APAHC members have shared their voice about the importance of giving back to the local community where the 2025 conference will take place. Below is a list of volunteer and donation opportunities specifically designed to improve health, healthcare, and resource equity as well as to enhance quality of life for diverse communities. On-site, the APAHC conference will also host a letter-writing campaign to help APAHC members share their voice on anti-DEI legislation with local and state representatives.

APAHC membership is strong and we look forward to our unified efforts making a difference for community members who are in-need of a helping hand.

Local give-back opportunity: “The Well”

The Well (https://www.thewellfl.org/) is a St. Petersburg, Florida-based organization designed to enhance wellbeing within the local Black community by fostering connections, championing well-being, and providing mental health services to community members. The Well provides a number of services for the community, including:

• Monthly Sunday brunches for community members and community leaders to discuss ongoing concerns, events, and successes within the local community

• Free/low-cost mental health services for community members

• An annual “Healing while Black/DEIB Roundtable” to share best practices, resources, and progress to hold everyone in the network accountable to DEIB commitments

• DEIB training and education to businesses through a consultant model

• Hosting community events with special speakers and programming to help support marginalized community members

In consultation with the director of The Well, we have identified several opportunities for APAHC members to get involved if they would like to do so:

• The Well has offered to pair with APAHC to ensure that their May, 2025 monthly community brunch is scheduled for the same weekend as APAHC. The Well has specifically invited APAHC members to join the brunch to learn more about community needs and to share ideas or successes in promoting successful DEI-supportive campaigns. If you would like to attend the Sunday brunch, please email Melissa Faith (mfaith1@jhmi.edu) no later than April 1, 2025 so she can coordinate with The Well.

• Financial donations can help sustain The Well’s community efforts and free/low-cost mental health services for marginalized community members

• APAHC members are invited to volunteer as a webinar speaker for an event any time throughout 2025

Additional Volunteer Opportunities

• Equality Florida (https://www.eqfl.org/about-equality-florida): Largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community. Equality Florida is changing Florida through lobbying, grassroots organizing, education, and coalition building. The “Take Action” component of the Equality Florida webpage presents multiple opportunities for volunteer work and/or monetary donation (https://www.eqfl.org/Take_Action).

• Feeding Tampa Bay (https://feedingtampabay.org/findfood?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpvK4BhDUARIsADHt9sSLpevpEWRsiTIlmzo6h89pVttL1vghcHBjuMmhy0Dp-MfED3HVeEoaAq8NEALw_wcB)

• Homeless Shelters Directory (compendium of resources of unhoused individuals, with numerous volunteer opportunities; https://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/foodbanks/city/fl-st_petersburg)

Short on time? Please consider the following donation opportunities*:

(*Note: APAHC may not endorse any specific donation opportunity. This page is designed to provide our members with ideas and opportunities. As with all financial contributions, APAHC recommends that our members learn more about community organizations before providing financial contributions.)

• Equality Florida (https://www.eqfl.org/about-equality-florida): Largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community. Equality Florida is changing Florida through lobbying, grassroots organizing, education, and coalition building. The “Take Action” component of the Equality Florida webpage presents multiple opportunities for volunteer work and/or monetary donation (https://www.eqfl.org/Take_Action).

• 9 Colors (http://9colorsinitiative.org))

• African People’s Education and Defense Fund, Inc. (https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org277025.jsp)

• EmpowHERment Community Center (https://www.empowherment.org)

• Black Legacy Organization (www.blacklegacyorg.com)

• Hearts over Habits Inc. (https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org1174838.jsp)

• Coordinated Assistance Network (https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org1204314.jsp)

• Caribbean American National Development Organization, Inc. (https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org1152023.jsp)

• SOAR First (https://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org1192463.jsp)

• Business and Professional Women of Florida (https://www.bpwfl.org/)

• Women’s Giving Alliance: The Community Foundation (https://wganefl.org/advocacy/)

• ACLU Florida (https://www.aclufl.org/en/issues/gender-equity-reproductive-freedom)

• Florida Women’s Freedom Coalition (https://floridawomensfreedomcoalition.com/)

• Women Executive Leadership (WEL) Florida (https://welflorida.org)

• Women’s Foundation of Florida (https://womensfoundationfl.org)

• Women’s Resource Center (https://www.wrcfl.org; https://www.mywrc.org)

• Floridians for Reproductive Freedom (https://floridareprofreedom.org

• The Helen Gordon Davis Centre for Women (https://thecentre.org)

• Tampa Organizatoin of Black Affairs

• Hillsborough Organization for Progress and Equality Inc.

• Hispanic Services Council (https://www.hispanicservicescouncil.org/volunteerhub)

• Asian American Federation of Florida

• Hindu Family Support Services

• Hispanic Unity of Florida (https://www.hispanicunity.org/)

• Latino Leadership, Inc. (https://www.hispanicfederation.org/nonprofit-member/latino-leadership-inc/)

• Hispanic Outreach Center (https://hispanicoutreachcenter.org/)

• Hispanic Unity of Florida (https://www.hispanicunity.org/content/our-programs)