DEVELOPMENT
Martha Kapitz and Chris Growcock met in college at Indiana University. After many years in sales and marketing for larger corporations, Chris decided to follow his lifelong dream of running his own business and purchased a local fishing apparel company, Get Reel...Get Fish. Martha is a physician partner with Bay Area OB/GYN, a division of Women’s Care Florida, where she has been in private practice for 10 years. Together, they have been Parent Annual Fund committee members since their daughter Emmie, currently in 7th grade, started kindergarten in 2010. Maddie, in 4th grade, joined her sister at the Academy in 2012. The Kapitz-Growcock family has supported the Ascending Together campaign by contributing to both the Academy Ascending capital campaign and the Parent Annual Fund. To date, 50 percent of parents have participated in the Parent Annual Fund.
Why is giving back important to your family?
drama performances and art shows to some of our favorites—Black and White By The Bay auction and Community Service Day. We feel there is no better way to show support than to stay involved and participate in Academy activities!
Are you involved in organizations outside of the Academy? Outside of the Academy, I [Martha] volunteer my physician services at The Judeo-Christian Clinic, a community clinic for the uninsured and indigent populations of Tampa. Chris loves to share his passion with fishing by taking veterans on fishing excursions with Healing Waters.
What do you want parents to know about supporting the Parent Annual Fund and Academy Ascending capital campaign?
We both became passionate about philanthropy during our college years, when we were both involved with the Indiana University Student Foundation. It was during this time our opportunities and experiences shaped us, and we realized just how important giving back is. We want everyone to have the amazing opportunities and experiences that we did, and this would not have been possible without additional community and alumni support ensuring continued growth.
Not many parents are aware that the tuition we pay does not fully cover the costs of education. Our philosophy is that there is no better investment than that of our children and future generations. Anything above and beyond tuition that each family can contribute will have a phenomenal impact on your children and the overall community.
What have you liked best about being a part of the Academy community?
Our personal goal is to continue to contribute to the PAF. Over the years, we have loved watching the growth at the Academy. We have seen the direct impact of the growth, especially most recently with the new middle school. It is an exciting time, and we are proud to be part of both campaigns!
The Academy is much more than just a building where our daughters attend school. The sense of community and the loving and encouraging nature of our teachers and staff is unparalleled in the community. We could not be happier with our decision for our children to attend the Academy.
Other than the PAF, in what ways are you involved at AHN?
What is your personal goal for Ascending Together?
What would you like to see for the remainder of the year for PAF? One-hundred percent participation, of course!
We try to attend as many events as possible, from spelling bees, cross country meets, wind ensemble,
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