Nonprofits around the nation — much like companies in the private sector — are competing for the best and brightest coming out of local and state colleges and universities.

In Florida, where charitable giving is on an upward trajectory and more than one in 10 workers are employed by mission-driven organizations, the growing nonprofit sector is one of the state’s leading employers.

83 Degrees takes a look at a few rising stars among the more than 10,000 nonprofits that call the Tampa Bay region home as they go about the business of pursuing a social mission.

From directing an organization of three employees to one with 70, each leader took a different path to get to where she is today. What they have in common is a strong drive for personal and organizational success and the realization that what it will ultimately take to achieve their goals is the community.

Jessica Muroff, CEO, Girl Scouts of West Central Florida

A University of South Florida graduate, Jessica Muroff spent most of her working career in the for-profit world. Although she enjoyed her day jobs, it was her community and nonprofit board involvement that really tugged at her heartstrings.

“I wanted my career to be something where I was working every day to make a change in the community,” says Muroff. “It’s who I am.”

Almost four years ago, she took the plunge into the nonprofit world and joined Frameworks of Tampa Bay as Director of Marketing. She says it was the best career choice she ever made because it helped her transition into the nonprofit world and prepared her for her next role.

Growing up, Muroff was involved in Girl Scouts at the brownie level. When she read the former CEO of the West Central Florida region was promoted, creating a vacancy, she felt as if her dream job had opened up.

The Girl Scouts of West Central Florida serves 19,500 girls and 8,500 adult members/volunteers in an eight counties, including Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Polk. As CEO, Muroff oversees 69 employees and a $6.6M budget.

With such a broad membership base and large budget, fundraising is paramount to staying afloat.

Muroff, a graduate of the University of South Florida with a master’s degree in Secondary English Education and a bachelor’s in Mass Communications, sees a trend in both local and national nonprofits that are diversifying their funding sources to provide multiple layers of sustainability. Girl Scouts sees its biggest opportunity for funding growth with individual donors, and is building those relationships in an effort to increase awareness of programming and engagement in its mission.

The council also places a high value on its volunteers. A typical troop leader contributes an average of 200 volunteer hours per year. With changing demographics and increasing demands for volunteers’ time, Girl Scouts is evaluating its operational and delivery models, using technology, for example, to enable volunteers to contribute in the most effective ways.

Girl Scouts also leverages local partnerships, such as working with K-12 schools to deliver the state-funded Get Real program, which provides literacy skills and self-esteem development to at-risk youth.

“When our community invests in girls and their success, that leads to that community being successful,” Muroff says.

Mandy Cloninger, Executive Director, Trinity Café

During her first job as a student at the University of Florida, Mandy Cloninger learned early on that fundraising could be a career path for her. After moving to Tampa, she continued to hone her skills through various positions at places like USF Health. It was ultimately an International mission trip to Guatemala with Hyde Park United Methodist Church where she was truly impacted by the need that exists in the world.

“My heart was broken there,” says Cloninger. “I had never seen poverty like that.” After returning home, she immediately started volunteering at Metropolitan Ministries [http://www.metropolitanministries.org/], and later joined their staff.

In May 2015, Cloninger took the next step in her philanthropic journey when she became executive director of Trinity Café [http://www.trinitycafe.org/] in Tampa.

The café is a nonprofit restaurant that serves an average of 280 hungry and homeless each day. The experience is truly unique. Each guest is seated at a table that is hosted by one of 30 volunteers who serves and builds a relationship with the guests while they enjoy a three-course meal prepared by resident Chef Alfred.

Cloninger, who earned a master’s degree in Mass Communications at the University of Florida and a bachelor’s in Public Relations at Texas Tech, manages a staff of two and oversees a budget of $730,000. Key to the café’s mission and financial sustainability is relationships with other nonprofits in the region. For example, Feeding America Tampa Bay, assists with bulk food purchases. The Tampa Hillsborough Homeless Initiative provides housing assessments for the guests at the café once per week. Trader Joe’s provides food through their partner pickup program.

This follows a trend Cloninger is seeing in philanthropy of more collaboration among organizations with a similar mission. “No one organization can solve hunger or homelessness,” says Cloninger, “It takes a broad-based community approach.”

The café plans to leverage even more partnerships in the future to expand its reach, utilizing the existing kitchen to prepare meals, transport them to areas of need and serve in partnership with churches or community organizations.

“It breaks my heart for the families and the kids, and for the folks who can’t make it to the café,” says Cloninger, noting that some lack transportation or the resources to get there.

Natasha Nascimento, Founder and Executive Director, Redefining Refuge

Natasha Nascimento has a passion for helping children. Originally from Johanasburg, South Africa, she moved to Tampa with her family as a senior in high school. After graduating from the University of South Florida and University of Southern California, she worked in finance for 10 years before seeing a need in the community she couldn’t resist.

While researching issues affecting abused women and children, Nascimento learned about the widespread trafficking of children in the United States, and in Florida in particular. As she started to build awareness about this tragedy, she struggled to find support initially because most people found it difficult to believe it was happening so close to home.

In 2010, Nascimento started a nonprofit called Redefining Refuge with the idea of changing this. What began as an awareness campaign eventually turned into the first safe house for child trafficking victims in Tampa Bay in 2013. The 10-acre facility in an undisclosed location provides a safe refuge for girls ages 12 to 17 with 24-hour staff and surveillance. The trafficking victims receive ongoing therapy, schooling and resources to get their lives back on track.

As executive director, Nascimento manages a budget of $400,000 and 12 full and part-time employees. The organization has served over 100 children since inception, each with a different path and individual goals.

Nascimento, who earned a master’s degree of Public Administration at the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s in Interdisciplinary Social Science at the University of South Florida, establishes a relationship with each child at the safe house, giving them personal attention to help further their goals and validate their self-worth.

“Knowing about this stuff and seeing how children are being affected, you care a lot about your clients, says Nascimento. “Your whole scope of everything just changes. Your life perspective is different.”

Redefining Refuge partners with local groups with a similar desire to raise awareness and help victims, such as Shared Hope International and Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.

India Witte, Executive Director, Women in Leadership and Philanthropy (WLP) and Senior Director of Foundation Board Relations, University of South Florida

Public education is in India Witte’s blood. From the start of her career working for Betty Castor, then Commissioner of Education for the State of Florida, she has always worked for public education in some form. She eventually moved to Tampa and started her career at the University of South Florida in the Alumni Association. Years and several jobs later she finds herself at USF again, serving the USF Foundation and Women in Leadership and Philanthropy (WLP).

In her dual role, Witte manages board relations for the Foundation, including board staffing and philanthropic management. She also heads up a volunteer leadership team and management for USF WLP, a 215-member program designed to engage leaders and philanthropists in making an impact for women in the USF system and the community at large.

“I have a true passion for and a belief in the transformation that educational opportunities can give all people,” says Witte. “I’ve had the honor of working with people who have worked really hard to earn their money and want to leverage it to invest and change their community.”

Witte, a graduate of Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree in English, manages a department of three, $1.7 million in endowment assets and an operating budget of $650,000 per year.

She has seen a positive shift in the economic landscape for nonprofits in recent years, particularly for women. “Donors are feeling much more confident and comfortable in giving. Women are finding their voice in the philanthropic world,” says Witte.

In an effort to continue this positive shift, WLP is strengthening its relationships within all three USF system institutions, including Tampa, Sarasota/Manatee and St. Petersburg, with hopes of benefiting a broader geographic landscape and increasing impact overall. In doing so, Witte hopes to sustain the level of impact the organization has made since its founding in 2005.

“It’s incumbent on me as a leader to make sure that everything we do it sustainable for the future,” says Witte.

When members of Ad2 Tampa Bay’s Board of Directors sat down to listen to the finalists for this year’s pro bono campaign, they didn’t expect to have their minds blown. They heard from several worthy causes in the Tampa Bay area, all of whom had lofty missions and goals. But, one campaign in particular literally made their jaws drop.

The Junior League of Tampa wanted to launch an anti-human trafficking campaign on behalf of the Community Campaign Against Human Trafficking – Tampa Bay. To help make their case, they presented eye-opening statistics such as Florida ranking third in the nation for human trafficking, with Tampa Bay being a hot spot. The most staggering statistic was that the average child sex worker is just 12 years old.

“We had no idea that this issue was occurring right here in our own back yard. It hit us all very hard,” says Mandy Eyrich, public service director for Ad2 Tampa Bay, a nonprofit group of young advertising professionals in Tampa Bay. A “dream team” of sorts was put together to work on the campaign — Mandy Eyrich, Randi Sether, Kelsey Farnell and Seth Chavara — four young professionals working at various firms within the Tampa Bay region. The four also worked together several years ago at The Oracle as University of South Florida students.

The Abolish Movement

The team set out, first and foremost, to get the word out and open the eyes of the community in the same way their’s were opened. Once they started getting deeper into the issue, they realized that awareness would not be enough. They wanted to start a movement.

“Big things are done by people in masses coming together to make something happen,” says Eyrich.

The Abolish Movement officially launched in January to coincide with National Human Trafficking Awareness month. The team used guerrilla marketing strategies such as sticker bombing, where stickers were placed in areas likely to be seen by victims such as bathroom stalls of bars and strip clubs. They also created reverse graffiti, which involved stenciling the campaign’s logo into dirt on the street using a pressure washer.

In order to make the biggest impact in the shortest amount of time, the team decided to unite multiple community organizations – churches, schools, businesses and government offices – with the same message.

The team of four spent many late nights working as volunteers on the campaign, but thinking about the victims kept them motivated.

“I’ve never felt this way about any campaign I’ve ever worked on,” says Eyrich. “The way the community came together with all of the different sponsors and organizations…the impact has been unreal.”

Measuring Success

The National Human Trafficking hotline has reported a nearly 40 percent increase in calls from the Tampa Bay area since the beginning of the campaign, which has already led to 24 new cases being reported compared to the previous year. Discussions are now taking place with state agencies about potential statewide adoption of the campaign. The team hopes to eventually take it to a national and even global scale.

The campaign has more than 100 community partners and sponsors in the Tampa Bay area, including Allegany Franciscan Ministries, Bright House, Creative Loafing, Hillsborough County Public Schools, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Metropolitan Ministries, USF Health and Homeland Security. Ad2 Tampa Bay also received national recognition as the winner of the American Advertising Federation’s National Ad 2 Public Service Competition.

“I pray and I hope that these victims start to see that their community is fighting for them and standing behind them,” says Eyrich. “They have a voice. They’re not just in the shadows anymore.”

Karina Becerra’s goal is two-fold: Alleviate poverty for America’s indigenous tribes while protecting the environment. Her startup company, Fly Tribes, which is scheduled to launch by June, will get her one step closer to that goal.

Becerra grew up in Colombia and moved to Miami at the age of 14 to pursue educational opportunities. She eventually obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies from Florida International University. From there, she worked for various government and nonprofit organizations to further environmentally focused initiatives. After having children, she started to wonder if entrepreneurship might be in her future.

She travels to Central and South America a few times per year to visit with indigenous tribes and is always amazed at the products they make. While there, she noticed that she has something in common with the women artisans she meets: The desire to find meaningful work that provides the flexibility to raise children while fulfilling professional aspirations.

Becerra always assumed the conservation world was different than the business world until she attended a United Nations event called Women Together. The event celebrated Fashion 4 Development, a social capitalism movement that works with the fashion and beauty industries to encourage the independence of communities across the world for sustainable economic growth. After learning about what companies such as Ten Thousand Villages and Toms One For One are doing, she thought of the idea to apply the same concepts to indigenous people.

The tipping point came when she learned about the University of South Florida’s Masters Degree programs in Entrepreneurship and Global Sustainability while reading Entrepreneur Magazine.

“I thought, this is perfect. This is where I belong,” says Becerra.

Conservation Meets Economic Opportunity

Described as Etsy for indigenous people, Fly Tribes is an online marketplace that provides a means for indigenous tribes to market and sell their products.

According to the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), indigenous people constitute about 5 percent of the world’s population yet account for around 15 percent of the world’s poor. There are more than 5,000 different groups living in more than 70 countries.

Mainstream solutions to poverty often come at the expense of the environment, forcing the tribes out of their homeland due to poaching, oil drilling and other side effects of industrialization.

“People think that environmental conservation means no economic growth,” says Becerra. “But, that’s so last century. We can alleviate poverty and protect the environment at the same time.”

Becerra’s premise is that these tribes already know a lot about managing the environment; they’ve been doing it for centuries through things like sustainable fishing and forestry practices. If private businesses and charitable organizations can empower them economically and keep them in their homes, they can continue to manage the world’s most precious resources.

Fly Tribes will offer three initial products: hand-beaded sunglasses, smudge sticks and bathing suits. Eventually it will carry a full line of products — everything from baby food to oil essences to textiles.

Initially Becerra will hold the inventory locally as well as manage distribution. In the long-term, she is working with the nonprofit organization The Environmental Heritage of the Caribbean Foundation to provide handheld devices to the tribes so they can communicate and manage distributions on their own. These devices can be powered from the energy used from cooking with a camp stove-type device called Bio Lite. The Foundation is also monitoring the effects of the concept on the health of the ecosystem to make sure Fly Tribes’ overall goal of protecting biodiversity is achievable.

The Foundation, whose Executive Director Cristal Ange is Becerra’s sister, is also monitoring the effects of the concept on the health of the ecosystem to make sure Fly Tribes’ overall goal of protecting biodiversity is achievable. They work with indigeneous artisans throughout the Colombian Caribbean on development projects with the mutual goal of protecting the local ecology through sustainable economic activities.

The tribes “have a whole lot to offer to the markets of the world if they can only reach those markets,” says Becerra. “By building them an online marketplace, we can help them become leaders in the global game.”

Becerra plans to graduate with a Masters Degree from the Patel College of Global Sustainability at USF in Spring 2015.

Fly Tribes is a charter company in the new business incubator at USF and is taking advantage of their office space and events.

The college admissions process can be confusing, cumbersome and at times overwhelming for some high school juniors and seniors.

College application processes vary widely, with many requiring essays, letters of recommendation and lengthy forms, not to mention multiple deadlines and course requirements. Many students don’t even bother to apply for financial aid for fear they won’t qualify (in the 2012-13 academic year, just 43 percent of public high school seniors in Florida completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid).

Schools have College and Career Counselors, which are sometimes different than Guidance Counselors, to help students navigate this process. However, at some schools there is a critical shortage of these positions, leaving many students to fend for themselves.

“When students don’t have the resources to get into college and are left to their own devices, it doesn’t take much for them to get off track,” says Troy Miller, senior researcher and policy analyst for the Florida College Access Network (FCAN).

Introducing: The Cube

Parents at Robinson High School in South Tampa, which has one College and Career Counselor for 1,500 students, have stepped up to help fill this need.

“The Cube” (College Career Center, or C cubed), is a place where students can go for information such as career planning, college and financial aid applications and how to sign up for the SAT or ACT.

A group of 10 parents volunteer to work in the Cube in shifts of two or three hours, once per week. The trained volunteers have open-ended conversations, sometimes one-on-one but also in small groups. The focus is on impacting students based on their individual needs and goals. The volunteers served more than 150 students in 2012-13, the Cube’s first year of operation.

“It’s very rewarding,” says Meg Fernandez, Robinson High parent who helped start the initiative. “The kids are really receptive. They’re looking to do something great with their lives.”

Fernandez helped create the program at Robinson after starting a similar one at Plant High School in South Tampa a few years ago. Her inspiration came from her interest in vocational interests and background as a headhunter for 13 years. Having a daughter at Robinson also gave her access to the administration and other parents.

“I have a passion for this,” Fernandez says. “I really would love to see that people are able to self-actualize in their lives.”

Funding was provided by a parent-run foundation that raises funds for special projects within the school. Omnia Group donated furniture and supplies for the space. Employees from local construction companies Soleil and Sample Properties helped with the build out.

The Cube at Robinson is one program at just 10 schools statewide that recently won a Parent Involvement Award from the Florida Department of Education.

“We really just want to help those kids get there. It’s good for all of us when young people are successful,” says Fernandez.

Hope Donnelly started this year with a mantra: “If you’re not scared, your dreams are not big enough.”

Her dream? To create a place that provides a sense of community, self-preservation and exploration of arts and creativity in a safe, supportive environment.

Donnelly’s dream is one step closer to reality as she begins renovations on the Rialto Theatre on north Franklin Street between Interstate 275 and Palm Avenue. Under the business name 8-Count Productions, the 10,500-square-foot space will soon be home to art galleries and other space for small businesses, two dance studios for private lessons and group classes, and event space for up to 300 people.

An Eckerd College graduate, painter and former professional dancer, Donnelly teaches art at Jefferson High School in Tampa by day.

She first had the vision for the space five years ago and has had her share of typical entrepreneurial challenges — finding the right real estate, obtaining funding, and general fear of the unknown. After contacting numerous banks, she found that most tried to make the business plan fit within their parameters. She finally obtained funding through a Synovus Bank’s Small Business Administration Loans program loan officer, who believed in the vision and found a product to fit her needs. Additional grant funding is being sought from arts and historical organizations, including the City of Tampa Historic Preservation Department. All in all, $500,000 is anticipated in renovations alone.

She credits her success thus far to the learning opportunities she has experienced in different professional environments, as well as the support of friends and mentors. The tipping point was when she met her fiance and business partner, George Carter II, who supported the vision with his heart and soul and is now an equal part of the creation.  Carter will also provide choreography and photography services in the new building.

“It’s easy to get run down by the challenges, because there will be challenges,” says Donnelly. “But, having other people getting excited about the project helps keep me going. The sense of community has been amazing.”

Donnelly and Carter closed on the building October 15 and celebrated with a rooftop sunset toast with those who played a part in making it possible. Next steps include obtaining permits from the city that will allow the interior work to begin.

Donnelly was adamant about finding space in or near downtown Tampa, feeling that the area has so much talent and vision that it just hasn’t connected yet. She was also looking for walkability and a neighborhood feel in an urban environment. “We’re building a lifestyle, not just a business.”

Collaborative Space

The theater was constructed in 1925 and first opened its doors in 1926. It has been vacant since 2005, at which time it had been used as an auto repair shop. The renovation plans are to keep the historic nature of the theater in tact while adding a contemporary feel.

With dance classes and events mainly taking place after hours, small businesses will be able to use the space during the day for studios, galleries, video shoots, photo shoots and the like. This multifaceted approach challenges the typical dance studio or event space business model, which can be tough to maintain because of unused space during daytime hours.

“There is no right business model,” says Donnelly. “There is no right profession or business concept. What makes you happy can find its way into a lifestyle, making an income, generating enough to support yourself.”

Renovations are scheduled to be completed by Thanksgiving, allowing the space to be open for holiday events. The business will be fully functional in January 2014.

As for conquering fears, Donnelly recommends a mind over matter philosophy: “Talk about it often. The more you talk about it, the more likely it’s going to happen.”

When Kathleen Taylor spoke at TEDxTampaBay 2012, she had no idea what the impact of her talk would be on her life.

“It’s been like the little TEDx talk that could,” laughs Taylor.

Taylor is a mental health professional and graduate of both the University of South Florida and The University of Tampa. Her 2012 talk, titled “Rethinking the Bucket List,” offered insights from working with people who are near dying, posing the question for all to consider: “Who am I being with my life?”

As a result of Taylor’s video being posted online, she was contacted by hundreds of people who wanted to let her know how impactful the talk was on their lives.

It was these connections that inspired Taylor to start her own business, KT Coaching and Consulting. She now spends her time coaching people on how to speak their truth in a business context.

Such is the power of TED talks that started in 1984 as a conference that brought people together to hear about Technology, Entertainment and Design. TEDx has become a global phenomenon where people go to find encouragement, creativity and inspiration. The 18-minute talks by thought leaders and innovators aim to change the way you think about a particular issue, or sometimes even the world.

Inspiration In Our Backyard

TEDxTampaBay returns to Tampa Bay on October 25th at The Palladium Theatre in St. Petersburg with a focus on “Exploring the Past, Embracing the Future.”

This year’s speakers include a 5th grader and future astronaut, a neurobiologist conducting Alzheimer’s research with manta rays and the USF iPad Quintet.

TEDxSarasota will be October 16 at the FSU Center for Performing Arts in Sarasota with the theme “Harmonious Havoc.”

Participants will hear from the founder of Sarasota-based ShelterBox USA, an organization that has responded to more than 200 disasters in 90 countries, as well as the 15-year-old CEO of an entertainment company.

“It’s about getting our name out into the world,” says Judy Winslow, organizer for TEDxSarasota, who started the event after being inspired by TEDxOrlando.

TEDxSarasota attracts attendees from as far away as New Zealand who have never been to Sarasota, providing a rich opportunity to expose the region’s talent and innovation.

It’s All About Connections

The uniqueness and allure of TEDx events is that they bring together community leaders from all walks of life — artists, scientists, musicians and business professionals, to name a few. People who are already engaged in the community attend the events to see what others are doing and to find inspiration to do even more.

“You mash them up together, and you get something new,” says Gina Clifford, TEDxTampaBay founder. The outcome often exceeds expectations, changes minds and maybe even generates a new idea or two.

“I’m a big fan of TEDxTampaBay events because they can do a lot, not just for the people who speak, but for the people representing Tampa Bay and the rest of the world,” says Taylor.

TED talks can be viewed online, as well as live at independently organized events called TEDx.

CAMLS, the Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation in downtown Tampa, will soon build a new facility in Panama to expand its ability to teach medical providers in Central and South America.

The research and innovation center uses innovative simulation technology and robotics to enable students, doctors and residents to practice the latest surgical techniques in a safe environment. The concept is an advancement of modern learning and has the potential to transform the healthcare industry.

A feasibility study for the Panama expansion that began in April was recently accepted by SENACYT, the National Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation of the Republic of Panama. The facility — similar to the Tampa facility, but on a smaller scale — will also serve southern Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua and the Caribbean Islands.

Such partnerships help “us establish global recognition for USF as a leader in transforming healthcare education for all specialties,” says Deborah Sutherland, CEO for CAMLS and USF Health International Foundation, the group that is managing the Panama expansion. “It also brings more visibility and recognition to the Tampa Bay area as a true force in biotech development.”

The two facilities will participate in student exchanges, allowing USF students to study health care and priorities in urban as well as rural communities in less developed nations, where they can learn to treat diseases that have been fully eradicated in the U.S. CAMLS was part of recent local efforts to encourage Copa Airlines to provide direct flights from Tampa International Airport to Latin America, which will help facilitate the exchanges.

CAMLS will have a licensing agreement with the new organization, which will allow them to use the USF name and all of the components of the operation, including the curriculum. USF will also assist them with mentoring and relationships to help them identify resources.

Sutherland says CAMLS is also considering international expansion projects in Brazil, Mexico and Lebanon. These countries are interested in the medical tourism industry, and are seeking Joint Commission International accreditation for their hospitals. CAMLS assists with credentialing healthcare professors to assist with achieving this accreditation, which sets the standards for healthcare quality.

CAMLS served just under 15,000 learners in its 90,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility in Tampa in its first year of operation, with 472 training activities. They are predicting 20,000 will be served this year now that they are fully functional. The Panama location is expected to serve over 18,000, both from Panama and surrounding regions.

There’s an unprecedented workforce shift taking place in our society. People nearing retirement age are redefining that stage in their lives. Rather than the old adage of retirement being freedom from work, Baby Boomers — the 78 million people born between 1946 and 1964 — are looking for freedom to work, in new and meaningful ways that have an impact on their lives and their communities.

Many are achieving this through an encore career. Commonly defined as a second or third act in life typically taking place after the age of 50, encore careers combine personal meaning, social impact and continued income.

According to research from Encore, a national grassroots movement that provides resources and support to those seeking encore careers, as many as nine million people ages 44 to 70 are in encore careers, and 31 million more are looking for them.

With Florida having the 4th-largest population of Baby Boomers in the U.S. and Tampa Bay seeing a growth in this population, the atmosphere is ripe to take advantage of this movement.

Enter Encore Tampa Bay. The fledgling startup aims to help local Baby Boomers find their next careers by helping them hone their skills while connecting them to organizations in need of their talents and experiences.

The movement, launched in January, is led by Bevan Rogel, who after 33 years of organization and leadership development decided there was something more she could do to meet her calling. Her passion is now creating pathways, programs and resources to help people over the age of 50 discover what’s next for them.

“My encore career is starting Encore Tampa Bay,” says Rogel.

Encore careers could take many forms, including assisting nonprofits or other socially focused organizations, mentoring or even starting a new business to serve a social need.

Rogel was recently one of 10 individuals across the nation selected to participate in the Encore Innovation Fellows Program through the national Encore organization. The program will allow her to manage the Encore Academy, which will focus on helping those over 50 who want to start a business. The Academy will be housed at the new Greenhouse in St. Petersburg, a business assistance center led by the City in partnership with the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce.

Rogel’s work also includes meeting with nonprofits to discuss how they can benefit from the experience and expertise of Baby Boomers.

“I’m really focused on helping boomers connect and identify their encore careers, but also on influencing community leaders and stakeholders to recognize this windfall of talent and experience that could be used in a different way,” says Rogel.

Other offerings include working with local colleges and universities to help them identify Baby Boomers as potential students and tailor their curriculum to better meet their needs.

The support from the community has been very positive, with many partners working together toward a concerted effort.

“I’m excited to see community leaders ready to do some things differently,” says Rogel. “I think if we help people find and discover those encore careers, they will plug right in to ways that can benefit our community.”