My Pensacola Credit Union and Friends of West Florida Public Library fight for literacy

Pensacola News Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK
·4 min read

As a not-for-profit financial cooperative founded over 70-years ago by employees of the city of Pensacola, My Pensacola Credit Union continues supporting the city and citizens of Pensacola by becoming the exclusive financial institution sponsor of the nonprofit Friends of West Florida Public Library.

Throughout the year, the credit union will look to support FWFPL by such actions as volunteering at and hosting book sales and other events, as well as providing marketing, digital and social media awareness.

My Pensacola Credit Union recently became the exclusive financial sponsor of nonprofit Friends of West Florida Public Library.
My Pensacola Credit Union recently became the exclusive financial sponsor of nonprofit Friends of West Florida Public Library.

Friends of West Florida Public Library is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to advocate for literacy and learning within the community. Board members and volunteers work tirelessly to raise funds through book sales, memberships and donations.

To learn more about this partnership and upcoming book sales and events, visit MyPensacolaCU.com or www.friendsofwfpl.org.

Free tax assistance available throughout Escambia and Santa Rosa counties

AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is providing tax preparation help to anyone, free of charge, with a focus on taxpayers who are over 50 and have low to moderate income from Feb. 1 through April 15. Tax-Aide is the largest free, volunteer-based tax assistance and preparation program in the United States. AARP membership is not required. Choose a convenient location and schedule an appointment today at one of the locations below:

AARP Tax-Aide sites

ESCAMBIA COUNTY

  • Pensacola Public Library, 239 N. Spring St., 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Saturdays. 888-227-7669, tinyurl.com/pnslib.

  • Trinity Presbyterian Church, 3400 Bayou Blvd., 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays. 850-816-0186.

  • Bayview Senior Center, 2000 E. Lloyd St., 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays and Fridays. 850-436-5190.

  • Myrtle Grove United Methodist Church, 1030 N. 57th Ave., 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. 850-889-1130, tinyurl.com/mgumch.

  • Southwest Branch Library, 12248 Gulf Beach Highway, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. 850-266-5088.

  • Saint Luke United Methodist Church, 1394 E. Nine Mile Road, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays. 850-739-0360, tinyurl.com/stlumc.

  • Molino Branch Library, 6450-A U.S. 95A, Molino, 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Fridays starting Feb. 9. 850-435-1760.

SANTA ROSA COUNTY

  • Gulf Breeze Library, 1060 Shoreline Drive, Gulf Breeze, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays and Fridays. tinyurl.com/yksmwnpp and 850-684-0802.

  • Navarre Branch Library, 8484 James Harvell Road, Navarre, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mondays and Fridays.

  • Milton Public Library, 5541 Alabama St., Milton, noon to 4 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. 850-564-3584. tinyurl.com/miltonlib.

Find ways to help: Baptist Health Care Foundation raises more than $13,000 to support its Mammogram Fund

Foo Foo Festival kickoff meeting opens doors to future grant recipients

The Pensacola Foo Foo Festival Committee recently announced the return of its 11th iteration. The Foo Foo Fest Committee will conduct an in-person kickoff meeting to recap efforts from 2023 and review the plans for this year’s events, including important grant application information, at 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 1 at the Palafox House, 196 N. Palafox St. This year’s 12-day series of events is scheduled for Oct. 31 through Nov. 11.

In 2023, Foo Foo Fest celebrated its milestone 10-year anniversary, featuring a historic 16 grant recipients backed by nearly $500,000 in grant funding. The invitation to join this year’s kickoff meeting is open to all nonprofits, prior participants, local-to-Pensacola community groups, local and regional arts organizations, businesses, hoteliers and musicians who are interested in learning how to participate in Foo Foo Fest as a grant recipient and “Friend of Foo,” as well as media.

Visit acepensacola.org for details.

Community cold weather sheltering plan seeing early success

A cold weather sheltering plan established through a partnership between Escambia County and Waterfront Rescue Mission is seeing early success after several cold weather events this winter, sheltering hundreds of people from frigid temperatures in Escambia County.

Escambia County and Waterfront Rescue Mission worked together last year to implement a more consistent cold weather sheltering plan for the community, providing free shelter options for men, women and children to stay during cold weather events.

With temperatures in January dropping into the 20s and teens, Waterfront saw an influx of people in need of shelter in the Escambia County area. Thanks to the partnership with the county and other agencies including ReEntry Alliance Pensacola, Waterfront Rescue Mission was able to accommodate as many as 155 people in a single night, with many more taking shelter during the day.

Through the sheltering plan, Waterfront Rescue Mission is the central receiving point for anyone in need of emergency shelter when the temperature drops to 40 degrees or less. Waterfront then coordinates with other partner agencies to ensure anyone needing cold weather shelter can be accommodated.

Individuals or restaurants interested in donating may email misbell@waterfrontmission.org to coordinate donations.

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This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: My Pensacola Credit Union joins FWFPL nonprofit in fight for literacy