The Community Foundation of Broward’s 2020 Legacy Society Luncheon honored bold, forward-thinkers whose estate gifts will transform the community they love.
A record number of Legacy Society members were among the nearly 150 Community Foundation supporters who gathered at the Sonesta Fort Lauderdale Beach Hotel on Feb. 14 for the annual celebration of visionaries who have included the Foundation in their estate plan.
Legacy Society members’ estate gifts to the Community Foundation will create endowed charitable Funds that tackle Broward’s greatest challenges. Thanks to the Foundation’s 152 Legacy Society members, there is more than $318 million in future gifts committed to help shape Broward’s future.
“Because of our Legacy Society members, I know the future is bright,” Foundation President/CEO Linda B. Carter said, as she honored Legacy Society members during the luncheon. “Your future gifts will fuel the change that our community will need as we continue to grow.”
Estate gifts account for more than half of the Community Foundation’s grantmaking. Support from the Legacy Society helps more students graduate from high school, empowers struggling families to rise from poverty, spreads the arts to more neighborhoods, fosters breakthroughs in cancer research and much, much more.
This year’s Legacy Society Luncheon showcased how estate gifts help Broward’s fragile environment with support for ECO Broward projects.
The elegant ballroom’s glass walls provided stunning views of ocean waves washing onto miles of beautiful beaches. Luncheon guests could look out and see how beach dune restoration – made possible by support from charitable Funds fueled by estate gifts – has helped protect beaches from erosion.
They could also look out the windows to see the lush green mangroves at nearby Hugh Taylor Birch State Park. Support from charitable Funds established at the Foundation made it possible to clear away and replace invading exotic plants at the park with the native mangroves that provide vital wildlife habitat.
Beyond the ECO Broward projects they could see, guests at the luncheon learned about more opportunities to create bold impact for Broward’s environment from renowned meteorologist and hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross. He shared insights into how Broward can face challenges from climate change and better prepare for hurricanes.
Support for better building practices, energy efficiency, environmental protections – those are among the ways local philanthropists can lead the way to a more vibrant and sustainable Broward, Norcross explained.
“There is hope. It really means taking action,” Norcross said. “We have to take action individually and collectively at all levels of our society to make it happen.”
For more information about the Legacy Society, contact Philanthropic Services Manager Jennifer Powers at jpowers@cfbroward.org or 954-761-9503.
