Sponsors & Supporters
FOUNDING DONOR: Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation
$1.1 million
Suncoast Searchlight grew from a desire to address the local impacts of the nation’s rapidly shrinking news industry and preserve within the region the strength of the fourth estate.
Seeded by a generous grant from Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, that desire first took shape in 2023 as the Community News Collaborative (CNC) – a nonprofit newsroom housed under Tampa Bay-area NPR affiliate WUSF that produced community news for local media partners.
In 2024, the CNC reformed as an independent 501c3 with a separate governing board and a more focused mission of producing investigative, watchdog and explanatory journalism under the name Suncoast Searchlight.
OTHER ESTEEMED SUNCOAST SEARCHLIGHT SUPPORTERS
THE VANGUARD ($100,000+)
- Gulf Coast Community Foundation
LEADERSHIP CIRCLE ($50,000+)
- Scott and Rebecca Barancik
VISIONARY SUPPORTERS ($5,000+)
- Michael Hannon
PILLARS OF THE PRESS ($1,000+)
- Emily Le Coz
- Jim Doyle
- Barbara and Rich Scissors
- Keith Woods
STEWARDS OF THE MISSION ($500+)
- Doug Logan
- Kelly McBride
FRIENDS OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT ($100+)
- Diane Allen
- Susan Buniva
- Susie Bowie
- John Bradbury
- Julee Breehne
- Richard Brinson
- Kelly Brown
- Su Byron
- Judy W. Carson (in honor of Miles Toder)
- Karen Christianson
- Brian Cody
- Kay Delaney
- Robert Hendel
- Brian Hunter
- Michelle Kapreilian
- Robert McCarthy
- John Mercer
- League of Women Voters of Sarasota County
- Philip Peters
- Carol Rescigno
- Michael J. Shelton
- Barbara Peters Smith
- Sandra “Sandi” Stuart
- Steve Wilson
COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTORS ($1 – $99)
- Elizabeth Barrett
- Jessica Bryan
- Judith Burgis
- Mollie Cardamone
- Robert Clark
- Robin Cooper
- Diane Desenberg
- Ericka Dow
- Joe Harris
- Robert Hendel
- Irek Hicks
- Mary Jo Hixon
- Nancy Hughes
- Daniel Idzik
- Jennifer Johnston (in honor of Matt Sauer)
- Michael Lehner
- Alex Neihaus
- Robert Patten
- Marjorie Peter
- Laura Pether
- Linda Salomon
- Peter Saxon
- Susan Smitten
- Sharon Stoffel
- Gary Szpatura
- Tracy Vanderneck
- Regina Walker
- Allison Werner
- Joel Werth
- Allyne Zorn
MONTHLY SUSTAINERS (Recurring contributions)
- Mary Aust
- Laird Boulden
- Hazel Bradford
- Melony Deeds
- Kelly Franklin
- Mary Ginley
- Stephen Hoffman
- Margo Howard
- Jamie Kattrein
- Karl Kaukis
- Carol Larson
- Carol LoCicero
- Kelly McBride
- Michelle McLean
- Margaret Pennington
- Fitz-Edward Otis
- Samantha Ramlall
- Renee Ray
- Katie Ross
- Kristina Skepton
- Janice Webster
- Eric Winder
- Norman Wirtz
GIFT ACCEPTANCE POLICY
Suncoast Searchight has a Gift Acceptance Policy to guide how we handle donations to our 501(c)3 nonprofit news organization. To learn more about this policy, visit this page. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation, please click here.


