Locals Helping Locals: Our Journey Across Florida and the Birth of a New Community Initiative

Our dream took shape when we decided to move from the bustling southeast coast of Florida to the more tranquil southwest. We didn’t realize then that this move would set off a chain of events that would lead to a beautiful story of community, connection, and giving back.

This is the story of how the pieces of our puzzle came together. 

Upon purchasing our new home, we were in for a surprise—it came fully furnished! The previous owners had used it as a vacation home, leaving behind a treasure trove of furniture and household items. Since we already had our furnishings, we found ourselves with many items and a question: What should we do with all of this?

That’s when we reached out to a local church and met Pastor Mark from the First Congregational Church in Cape Coral. When we asked if he knew of anyone in need of these items, Pastor Mark shared a serendipitous story. Just the day before, a parishioner mentioned a family that had recently moved to town and was in desperate need of furniture. It felt like fate.

The family, grateful and kind, came over and took what they needed. But the story didn’t end there. Pastor Mark rolled up his sleeves and helped us donate the remaining items to various organizations in need. This experience forged a connection, and we’ve been attending services at the church ever since.

As we settled into our new community, we turned our attention to incorporating good deeds into our beloved initiative, People and Pets Network. To kick off our project, we knew we needed some local marketing expertise, so we reached out to Donna and Jeff Clapp at Visitivity Inc. Our initial meetings were filled with exciting ideas, but we wanted to make sure we were on the right track. That’s when the idea of a Focus Group came to light.

Donna and Jeff gathered a diverse group of people from their extensive network, including representatives from the business, nonprofit, consumer, and church communities. The Focus Group meeting was set for December 2nd, 2023, and, in a full-circle moment, Pastor Mark graciously hosted the gathering at the First Congregational Church.

The feedback we received was invaluable. Attendees provided insights that helped shape our project, leading to the implementation of new features like badges, additional preferred sponsor spots, and the requirement for license documentation. These suggestions have made our network stronger and more effective.

The spirit of collaboration didn’t stop there. Two Focus Group participants, Rick Fritz from Allstate Exteriors & Restoration Services and Liz McCauley, Executive Director of the Cape Coral Animal Shelter, generously volunteered to be part of our commercial. The commercials, crafted by Jeff and Donna with creative input from Holly George at By George Marketing and Kendra Sutton of KD Sutton Creative Solutions, were a true team effort. Holly even suggested we create a catchy jingle for our marketing—have you heard it yet?

In a twist of fate, Roger met Holly at a Chamber networking event and discovered they both hailed from the same small town in Nebraska. It truly is a small world!

With our new network in place, Roger began attending local BNI meetings, trade shows, and other community events, spreading the word about our Locals Helping Locals initiative through People and Pets Network.

Our journey from southeast to southwest Florida wasn’t just a change of scenery—it was the start of something bigger than we could ever have imagined. We’re excited to see where this adventure takes us next and to continue building connections that make a difference.