Leading Question
Is corporate charitable giving down in these tougher economic times?

In the good years not so long ago, says Dan Dunn, executive director of All Faiths Food Bank in Sarasota, construction workers often came in to donate food and were especially generous around the holidays, dropping off frozen turkeys and other holiday fare from the back of their pickup trucks. “Now when they’re here, they’re asking for help,” he says.

The pinch felt by the construction and real estate industry has hit Dunn’s organization hard this past year, and has affected other industries as well. Corporate giving to All Faiths is down 10 percent, about $200,000 on the corporate side, he says. Requests for food are up 23 percent each month over last year.

Corporate sponsorships also are down and events aren’t doing what he’d budgeted for a year ago. “Nobody could see how hard the fall would be a year ago,” he says.

In general, among the nonprofits we surveyed, event corporate sponsorships have decreased more than other corporate giving. Event planners know that fund-raising attendance is down in a few cases and table sponsorships by builders and realtors, who had been extremely generous when the real estate market was booming, has dropped as well.

Jerry Koontz, executive director of United Way of Manatee County, says 40 percent of his charitable giving comes from corporations, and while he thinks the organization’s fiscal year 2007 level of giving will be flat, that is nonetheless a slide from the goal he and his board originally had set. Koontz says thankfully Publix Super Markets Charities and Tropicana both upped their pledges this year, which has offset other losses, and he agrees with Dunn that corporate sponsorships are down, especially in the fields that are hardest hit.

“Most corporations set aside a certain amount of money for the year, but if their profit margin is diminished they might sponsor a lower amount,” he says. “We always factor in 8 percent for campaign shrinkage…pledges we don’t collect, but we may increase that by a percentage point or two for next year.”

On a positive note, Koontz adds, United Way’s leadership giving  (amounts greater than $500) has continued to increase. People of means tend to become more generous in tougher times.

Koontz’s counterpart in Sarasota, Alex Young, president and CEO of the United Way of Sarasota County, hasn’t done an analysis of whether giving is up, down or flat so far this year. “But anecdotally, I’ve heard from my charities that it was more difficult to get table sponsors.” Still, corporate gifts for the ongoing programs his organization feeds are being sustained. “We’re not seeing any erosion here,” he says.

At the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, vice presidents Wendy Hopkins and Tom Waters say their giving is steady because they focus on long-term endowments rather than the specific, short-term giving other charities look for. “It’s tough for nonprofits that haven’t built endowments and a donor base,” Hopkins says. For that very reason, the Community Foundation is trying to educate local nonprofts to handle the highs and lows of the economy by creating both a donor base and long-term giving. For more information contact the foundation’s Nonprofit Resource Center at (941) 955-3000 or www.cfsarasota.org. —Susan Burns

After starting out as a mechanic and eventually running a manufacturing company in Costa Rica, Joe DiSanti came to Sarasota as Wachovia Bank’s senior vice president.

“I grew up in New York, and my first job at American Home Products was kind of a fluke—my father got me an interview. He knew someone there and pushed me to get a job during college. I started out as a mechanic and moved my way up the ladder to become a supervisor of mechanics and finally operations manager. After I’d been there for three or four years, I did some research and found out that Costa Rica is part of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBAI) and that the U.S. has a trade agreement with them. I made a presentation to the company’s corporate officers and showed them that we’d be saving $2 million in labor—a significant amount—[if the company moved part of its manufacturing there]. So we moved to Costa Rica over a six-month period and were up and running at full capacity in a year. It was definitely an adjustment, but very enjoyable—I was assimilated into a new culture at a very young age and learned a tremendous amount about it and international business. The people were wonderful, welcoming me into their homes, and the country is beautiful—much of it is allocated for national parks, so there’s unbelievable wildlife, beautiful beaches and volcanoes.

“I came to Sarasota after working with the Small Business Association (SBA) in New York and Fleet Bank in Boston. I’d decided to relocate to Florida because I had family here. I started out on the Northeast coast and then a friend called and said, ‘Why don’t you work at Wachovia? Then the state executive of Wachovia business banking, who was a friend and colleague, was recruited as regional president for the whole Gulf Coast—from Pinellas to Collier—and asked me if I’d like to come and run Sarasota [operations]. I’ve been here since October and I love it—I’m active in the community and so is the bank. There are so many cool things to do.” —Megan McDonald

Job spill: Any job-related task that has to be completed during the work day and cuts into your personal time.

Nerdistan: Any neighborhood or community where a disproportionate number of residents work in high-tech industries. These residents also tend to have a disproportionate number of electrical outlets and phone jacks in their homes, too.

WASP: Move over, White Anglo-Saxon Protestants. You’re being replaced by wireless application service providers.

SOURCE: BuzzWhack.com

It’s Kentucky Derby month. But there’s much more to Louisville than just running for roses: garden and house tours, antiques fairs, steamboat cruises, museum blockbusters, singular shopping, dining. Southern charm? No extra charge! May’s the perfect month to sip a mint julep, too. (www.gotolouisville.com)

SEE: The Louisville Slugger Museum is a must for baseball fans. Art lovers shouldn’t miss the impressive collection at the Speed Art Museum and the singular special exhibitions at the Kentucky Museum of Art & Craft. But do take a look around: The city boasts 18 landmark parks designed by Frederick Law Olmsted as well as the nation’s largest collection of Victorian homes in Old Louisville.

STAY: The Seelbach Hilton Hotel remains the city’s elegant grande dame, a local favorite for movers and shakers. Contemporary ambiance reigns at 21C-Museum Hotel, the newest hostelry for buzz-y trendsetters.

DINE: There are 2,500 restaurants in Louisville, but if you haven’t experienced the funk and down-home vittles at Lynn’s Paradise Café, then you might as well stay home. Todd Richards is the AAA Five Diamond chef at the Seelbach’s elegant Oakroom, the city’s go-to celebratory dining venue. Hip Proof on Main was recently named one of America’s best new restaurants.

SHOP: Grab your wallet and head to the Bardstown Road and Frankfort Avenue neighborhoods for antique shops, art galleries, live music and one-of-a-kind boutiques. Among the choicest: Louisville Antiques and Derby City Antiques. Be sure to pick up some famous Kentucky handcrafts, too.

INSIDER’S TIP: Meet the ponies! Hear the dish! After a visit to the Kentucky Derby Museum, get up close and personal with the sport of kings by taking the Barn and Backside Tour at iconic Churchill Downs. —Mary Alice Kellogg

Five Questions
GIRL POWER
Elsie Gilmore’s women’s networking group takes flight.

Last August, graphic designer Elsie Gilmore of True Green Studios formed Women With Moxie (www.womenwithmoxie.com), a group dedicated solely to creating networking opportunities for women in business.

Why did you form Women With Moxie?
It originally started out as a group for eight to 10 of my girlfriends. I realized the value of women being able to share ideas and help each other [in their businesses] and in June 2007 I came up with the idea for Women With Moxie. We officially formed in August 2007 and we currently have 353 members. We meet regularly on the third Wednesday of every month at Rustic Grill—at our last mixer [in March], we had 120 people, our top number ever.

What are the strengths of a women’s networking group?
As a general rule, men are much more competitive than women in terms of networking. In a women-only environment, our members feel freer to develop relationships. It’s not all sell-sell-sell. And a lot of business does go on. In fact, when I need something for my own [graphic design] business now, I immediately look at our member directory.

What role does Women With Moxie’s Web site play?
To join our group, you go to our Web site and create a profile. You don’t have to post a photo, but we encourage it, because it’s easier for members to recognize each other at mixers—the photo ties the online and “real-life” components together. It’s a simple concept, but a valuable tool because members can post their upcoming events as well as their business needs. I don’t know of another networking group in Sarasota that has any sort of interactive Web site that lets members post so much information. Our Web site is really a member portal; I know many members who use it as a reference to find services from other members. As a personal example, one member saw my listing on our Web site for a cat sitter and she introduced me to a woman who recently watched my cat.

What kinds of women join Women With Moxie?
In the beginning, I used my e-mail contact list, which was very eclectic, and Laura Gale [Women With Moxie’s co-hostess] used hers, which was made up a lot of members of the arts community. But we’ve expanded and now our group encompasses every type of business. For example, we have several boutique owners, a raw food catering business, a woman who puts on scavenger hunts and a woman whose business is appraising and buying gold and silver.

What’s the one benefit you wouldn’t have imagined when you founded the group?
This group has opened up new avenues of communication and given my business more exposure. Most importantly, I have a huge new group of friends whom I can bounce ideas off of and go to for advice. —Megan McDonald

Phil Delaney, regional president, Northern Trust Bank
Northern Trust has been in the Sarasota-Manatee region for over 31 years, and we have tried to make a positive impact on the community all of those years. That support is provided through volunteerism, community lending, in-kind contributions and financial sponsorship. When we craft our community support plan, our objective is to touch all key segments of the nonprofit community: the arts, education, healthcare and human services. With so many strong organizations filling vital needs, it is tough to determine where to target our support. Factors that we take into account are effectiveness of the organization, employee and client involvement, and overall community need.

Renee Phinney, printing sales manager, Spotlight Graphics
We give in-kind donations of printing to at least five organizations each year. We’ve given a minimum of $5,000 [in-kind] each year to the Sarasota Film Festival and Circus Sarasota for 10 years, for example. We work with Circus Sarasota because of Sarasota’s circus heritage and because we embrace Pedro and Dolly’s dream. With the Film Festival, it’s a fun project that allows us show off some interesting capabilities that other businesses may not have the budget or the need for. It’s not all nonprofit; we partner with the [Sarasota] chamber to print their newsletter at cost in trade for our ad on the back cover. It’s great exposure to all the chamber members, and we have received work from the people who put inserts in the newsletter. There is a reciprocal effect from all the giving. With all of them, we get advertising and good will, name recognition and from that comes other business.

Margaret Callihan, chairman, SunTrust
Our original Sun Bank founder, Linton Allen, said, “Build your community and you build your bank,” and we believe that to be true to this day. We are deeply committed to the communities we serve and we support as many of those causes that make our markets better places to live, work and play as we can. Since our clients and employees possess a varied and diverse base of interests, we try to reflect the same with our philanthropy. We usually emphasize the cultural and fine arts, health and human services, community development and higher education. We also support an unlimited number of charities through our “My Cause” program, which allows people to designate their own special charitable interests when they open new accounts with us.

The List
Impact Fees in Southwest Florida 2008

Hillsborough County: $1,737-$7,792, depending on housing type, number of bedrooms, location and square footage.

Pinellas County: $2,572, including water and sewer.

Manatee County: $7,086.15-$17,613.83, depending on number of bedrooms and type of residence.

Sarasota County: $5,813.23-$14,650.11, depending on type of residence and square footage.

Charlotte County: $2,510

Lee County: $5,472.18-$15,774.18, depending on type of residence and fire district.

Collier County: $22,448.94-$30,022.97, depending on square footage and fire district. Does not include jail rates.

SOURCES: Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Sarasota, Manatee, Pinellas and Hillsborough county governments.

May Planner

13 Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce Networking Luncheon, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at Captain Curt’s, 1200 Stickney Point Road, Sarasota. $12. To RSVP, call (941) 349-3800 or e-mail debbie@siestakeychamber.com.

21 Manatee Chamber of Commerce Business After Business, 5-7 p.m. at Linger Lodge, 7205 Linger Lodge Road, Bradenton. Free. For more information, call (941) 748-4842 ext. 122 or e-mail elbav@manateechamber.com.

21 The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce Sarasota Prime Time, Exhibit, Meet and Greet, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Lido Beach Resort, 700 Ben Franklin Drive, Sarasota. $5 for members; $15 for nonmembers. No RSVP required.

21 Venice Area Chamber of Commerce “Wake Up, Venice,” 7:45-9 a.m. at Bogey’s Restaurant & Sports Pub, 652 E. Venice Ave., Venice. Free. For more information, call (941) 488-2236.

22 Venice Area Chamber of Commerce, Englewood Cape Haze Area Chamber of Commerce and North Port Area Chamber of Commerce Business After Five, 5:30-7 p.m. at Plantation Golf & Country Club, 500 Rockley Blvd., Venice. $5 for members; $10 for nonmembers. To RSVP, call (941) 488-2236.

23 Longboat Key, Lido Key, St. Armands Key Chamber of Commerce 20th Annual Golf Tournament, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. at the Longboat Key Club’s Islandside course, 301 Gulf of Mexico Drive.

24 Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce Ball Park Beach Rush, beginning at 4:30 p.m. at Ed Smith Stadium, 2700 12th St., Sarasota. $5. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (941) 349-3800.

28 The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce Frank G. Berlin Small Business Awards Luncheon, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota, 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota. $45 for members; $60 for nonmembers. To RSVP, call (941) 556-4031 or e-mail jgeils@sarasotachamber.com.

29 Manatee Chamber of Commerce Coffee Club, 7:45-9 a.m. at Renaissance on 9th, 1816 Ninth St. W., Bradenton. Free. For more information, call (941) 748-4842 ext. 122 or e-mail elbav@manateechamber.com.