Operations Director Julia Sharp.
The representatives detailed each of their respective organization’s LGBTQ-focused efforts, discussing the programming and communities which will directly benefit from the grants. Programs include Metro Inclusive Health’s virtual LGBTQ+ youth summer camp and EPIC Generations’ Friendly Caller service.
You can hear directly from the Plus Project and each organization by watching the full ceremony below, courtesy of The Plus Project:
For more information about the Plus Project and Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, visit ThePlusProject.org and CFTampaBay.org.
To learn more about each recipient and its LGBTQ-focused outreach, visit CommunityTampaBay.org, MetroTampaBay.org, EQFL.org, YouthImprovement.org, MyEPIC.org and LWVSPA.org.
