‘This was so touching’: Tampa Bay families invited to skate night surprised with checks to cover bills this holiday season
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) —The Tampa Bay Fashion Foundation donated over $30,000 to two worthy organizations to ease the burden on their families this holiday season.
Courtesy: Holly K Photography
The Tampa Bay Fashion Foundation is a local nonprofit organization that is all about giving back to the community because giving is always in style. The nonprofit is a part of the Tampa Bay Fashion Experience, which is an organization that takes pride in merging fashion and philanthropy through fashion events in the area.
Taneka Bowles is the founder and CEO of TBFE and TBFF. She is also the wife of Buccaneers Head coach, Todd Bowles.
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“At our company that produces fashion shows around Tampa, giving is always in style,” Bowles said. “We knew we were going to be doing something in our community and we came across Gentlemen’s Quest who supports young African-American men in our community.”
TBFF partnered with Gentlemen’s Quest of Tampa and Manifestations: School of Innovation and Learning. Both organizations are led by Tavis Myrick.
Courtesy: Holly K Photography
“We are so thankful to have people in our community like the Tampa Bay Fashion Foundation,” Myrick said. “To work with organizations that mirror are passion to help the community is a blessing.”
TBFF had families in GQ and Manifestations school submit applications that explained any needs they may have and what their family might be going through.
“We were able to immediately jump on this mission and get our families to write essays, do some interviews, because all of our families are in need of something,” Myrick said.
Over 60 applications were completed and the needs were vast. From past due bills of nearly $2,000, the choice of having to paying rent or buy Christmas gifts for their children, to not being able to put gas in their car.
Courtesy: Holly K Photography
TBFF ultimately selected 11 families. Three families received $5,000, two families received $2,000 and six families received $1,000. A total of $25,000 was donated to these families.
And get this—those families didn’t find out until Friday, Dec. 15 at what they thought was just a family-fun skate night the organization invited them to.
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“This was so touching,” Bowles said. “It made me feel like we hit the nail on the head. To be able to get the reaction from someone who not necessarily won the $5,000 but who picked from the $10,000 Christmas tree let us know we got it right.”
One-by-one family’s names were called and the emotion showed on each of those family’s faces.
Courtesy: Holly K Photography
“To see the joy, the relief, the excitement, it has me without words,” Myrick said. “We have families that don’t have cars, behind in their rent, behind in electricity, to see them break in tears, allowed me to break in tears.”
Nearly 50 families attended the event. The other families were able to randomly pick a gift card off of TBFF’s “giving tree.” The tree was filled with $200, $500 and $1,000 gift cards, totaling almost $10,000.
The entire experience was a Christmas blessing for families, especially Antonisha Joyner.
“I was just sitting there recording, happy for the other families, but then my name was called,” Joyner said. “It really helped, we just got our place and we didn’t know how we were going to handle Christmas, for my kids because bills. Just winning, means so much to me and the kids.”
After the families received their gifts, they all enjoyed an exclusive skate session at United Skates Tampa. The skating rink donated their facility and staff to help give back to the community.
“We’re 61 years old in the community, we try to give back,” said Brian Cherry, Partner with United Skates Tampa. “We came out of Covid and wanted to go in a different direction and part of that is doing things like this, hosting events with charities, it’s important.”
The Tampa Bay Fashion Foundation paid family’s rent, past due bills and other urgent needs. With the leftover funds, family’s are able to do some Christmas shopping. The organizations will meet at a Target and shop together this holiday season.
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