SCC couple endows, funds $250,000 to establish children’s library foundation
By LOIS KINDLE
At the SouthShore Regional Library’s 10th anniversary celebration on Nov. 12, Sun City Center residents Jim and Joann Duffy announce their endowment of $250,000 to establish the Tampa-Hillsborough County Children’s Library Foundation fund with the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay. It will support free programs for kids 12 and younger throughout the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library system.
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Sun City Center residents Jim Duffy and his wife, Joann, are lifelong readers, and libraries have always played an important role in their lives.
“When I was employed with IBM, we moved throughout the country,” Jim Duffy said. “Wherever we went, libraries were a common thread.”
Both consider library usage an essential part of education, especially for grade-school kids.
“Libraries are places where everyone of every economic level can go, where children of disparate backgrounds can have the same opportunities,” Duffy said. “They’re the best bargain in America, and everyone can use their resources.”
With the goal of helping school-age kids develop a lifelong appreciation for both reading and library usage, the couple recently endowed $250,000 to establish the Tampa-Hillsborough County Children’s Library Foundation fund with the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay. It will support free programs for kids 12 and younger throughout the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library system. The community foundation will make an annual distribution of 6 percent of the fund’s total value each year.
The money will be awarded by the community foundation to the Hillsborough County Friends of the Library, a nonprofit organization of 22 chapters that supports adult and children’s programming countywide, said Andrew Breidenbaugh, library director. He will decide which of the chapters can most benefit from each year’s distribution, and make recommendations to members of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library Board for approval.
The money must to be spent frugally and used as written in the agreement.
“(The Duffys) have made a truly generous gift,” Breidenbaugh said. “It’s the single largest gift we’ve received in over 10 years.”
“Jim and Joann Duffy have been very creative and forward-thinking in establishing this endowment,” said Marlene Spalten, president and CEO of the community foundation. “Libraries will always be essential in our communities as places of learning and intellectual growth, especially for families.
Andre Breidenbaugh, director of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library system, thanks Jim and Joann Duffy for their generous gift to promote reading and library usage among young children.
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“As we’ve transitioned to the digital age, we’ve seen libraries become even more dynamic and relevant,” she continued. “By establishing this endowment, the Duffys are assuring long-term support for innovation and growth for library programs for children.”
Jim Duffy started the Friends of the SouthShore Regional Library chapter 10 years ago and was its first president. His wife served as secretary for many years.
Every year thousands of South Shore families benefit from programs funded by the chapter through donations and a variety of fundraising events.
“We’ve raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for programming for the people of South Shore,” said John Smith, current chapter president. “I think it’s outstanding for Jim and his wife to have (set up this new fund), and it’s going to have a major impact on the children of Hillsborough County.”
Area residents and businesses are invited to help.
“Others (can) contribute to the Tampa-Hillsborough County Children’s Library Foundation fund to build even more long-term financial support,” said Wilma Norton, the community foundation’s vice president of marketing and communications. “Tax-deductible donations can be made online at cftampabay.org/library.”
For information on the various programs offered at the Ruskin and Riverview branch libraries or the South Shore Regional Library, visit hcplc.org/hcplc/events/.
Dignitaries and Friends of the SouthShore Regional Library members gather for a group photo during the library’s 10th anniversary celebration Nov. 12.
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Current Friends of the SouthShore Regional Library President John Smith discusses the library’s 10-year history and the people who worked to have it built in Ruskin.
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