Delores Barr Weaver makes 'extraordinary' $61 million gift to Jacksonville-area nonprofits

Jacksonville philanthropist Delores Barr Weaver has given The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida the largest gift in its 60-year history: $61 million to be distributed to select nonprofits.

Weaver's latest largesse is part of about $209 million she has given to area organizations since she and husband Wayne Weaver arrived in Jacksonville in 1993 as the Jaguars' first owners. The couple's individual and joint gifts have benefited everything from the arts, schools and hospitals to the homeless, seniors and the zoo.

Delores Barr Weaver alone has supported about 300 organizations in Northeast Florida and beyond and established permanent endowments for almost 50.

"The Community Foundation’s expert staff and charitable giving solutions have enabled me to have greater impact in the region I love than I ever could alone," Weaver said.

The nonprofits getting new grants from her Legacy Fund cover a "waterfront of issues that affect the everyday lives of people in Northeast Florida and beyond," according to the foundation.

Their work is "ensuring all people can thrive, no matter their age, identity, or ability status; advancing the arts; revitalizing neighborhoods and expanding affordable housing; and addressing environmental issues, such as land conservation," the foundation said.

Foundation President Isaiah Oliver thanked Weaver for what he called "an extraordinary gift."

"The Community Foundation is proud to work alongside Delores Barr Weaver, who continues to set the bar for philanthropy in Northeast Florida," he said. "I also want to thank the nonprofits and our staff, whose expertise and dedication have helped to translate her generosity into impact over many years."

Who are the grant recipients?

The foundation declined to say how many nonprofits are getting shares of the $61 million but said they include all of Northeast Florida's domestic violence shelters: Hubbard House in Jacksonville, Micah's Place in Fernandina Beach, Quigley House in Green Cove Springs and Betty Griffin Center in St. Augustine.

"The compassion, care and advocacy that Delores Barr Weaver has shown toward Hubbard House and survivors of domestic violence is truly unmatched," said Hubbard House CEO Gail Patin, who declined to specify the grant amount. "We are honored to benefit from Delores’ unwavering support … that ensures we can continue to save and change lives right here in our community."

Other recipients include environmental and conservation-focused nonprofits, including North Florida Land Trust, St. Johns Riverkeeper ant the Jacksonville Arboretum and Botanical Gardens.

Allison DeFoor is president and CEO of North Florida Land Trust, a Jacksonville-based land conservation nonprofit. He said Weaver was a longtime supporter and the trust was "honored and humbled" by her latest gift.

"She is the Good Housekeeping seal of approval," he said.

DeFoor also declined to specify the amount of the grant but said it would be used for conservation land purchases. "We have a lot of land acquisition targets. We don't suffer from a lack of targets.," he said.

The St. Johns Riverkeeper will receive $100,000 a year for five years to support its Resilient Ribault project in partnership with LISC Jacksonville, according to Executive Director Jimmy Orth.

"This project is working to connect people to the Ribault River, a hidden gem in Jacksonville, clean up the water quality and advocate for infrastructure improvements and promote economic development," he said. "This is a vulnerable region of the city, both to environmental risks like flooding, as well as socioeconomically."

The Riverkeeper conducted a data analysis that identified the area as a "strategic area of focus," but the work takes time and capacity, he said.

"Delores Barr Weaver is giving us the resources to maintain our commitment to this area and be involved in improvements over the long haul," Orth said. "By providing this five-year grant, it gives us the opportunity to build trust in the community and make this project successful. That's what's exciting to us about it."

Grants also went to Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida, or LSS, which provides hunger relief, HIV services and refugee resettlement, among other things; Pie in the Sky, which feeds needy St. Johns County seniors; JASMYN, which serves the local LGBTQIA+ community; Don't Miss A Beat, a mentoring program that matches arts professionals with local students.

LSS received a 3-year, $300,00 grant to support housing initiatives within the agency’s refugee resettlement program, with first priority given to Afghan refugees.

"We are immensely grateful for this funding partnership," President and CEO Bill Brim said. "This gift will move LSS forward in welcoming refugee families seeking a brighter tomorrow in our city."

Pie in the Sky founder Malea Guiriba said Weaver has been “very generous" over the years. "Her funding has allowed us to expand our capacity way beyond anything we could have done on our own," she said.

The number of seniors the nonprofit serves rose by 26% just last year, Guiriba said, so Weaver's "continued support will help us meet the ever-growing needs of our senior community. Her faith in our program has encouraged us to continue to reach and grow our mission of fighting senior hunger. We are so grateful."

Instead of soliciting applications, Weaver chose to focus on nonprofits she had already supported. So over the last six months, she and foundation staff reviewed her past grants and identified nonprofits with "exceptional track records of achieving results for the community," officials said. The goal of the new funding was to "help them grow beyond Weaver’s support … setting them up for success long into the future."

Some of the grants are for specific projects or capital improvements, others are matching challenges or multi-year grants spanning three, five and 10 years.

Beloved former Jaguars owners still giving back

During their ownership of the local NFL team, the Weavers also donated about $15 million to various causes through the Jaguars Foundation. They sold the Jaguars to Shad Khan in 2011 but remained in Jacksonville and maintained their philanthropy.

Among many other projects since then, Delores Barr Weaver established the Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center in Jacksonville in 2012 as a national model in how to help at-risk girls and in 2020 backed 904WARD, a civic group that works to end racism in the community.

"I always believed that … people who have the wherewithal have a responsibility to make a difference," she told the Times-Union in a 2017 interview.

Weaver's funds are part of the foundation's $649 million in assets and her gifts are among the $750 million in grants it has made since inception. To improve the community, the foundation works with donors to invest their philanthropic gifts and helps nonprofits better serve the public.

bcravey@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4109

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville's Delores Barr Weaver gives area nonprofits $61 million