The funding will help preserve land and leverage additional funding for conservation
Jacksonville, Fla., Feb. 26, 2024 – North Florida Land Trust (NFLT) is pleased to announce that Delores Barr Weaver has established the North Florida Land Trust Fund at The Community Foundation to benefit and support the work of the nonprofit land conservation organization. Weaver has designated a $1 million grant from the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Funds to be distributed to NFLT over the next ten years to help fund land purchases.
“This generous gift that Delores Barr Weaver has invested in us will allow us to continue our work to save Florida’s natural spaces because it is now or never,” said Allison DeFoor, president of NFLT. “We are celebrating our 25th anniversary in 2024, and this gift is a great way to start the year. Delores’s devotion to making the world a better place is outstanding. She has built a legacy of commitment to community, and her kindness and generosity will be felt for generations to come.”
NFLT will receive up to $100,000 a year through 2034 from the fund to help pay for the preservation of conservation lands. As NFLT increases its fundraising revenue to match federal and state grants, the fund will help the nonprofit launch and leverage additional funding from other sources. NFLT will need to raise roughly $15 million in private support to fulfill the match requirements over the next few years.
Weaver established the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund twelve years ago to support many important causes in the community. Over the past year, she has worked with staff at The Community Foundation to make grants both locally and beyond Northeast Florida.
"Since my earliest involvement, I have felt connected to NFLT’s mission of preservation and celebration. Their work is not only centered on safeguarding natural places but helps people enjoy these areas and hear the stories of the preserved land,” said Weaver. "The work of NFLT will continue to span generations. Joined by many others, I can play a part in preserving our treasured natural spaces, which enrich our lives in so many ways.”
The Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund has been a supporter of NFLT for many years. She has been instrumental in supporting projects, including NFLT’s Bogey Creek Preserve, the Spanish American War Fort, which is now a part of the National Park Service, and Little Nana Dune in American Beach.
About North Florida Land Trust
North Florida Land Trust is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to preserving and enhancing the quality of life by protecting North Florida's irreplaceable natural environment. Founded in 1999, NFLT has preserved tens of thousands of acres of land through the donation or purchase of land as well as conservation easements. NFLT is funded largely by private and corporate contributions and works closely with willing landowners and public agencies at all levels of government, not-for-profit partners, and foundations. For more information, visit nflt.org.
About the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Funds
Delores Barr Weaver has an extraordinary legacy of philanthropy in Northeast Florida since moving to Jacksonville as co-owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 1993. Since her historic gift of $50 million in 2012 establishing the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund, she has partnered with The Community Foundation on her philanthropy through numerous, multi-million dollar gifts, including the Foundation’s largest-ever gift of $61 million in 2023. She has established permanent endowments for more than four dozen nonprofits, including 20 that receive ongoing annual support through the Delores Barr Weaver Forever Event Fund, est. 2015. Today, her grantmaking exceeds $209 million, with support for more than 300 organizations in Northeast Florida and beyond.