Sharing Time in Service of Others

There’s an idiom in business that what you measure matters. In philanthropy, there are many measurements – outcomes, lives changed, program results, financial management and years in business. But what is hardest to gauge is the changes made in our hearts and measured gains in our character through sharing our time in ways that create community.

Time has been on my mind as this year marks my 10-year anniversary at the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. In the last decade, I’ve had the privilege to shake hands and give a hug (and recently, bump elbows) with a great number of people who have never failed to lend a helping hand. As we cross into the “after” pandemic transition, and welcome many newcomers to our growing area, it seems like the right moment to celebrate the service-based philosophy that guides our area’s generosity and spirit.

The Community Foundation’s commitment to helping our community — one voice, one cause, one person at a time — is cultivated by the visionaries that serve on our Board of Directors, each representing a spectrum of generations and industries, geographies and life experiences that enrich our charitable investments and strategic decision-making. Led by the courageous Nelle Miller, it is from this group of philanthropists, business leaders and community innovators from which our “Be The One” philosophy — that anyone can make a difference, regardless of means — transforms into impact and action.

Read Roxie's full column in SRQ Daily