The Oceans Need Our Help. This is Your Opportunity. The leaders of one of Southwest Florida’s most beloved nonprofit organizations are embarking on a major new initiative: an ambitious $50-million campaign that will secure its future and allow it to continue to benefit the world’s oceans for generations to come. Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium launched its first major campaign during a celebration of the organization’s 60th anniversary. The campaign’s success will allow Mote’s scientists to continue to address threats to our oceans, expand the frontiers of science, provide the intellectual fuel that drives the region’s economy and improve the quality of life for us all. Under the leadership of Bob Essner, a Lido Shores resident and retired pharmaceutical executive, Oceans of Opportunity: The Campaign for Mote Marine Laboratory has already reached 60 percent of its goal.
‘Everyone Depends on the Oceans’ When Bob Essner moved to SouthwestFlorida, he first visited Mote Aquarium with his granddaughters. He thought it a simple diversion — a neat place to meet the manatees, see some sharks and learn about sea turtles. And then… he toured Mote’s 200-acre Aquaculture Park in eastern Sarasota County, he learned how Mote scientists are developing cancer-fighting and wound-healing therapies based on models of shark immune systems and he even saw first-hand how Mote scientists are restoring Florida’s coral reefs. “I had no idea when I first visited the scope of the work that Mote scientists were doing. I was very impressed when I learned that Mote scientists are working worldwide — in the oceans on every continent. “Most of the Earth is water — everyone depends on the oceans. But they’re particularly important for us here in Sarasota. If you care about the fish, if you care about the water quality, if you care about the manatees, then you should support what Mote is doing. “I do. That’s why I’m leading this campaign.”
Celebrating 60 Years of Marine Science In January, the community came together to celebrate Mote’s 60th anniversary during a special event hosted by Judy Graham, of Sarasota.
Top: Mote announced the new campaign at a reception held in Mote Aquarium. Left: Robert Essner, Campaign Chair, speaks to the audience. Above Right: Tommie Vaughan-Birch, Fred Derr, Sally and Howard Crowell. Above Left: Jeanie Stevenson and Nancy Ireland.
“Mote has incredibly brilliant people working here… and it’s not everyday that you get to talk to brilliant people.” — Judy Graham, Event Committee Chair
Top Left: Jim Ericson, Dr. Kim Ritchie, Kimberley Carrerio, Anne and Bob Essner. Top Right: Laura Spencer, Trudo and Mary Letschert. Above: George Mazzarantani, Barney and Carol Barnett, Ed Chiles and Dr. Michael P. Crosby.
‘This is Serious Business’ For Carol and Barney Barnett, the health of the oceans is important. That’s why they made a $3 million lead gift to the Oceans of Opportunity campaign. “I grew up in Florida and joined Publix,” says Barney (who today is Vice Chairman of the company). “Everyone lives close to the oceans and it’s our most valuable asset.” As a scuba diver and angler, Carol has first-hand knowledge about ocean changes — for better and worse. “It really hit me when I learned what Mote was doing, that it was so much more than a little family activity. Mote is worldwide and making sure that we take care of the ocean environment. We have to be knowledgeable about what’s going wrong and what’s going right. “This is serious business.”
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Learn More: Contact Campaign Director Jennifer Vigne at 941.388.4441, ext. 393, or jvigne@mote.org and visit www.mote.org/oceanscampaign.