Sanibel couple establishes $2 million charitable fund

A new $2 million fund has been established by a Sanibel-based couple through the Charitable Foundation of the Islands.

Laurie and Bill Harkey recently created the donor advised fund, a charitable investment account, after having spent many years embracing multiple philanthropic causes, according to the press release. 

“This is our home now,” Laurie Harkey says in the release. “We’re shifting our support and our interest here. That was the catalyst.”

The Harkeys have been in the area for about four years. 

After looking at a number of other organizations, the couple decided to start the fund with CFI, which was named a successor trustee of the fund. 

“We wanted to do our philanthropy while we could see the impact,” Bill Harkey says. “The need is great and the need is now.”

The appeal of CFI to the Harkeys is the number of island nonprofit organizations it works with, including the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, J.N. “Ding” Darling Wildlife Refuge, F.I.S.H. of SanCap, the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum and the Sanibel Community House.

“CFI is still relatively young as an organization and needs to grow,” Bill Harkey says. “I would encourage anyone within earshot that is looking for a philanthropic way of doing things to consider CFI as a very good place to start.”         

The couple, named 2023 Volunteers of the Year by the Sanibel & Captiva Islands Chamber of Commerce, has recently gifted other island-based nonprofits including a $500,000 matching grant to help repair the Sanibel Community House from damage caused by Hurricane Ian. 

The decision to establish a donor advised fund came after the couple began setting up their own foundation, the release states, but because the donor advised funds require less maintenance, they decided to go this route.  

“You don’t need to start with a big sum,” Bill Harkey says. “You can let it grow with CFI and recommend grants to the nonprofits you want to support. We let the people who do this for a living handle it. It’s a no-brainer and it’s so easy.” 

Bill, who is from California, spent almost 30 years in the U.S. Army, primarily in public affairs and instructing at the Army War College. Laurie was a medical social worker, originally from Akron. They traveled extensively for his job.