foundation. We don’t accept requests for grants. We do things that we feel are necessary and needed within the community. The Jewish Family Children’s Services has a program working with Veterans. I went over to see what they do and they provide housing for the Veterans. They try to get them on their feet or get them a job, so we support them. We support the arts in town because we think that’s important to the community. We support Asolo Rep, Sarasota Orchestra, The Ringling, and others. Culture is a pillar of the community. You are currently involved with the Center for Building Hope, which does such great work providing cancer support for families and caregivers. How and why did you get involved with them? Originally, we got involved when they had offices on Clark Road and they were looking to retire a mortgage. Later when they came up with the plans for the Lakewood Ranch campus, my wife and I saw the proposal, renderings and site, we made a lead donation for the land and building project. They wanted to name it after us. We thought our name would detract from the Wellness Community, which is called The Center For Building Hope. It’s a worthwhile organization that serves about 5,000 people. Sarasota is a great town for the arts, and you and your wife provide a 4-year scholarship fund in the arts for Booker High School students. Why is this cause so important to you and your wife Gail? My wife and friends have been going to Booker High for the last several years to see a musical every spring and every time Gail would come home she would say, “These kids are amazing.” And we realized that Booker High is in an area where kids are not coming from affluent backgrounds and so I called up Veronica Brady at Gulf Coast Community Foundation and asked her about Booker High and the arts program and if there was a need there. She talked with the principal who conveyed that there are many students at Booker who didn’t have the means to pursue higher education or their artistic dreams after high school. That’s when we decided to establish the scholarship. It is a $2500 scholarship, each year for four years. We’ve funded it and our friend, Jean DeLynn, has put some money into it. We hope that other people will put some money toward this worthwhile cause. We don’t need our name on the scholarship. We get great satisfaction with being able to help out financially and we don’t need the recognition. Are there any people around town that you look up to regarding their philanthropy? Dennis and Graci McGillicuddy first and foremost, mainly because not only do they provide a tremendous amount of money to various organizations within the community, but they work. They work hours and hours every single week on behalf of some of these organizations. The time and effort that they contribute in addition to the money they give is incredible. Usually people contribute money or they contribute time. Usually people who contribute time don’t contribute money. Dennis and Graci do both. They’re both amazing people. And they’re an inspiration. I look at people like Betty Schoenbaum, now in her 90s, who gives so much of herself. She is so generous and is as sharp as a tack. Up until a few years ago she was
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tap dancing. There are numerous others in town who give in the same way and spirit. You really do believe that it is better to give than receive. Absolutely. And we are blessed to be in a position to be able to do that. I’ve been very lucky in my business career. A lot of it has been talent. When I lecture, I tell people, especially the kids, that success is a confluence of three things and they all have to come together. Talent, luck and timing – all three have to converge. You can have all the talent in the world but if the timing isn’t right and you aren’t lucky, it doesn’t happen. I was the beneficiary. I am at a stage in my life beyond anything I ever comprehended. We feel blessed and we want to give back. I’ve given back ever since I graduated from Cornell. Back then I volunteered at Children’s Hospital in Boston and I did card tricks for the kids. I volunteered for the Greater Boston Association for Retarded Citizens. I used to give money to Children’s Hospital and Beth Israel Hospital when I was making $6,500 a year and I’d give a couple of hundred dollars to each organization. Where did this sense of philanthropy and giving back come from? When I was at school I had no money and my parents could have afforded to send me to Cornell, but I didn’t want to take any money from my parents. I wanted to prove to myself that I could get through school on my own. I wanted to prove that if I could do it on my own, then anybody could do it. I worked my way through school as a Deputy Sheriff assigned to the Cornell police. I spent three and a half years driving the patrol car at Cornell. I was the only full time student ever to be on the campus police working a full time shift. Why are you involved with so many philanthropic organizations? Because the need exists. You’re a bit of an old ad man. What does your billboard for Sarasota say? To me, Sarasota is the cultural capital of Florida and it is probably the most generous city in Florida. Is there a quote or mantra that you live by? In Hamlet, Polonius’s speech to his son. “This above all: To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.” You have been married over 23 years. What is the secret to a great marriage? We respect each other. She does her thing and I do my thing. Gail’s is playing tennis and golf and my thing is working. I’m a workaholic. When you reach the end of your life and the final Howard Johnson’s milk shake has been served, how would you like to be remembered? (Laughing – followed by long pause) I guess all I can ask for is that I would be remembered as a nice guy and as someone who did the best he could for as many people as he could. scenesarasota.com