Awesome Tampa Bay Engages Community In New Pitch Sessions

Megan Hendricks | Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Now the Tampa Bay community will have a front row seat to the people, projects and organizations that make the region awesome.

Since 2011, Awesome Tampa Bay has been providing quarterly $1,000 microgrants to support projects that make the region a better place. Whereas in the past the decisions were made during a selection meeting with nine trustees, the group is now choosing grant recipients using a Shark Tank-style pitch session. The top five applicants will pitch their idea to the now 12 trustees in a public format. They will then receive feedback on what they can do to improve their idea. Although the grant will still be awarded to one recipient each quarter, the pitch session will allow everyone involved to benefit from the connections. The first session will take place August 22.

Awesome Tampa Bay is also joining other similar organizations around the world to participate in "Awesome Day in the World" June 27 with a Mid-Summer Awesome Party. The free community event from 5 to 7 pm at Curtis Hixon Park in downtown Tampa will celebrate the vitality and richness of the region, asking people to communicate what they like best about Tampa Bay and what could be done to make it even more attractive.

"Awesome Tampa Bay gives us the platform to celebrate the great, bright spots in our community and encourages people to take risks in order to make the community great," says Rafaela Amador, dean of awesomeness for Awesome Tampa Bay. "Every quarter we find a way to say 'yes' to making the community better, $1,000 at a time."

Writer: Megan Hendricks
Source: Rafaela Amador, Awesome Tampa Bay

Read more articles by Megan Hendricks.

A Florida native and longtime Tampa Bay resident, Megan Hendricks graduated from the University of South Florida with a master's degree in business administration. She worked at the USF College of Business and has extensive community experience including the Tampa Bay Partnership's Talent Dividend Advisory Board, Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Emerge Tampa Bay, Ekhos, and Bar Camp Tampa. She is a former board member and newsletter editor for Creative Tampa Bay. Megan enjoys telling the stories that make Tampa Bay a unique, diverse cultural experience.