7 minute read
From the Mayor
Time to get to know our local charities
Ihad the pleasure of attending a luncheon during last month’s Give4Marion campaign. What an uplifting event. I came away filled with feelings of goodwill and compassion from those attending who work for the various charities the annual fund-raiser aims to boost.
Advertisement
Jamie Gilmore, a one-time high school football sensation at North Marion, talked about how his organization, Kut Different, is mentoring at-risk young men so they grow into respectable, educated, contributing members of the community.
Karla Greenway of Interfaith Emergency Services worried aloud about her organization’s food pantry, whose shelves are being steadily depleted by growing numbers of people seeking food assistance in the face of skyrocketing grocery prices.
Amy Hill and Brianne Inman gushed about their organization, the all-volunteer Foster Florida, which helps guide and counsel foster families in Marion County – something for which there is always a desperate need.
The Pearl Project, a family and parent mentoring organization, was represented by Jessica Blagdon, who was excited about the progress her group and its clients have been making in developing stronger, more stable families.
These are just a handful of the charities that make Ocala/Marion County a better place to live every day. Yet, too many of them are invisible to too many of us, even though every day they change lives and Ocala/Marion County for the better.
Lauren Deiorio, executive director of the Community Foundation for Ocala/ Marion County, is a champion for our community’s 1,000-plus nonprofit organizations, that is, its charities.
The Community Foundation sponsors the Nonprofit Business Council and Give4Marion, giving Deiorio a unique insight into the hard work and successes of the nonprofits that address everything from homelessness to domestic violence to child neglect.
What she sees is bittersweet. What’s sweet is people working diligently to uplift their fellow Ocalans who have fallen on hard times for one reason or another. What’s bitter is too many people failing to support these worthy causes because of an unawareness of just how many people depend on them for help and, in some cases, to survive.
“People complain that the nonprofits are always asking for money,” Deiorio said. “What people need to understand is that nonprofits generate income through the generosity of donors. They can’t make a product and sell it. How else are they going to fund their programs if not through donations from individuals, businesses and grant funders?”
How indeed. Thank goodness for the Community Foundation and Give4Marion, which raised $771,000 for various charities Sept. 20-21. There is strength in numbers and having a champion in Deiorio and the Community Foundation means these organizations can get financial advice, management expertise, fund-raising training and, yes, new donor awareness.
But here’s the thing about these charities and their initiatives, whether it’s mentoring young people or guiding foster parents or housing the homeless: They make our community a lot better because of what they do. Imagine if Interfaith didn’t have a food pantry? Or the Salvation Army didn’t have its Center of Hope shelter? Or Veterans Helping Veterans didn’t provide its one-stop service center to troubled military vets? Or Kimberly’s Center didn’t provide protection to abused children?
I could go on and on, but you get the point. These agencies take care of the most downtrodden, the most disenfranchised among us.
If they didn’t, who would? The County Commission? Pffftt. The City Council? Not likely. The Chamber & Economic Partnership? Meh.
No, the people who care for those who
BY BRAD ROGERS
KutDifferent Program
can’t care for themselves work for the charities like Kut Different, Foster Florida, Interfaith and the Pearl Project. They really do change lives, indeed save lives. Every. Single. Day. But they need help so they can help. Find a charity with a cause you care about. Donate your money and, if possible, your time.
And as for the question of why the charities are always asking for money. Well, Ocala/Marion County is growing fast. It’s not just retirees and logistics workers moving in, there are also people looking for a fresh start or to escape a troubled past. Sooner than later, they’ll be seeking help from our already overwhelmed charities.
Get to know our charities and what they do. What you will find is heroic deeds by people who care about their fellow man. And that makes us as a community a much better place to live.
BEWARE
BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR TIPS FROM OCALA ELECTRIC UTILITY ON HOW TO AVOID ENERGY VAMPIRES AND SAVE MONEY ON YOUR MUNICIPAL SERVICE STATEMENT!
Be aware of the energy vampires such as:
• Mobile phone chargers • Computers and computer equipment • TVs; in most cases the larger the TV, the more energy it uses. • Surround systems • Cable and satellite boxes • Game consoles • Digital clocks • Microwaves • Coffee makers • DVD/VCR machines
This phantom energy can account for up to 10% of your electrical costs. Energy Vampires can be hard to find. Be sure to turn the products off or unplug items like toasters, CD players, and cell phone chargers. For larger items such as computers and TVs, use a power strip to turn everything off at once.
from theMAYOR USS Ocala Victory artifacts headed home
BY MAYOR KENT GUINN
In December of 1944, the USS Ocala Victory was christened in Baltimore Harbor, then served in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War before being part of the National Reserves Defense fleet until 1992. Now, several artifacts from this ship will soon make their way to Marion County.
What an honor it was for me and the citizens of Ocala to receive a letter last August from the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration informing us that the commission’s successor agency had preserved artifacts from the Ocala Victory and was making them available to the city of Ocala through loan or donation. It represents the next chapter in the story surrounding Ocalan Louis Dosh and his wife, Betty, whose story is on display at the Marion County Museum of History and Archaeology.
The USS Ocala was one in a long line of cargo ships mass produced during World War II, many named in honor of American cities. Interestingly, there was also a USS Gainesville Victory, Sarasota Victory, Okaloosa Victory and Lakeland Victory in honor of those other Florida locales.
The ship was 445 feet long with a capacity of 10,850 deadweight tons and was capable of a speed of just over 15 knots.
What makes the USS Ocala Victory special is not only its long service, but the circumstances surrounding its launch, which took place on December 19, 1944. Christening the ship was none other than Betty Dosh, whose husband, Louis, was at the time being held prisoner by the Japanese at the infamous Cabanatuan camp in the Philippines. He fought in the hills near Luzon for three years before being captured. In January of 1945, Dosh was aboard an unmarked ship transporting prisoners – ships known as “hell ships” as they were taking prisoners to be used as forced labor. Under orders to sink any Japanese ship, American planes sank Dosh’s ship and he was not among the few survivors.
Dosh was posthumously awarded the Army Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, the Prisoner of War Medal and the World War II Victory Medal. Of course, the christening of the USS Ocala Victory was also in his honor.
Dosh’s story is fascinating and worth the trip to the museum to read about his heroism. And now, another piece of the story is being added with the recent letter I received. Among the artifacts being shared is the builder’s plate from the ship as well as its clock. We expect these items to arrive in the coming weeks, at which time we will garner the necessary permission to transfer them to a proper display.
The saga of Louis Dosh and the commissioning of the USS Ocala Victory are potent reminders of our past and the important sacrifices made by those who came before us. Through their sacrifices, we are able to enjoy so many freedoms that we too often take for granted. Seeing these artifacts on display and hearing the story of Dosh and his travails in the Pacific Theatre of World War II are necessary to remind us of just how fragile our freedoms are and the high price that was paid to keep them.
