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Not Just Another Social Club
WHO WE ARE
The African American Heritage Club of the Plantation Inc. (AAHCP), formed in August of 2009, began as a social club. Its purpose is to promote goodwill and friendship and to plan and hold social and cultural events. The club also focuses on “giving back” to the community. As club members became more involved in the community, they found a larger need to support the community through volunteerism and financial support to community outreach programs. Three months after the club was formed, club members were able to make Thanksgiving and Christmas a happier time for twelve families in need-the first significant accomplishment of the AAHCP.
The African American Heritage Club of the Plantation Inc. (AAHCP), formed in August of 2009, began as a social club. Its purpose is to promote goodwill and friendship and to plan and hold social and cultural events. The club also focuses on “giving back” to the community. As club members became more involved in the community, they found a larger need to support the community through volunteerism and financial support to community outreach programs. Three months after the club was formed, club members were able to make Thanksgiving and Christmas a happier time for twelve families in need-the first significant accomplishment of the AAHCP.
WHAT WE DO
As part of the AAHCP’s planning activities for 2010, the club’s objective was to sponsor two major projects each year. The first would consist of a golf tournament to raise scholarship funds for minority students graduating from Leesburg High School. The second event would be to host a Soul Train Dance, to raise funds for Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets for families in need and gifts at Christmas for the children within the community.
In April 2010, the club’s 1st Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament was held. Approximately ninety-five golfers from the Plantation and our neighboring Central Florida communities participated in the tournament. As a result of this effort, a $3,000.00 scholarship was presented to a graduating senior from Leesburg High School. The scholarship recipient is currently attending Florida A&M University and maintaining a 3.4 GPA. The AAHCP also provided the scholarship recipient with a special “care package” full of items needed by a college freshman transitioning into college life. In September 2010, the club’s 1st Annual “Soul Train Dance” was held. The dance drew more than 250 attendees from the Plantation and the Central Florida area. Proceeds from the dance enabled the AAHCP to provide Thanksgiving/Christmas baskets for twelve needy families in the Leesburg area.
The AAHCP repeated its fundraising success in 2011 and 2012. During the club’s 2nd Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament, the AAHCP was able to make a positive difference in the lives of several minority seniors at Leesburg High School. Through the support of the community, the club was able to award five $1,000.00 scholarships to five minority seniors from the 2011 Leesburg High School graduating class. The club’s 2nd Annual Soul Train Dance was equally successful--raising enough funds to support fourteen families in need for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and providing $500.00 to Oak Park Middle School, Leesburg, Florida for school supplies and an awards program. In April 2012, from the 3rd Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament, the AAHCP was again able to award five $1,000.00 scholarships to five minority seniors from the 2012 Leesburg High School graduating class. From the funds raised from the club’s 3rd Annual Soul Train Dance, the club is scheduled to provide Thanksgiving/Christmas baskets for approximately twelve families in the Leesburg area and clothing and toys for at least one special family during the 2012 holiday season.
Although the AAHCP has enjoyed great success from its two major fund-raising projects it has also experienced the disappointment of having to turn down eligible students and families in need. During the 2011 scholarship process, the need in the Leesburg area was greater than what the club had imagined when they embarked on their projects in 2010. Unfortunately, during the 2011 scholarship process five qualified graduating seniors were turned away because only enough funds to give away five $1,000.00 scholarships were raised from the golf tournament. A shortage of funding was also experienced in 2012 – having to turn away six qualified students. The amount of Thanksgiving and Christmas Basket give-a-ways also had to be limited because the need out-numbered available funds. From its inception, a number of community businesses have supported the efforts of the club. An even larger number of organizations stated they believed in and supported the mission of providing for the less fortunate in the Leesburg community but were unable to support the organization because it was not tax exempt. To resolve this obstacle to receive funding from various sources within the region, the AAHCP members applied for 501(c)(3) status. The AAHCP was granted 501(c)(3) status on October 14, 2011.
Under the incorporation umbrella, the club can and will continue to give back to the community. The AAHCP, Inc., will provide scholarships to minority students that attend Leesburg High School. The students will be able to use the scholarship to attend any state college, university or technical school. In order to be eligible for the scholarship, an individual must be a graduating senior from Leesburg High School, a minority, and have a competitive GPA score (most applicants so far have had 3.2 – 4.0 GPA scores). Each applicant will be required to complete an application with personal and financial information, community service experience and an essay outlining their goals for the future.
The AAHCP, Inc. will be awarding scholarships based on the application information and essays submitted. The number of students awarded a scholarship will be dependent on the financial resources of the organization. However, the AAHCP, Inc. plans to award a minimum of $1,000 per recipient. The scholarship will be a one-time award. Recipients are not eligible for renewal. The organization will make students aware of the scholarship opportunity through emails, flyers, websites, and advertisements in local publications, as well as through school counselors.
The AAHCP, Inc. will also continue to assist impoverished families during the holiday season. During the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, the organization will provide holiday meals to families that cannot afford food and gifts for their children. These meals will generally include ham, turkey and several side dishes for the families. The organization will also provide clothes and toys for the children in the families designated to receive a special Christmas contribution. The organization expects to spend approximately $100.00 on clothing items and $75.00 on age appropriate toys for each child. Local elementary, middle and high school counselors will make the AAHCP, Inc., aware of those families in need. To ensure families remain anonymous to the club, volunteers from the organization deliver meals and gifts directly to the schools.
As part of the AAHCP’s planning activities for 2010, the club’s objective was to sponsor two major projects each year. The first would consist of a golf tournament to raise scholarship funds for minority students graduating from Leesburg High School. The second event would be to host a Soul Train Dance, to raise funds for Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets for families in need and gifts at Christmas for the children within the community.
In April 2010, the club’s 1st Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament was held. Approximately ninety-five golfers from the Plantation and our neighboring Central Florida communities participated in the tournament. As a result of this effort, a $3,000.00 scholarship was presented to a graduating senior from Leesburg High School. The scholarship recipient is currently attending Florida A&M University and maintaining a 3.4 GPA. The AAHCP also provided the scholarship recipient with a special “care package” full of items needed by a college freshman transitioning into college life. In September 2010, the club’s 1st Annual “Soul Train Dance” was held. The dance drew more than 250 attendees from the Plantation and the Central Florida area. Proceeds from the dance enabled the AAHCP to provide Thanksgiving/Christmas baskets for twelve needy families in the Leesburg area.
The AAHCP repeated its fundraising success in 2011 and 2012. During the club’s 2nd Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament, the AAHCP was able to make a positive difference in the lives of several minority seniors at Leesburg High School. Through the support of the community, the club was able to award five $1,000.00 scholarships to five minority seniors from the 2011 Leesburg High School graduating class. The club’s 2nd Annual Soul Train Dance was equally successful--raising enough funds to support fourteen families in need for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and providing $500.00 to Oak Park Middle School, Leesburg, Florida for school supplies and an awards program. In April 2012, from the 3rd Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament, the AAHCP was again able to award five $1,000.00 scholarships to five minority seniors from the 2012 Leesburg High School graduating class. From the funds raised from the club’s 3rd Annual Soul Train Dance, the club is scheduled to provide Thanksgiving/Christmas baskets for approximately twelve families in the Leesburg area and clothing and toys for at least one special family during the 2012 holiday season.
Although the AAHCP has enjoyed great success from its two major fund-raising projects it has also experienced the disappointment of having to turn down eligible students and families in need. During the 2011 scholarship process, the need in the Leesburg area was greater than what the club had imagined when they embarked on their projects in 2010. Unfortunately, during the 2011 scholarship process five qualified graduating seniors were turned away because only enough funds to give away five $1,000.00 scholarships were raised from the golf tournament. A shortage of funding was also experienced in 2012 – having to turn away six qualified students. The amount of Thanksgiving and Christmas Basket give-a-ways also had to be limited because the need out-numbered available funds. From its inception, a number of community businesses have supported the efforts of the club. An even larger number of organizations stated they believed in and supported the mission of providing for the less fortunate in the Leesburg community but were unable to support the organization because it was not tax exempt. To resolve this obstacle to receive funding from various sources within the region, the AAHCP members applied for 501(c)(3) status. The AAHCP was granted 501(c)(3) status on October 14, 2011.
Under the incorporation umbrella, the club can and will continue to give back to the community. The AAHCP, Inc., will provide scholarships to minority students that attend Leesburg High School. The students will be able to use the scholarship to attend any state college, university or technical school. In order to be eligible for the scholarship, an individual must be a graduating senior from Leesburg High School, a minority, and have a competitive GPA score (most applicants so far have had 3.2 – 4.0 GPA scores). Each applicant will be required to complete an application with personal and financial information, community service experience and an essay outlining their goals for the future.
The AAHCP, Inc. will be awarding scholarships based on the application information and essays submitted. The number of students awarded a scholarship will be dependent on the financial resources of the organization. However, the AAHCP, Inc. plans to award a minimum of $1,000 per recipient. The scholarship will be a one-time award. Recipients are not eligible for renewal. The organization will make students aware of the scholarship opportunity through emails, flyers, websites, and advertisements in local publications, as well as through school counselors.
The AAHCP, Inc. will also continue to assist impoverished families during the holiday season. During the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, the organization will provide holiday meals to families that cannot afford food and gifts for their children. These meals will generally include ham, turkey and several side dishes for the families. The organization will also provide clothes and toys for the children in the families designated to receive a special Christmas contribution. The organization expects to spend approximately $100.00 on clothing items and $75.00 on age appropriate toys for each child. Local elementary, middle and high school counselors will make the AAHCP, Inc., aware of those families in need. To ensure families remain anonymous to the club, volunteers from the organization deliver meals and gifts directly to the schools.
FOR THE FUTURE
As funding and resources grow, the organization will continue making contributions to more families in need. As one can see from the AAHCP narrative, the AAHCP, Inc. is not just another social organization. As this year comes to an end, the AAHCP is appealing to the community to consider them when making end-of-the-year tax-deductible donations. The AAHCP’s donors have and will continue to make a major impact in the lives of Leesburg High School graduating seniors and families in need in the Leesburg community. Anyone interested in supporting the AAHCP can make tax-free donations to the AAHCP, Inc., PO Box 437, Okahumpka, FL 34762. If you have any questions regarding the AAHCP, Inc., you may contact President Stan Fischer at (352) 314-9034 or Vice President Larry Prince at 352-728-2077
As funding and resources grow, the organization will continue making contributions to more families in need. As one can see from the AAHCP narrative, the AAHCP, Inc. is not just another social organization. As this year comes to an end, the AAHCP is appealing to the community to consider them when making end-of-the-year tax-deductible donations. The AAHCP’s donors have and will continue to make a major impact in the lives of Leesburg High School graduating seniors and families in need in the Leesburg community. Anyone interested in supporting the AAHCP can make tax-free donations to the AAHCP, Inc., PO Box 437, Okahumpka, FL 34762. If you have any questions regarding the AAHCP, Inc., you may contact President Stan Fischer at (352) 314-9034 or Vice President Larry Prince at 352-728-2077
