Cypress Employee Disaster Fund Reaches $300,000 Milestone

FORT MYERS, Fla. (October 28, 2022) Cypress Cove’s Community Advancement office announced today their successful ongoing campaign to raise funds for employees following the destruction caused by Hurricane Ian. Initiated with the support of Cypress Cove Residents Council immediately following the storm, $300,000 was raised by October 28. Additional donations are expected.

“Cypress team members rose to the extraordinary challenge Hurricane Ian delivered,” said Cypress Cove Residents Council President Betsy Russell. “They ensured residents were well cared for with the resources available, including hot meals every day and up to the minute communications posted throughout campus. This was all accomplished as many persevered through immense personal losses.”

Cypress team members started executing their hurricane preparation plans a week before the storm and remained working around the clock during and after the storm. Most employees who worked during the hurricane lost their vehicles when a storm surge overtook the campus. And like so many others throughout Southwest Florida, many employees lost their homes, vehicles and other immeasurable possessions.

The response for requested assistance was quick once an appeal from the Residents Council went out. Along with an in-house produced video for social media, the campaign began in earnest on October 3. So far, 315 residents, residents’ family and loved ones, board members, employees, business partners and vendors contributed $300,000.

“I am inspired by the generous acts of our Cypress community and beyond,” said Cypress Cove Executive Director Mary Franklin. “Words of encouragement, accolades and generous donations poured in to assist team members who need it most. These gifts will provide hope and healing as we rebuild an even stronger community.”

Philanthropists Jonathan Sechrist and Jennifer Sechrist Mai issued a $10,000 challenge match in memory of their parents, who were Cypress Cove residents from 2009 to 2020. They provided the following statement about how much the Cypress Cove family means to them:

Our parents (Chalmers and Beatrice Sechrist) were residents at Cypress Cove from 2009 to 2020, during which time they benefitted from a level of care and services that demonstrated the Cypress Cove team’s dedication to ensuring outstanding care and maintaining the dignity of each resident. This support extended to the two of us, as our parents began needing increasing levels of care in their later years. Our desire to be actively involved in our parents’ care plans was welcomed, and we were embraced as a part of their care team.

Seeing the destruction of Hurricane Ian and learning of the personal losses of so many Cypress Cove employees has provided an opportunity for our family (including the Chalmers and Beatrice Sechrist Charitable Trust) to assist the Cypress Cove team in the rebuilding of their lives. We have established a matching contribution to the Employee Disaster Fund, which will match up to $10,000 in donations to the Fund. A donation to the Employee Disaster Fund is an opportunity for all of us who have benefitted from the compassionate care and support from the Cypress Cove team to demonstrate our ongoing gratitude and support back to the team in their time of need.

Nearly 500 Cypress employees received personal checks to aid in their individual recovery efforts. Applications for additional assistance will continue to be accepted and reviewed by a committee to release subsequent funds in the weeks to come. To contribute to the Cypress employee disaster fund, please visit CypressGiving.org.

About Cypress at Home
Cypress at Home is a leading provider of home and community-based services for older adults focused on optimizing healthcare and aging. Through deep domain expertise and a spirit of innovation, Cypress at Home allows older adults to thrive through a suite of collaborative services including care management, home care, medical care, and certified home health services.

About Cypress Cove
Cypress Cove, a not-for-profit organization opened in 1999, is a well-established, highly respected, life plan community (formerly known as a continuing care retirement community) recognized nationally for innovation in senior living. Located on a beautiful 60-acre campus at HealthPark Florida in South Fort Myers, Cypress Cove is home to more than 650 residents and offers a full complement of quality living options—independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing, memory care assisted living, rehabilitative care, and home health.

About Cypress Living
Backed by a mission to continually empower those we serve; Cypress Living is the area’s leading innovator of programs and services that ensure the health and wellbeing of older adults throughout Southwest Florida. Cypress Living provides operational support to Cypress at Home, a comprehensive suite of in-home services that allow older adults to maintain independence and age successfully and safely in their own home, and at Cypress Cove, a luxury life plan retirement community offering all levels of quality living options as well as rehabilitative care.