A GULF COAST FAMILY
More than 650 individuals, families, businesses, and organizations have made Gulf Coast their philanthropic home.
BOLD AND PROACTIVE
At Gulf Coast, we push the outer edges of the envelope to redefine the role of a community foundation and the potential of philanthropy.
GULF COAST STRONG
Record totals in new gifts and grants last year translate into a safe harbor for tomorrow. Learn more about our philanthropic stewardship.
Our Initiatives
Gulf Coast creates and funds data-driven initiatives to address our region’s most pressing challenges.
Click on an area below to see how we are transforming our community.
Civic & Economic Development
We are committed to moving our region toward an innovation-based economy.
Health & Human Services
A critical measure of our region is how well we care for our own.
Education
Preparing the workforce of tomorrow starts in the classroom today.
Arts
Investing in the arts paints a brighter future for our region.
Our Impact
STEM Smarts
Our STEMsmart initiative transformed 160 local middle-school science and math classrooms into technology-rich, collaboration-ready learning environments. Now we’re doing the same for language arts and social studies.
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Havens for the Homeless
With Gulf Coast leadership and funding, our community has strengthened the safety net for homeless students and their families. Next we are adding critical services to ensure that these families, once stabilized, can thrive.
Skills + Jobs = Growth
CareerEdge Funders has trained thousands of workers in our region to fill skilled jobs that area employers need to grow—to the tune of nearly $25 million in wage increases so far.
Feeding Hungry Families
Together with our donors, we partnered with All Faiths Food Bank to transform our region’s hunger-relief system
Donors Fund Reading Recovery for First-Graders
We recently partnered with the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation and several Gulf Coast donors to help expand an innovative reading program for struggling first-graders in Sarasota County. Through Reading Recovery, students who have great difficulty reading and writing participate in intensive, one-on-one lessons with a trained literacy teacher until they catch up with their peers.