Keith and Heidi Veres are wonderful examples of a generous couple who clearly understand how giving can be a powerful tool for enhancing the quality of life of people in the Southwest Florida region. 

 

Friends, colleagues, residents and relatives view Keith and Heidi as generous givers who always have a heart for the needy.

 

Keith and Heidi donated financial resources to support ECHO through a special program, Nonprofit Partners Membership, a staff development program offered through the Cape Coral Community Foundation.  

 

Through the Nonprofit Partners Membership Program, ECHO was able to secure global funding, in partnership with Silicon Valley Community Foundation and the Cape Coral Community Foundation.

 

 

ECHO is a sustainable farm in North Fort Myers that serves as an information hub for development practitioners around the world. They gather solutions from around the world that solve hunger problems and disseminate them to their active network.

 

These solutions promote sustainable farming techniques, nutritional plants, and appropriate technologies. They are well tested and proven to be successful over and over again.

 

Their purpose is to help those who are teaching farmers around the world know how to be more effective in producing enough to meet the needs of their families and their communities. They in turn teach others and reduce global hunger.

 

ECHO benefits 180 countries every month. Without their support, many families and communities in the world would not have the resources available to sustainable feed themselves.

 

This Southwest Florida-based nonprofit with a huge global impact has been thriving for 36 years. Then … Hurricane Irma hit and ECHO’s facilities were devastated. Volunteers worked tirelessly for 5,600 hours to get their operations up and running again.

In the wake of Irma, ECHO realized that they needed to be prepared – not if another storm hit, but when. Their list of necessities included storm shutters, emergency equipment, better food preservation capabilities, water system adjustments, and taking care of the volunteers.

 

Through Keith and Heidi Veres, the Cape Coral Community Foundation Global Center for Generosity heard the cry for help from this organization and immediately went to work looking for ways to find the funds. ECHO was able to secure a grant for $25,000. 

 

For more information about ECHO, visit: https://www.echonet.org/

 

For more information about the Nonprofit Partners Membership program, visit www.capecoralcf.org