Manasota Christian Community Foundation

We seek to lift our Sarasota and Manatee community through a foundation of support that creates authentic relationships between donors and Christian leaders.

A well-planned, intentional strategy for your giving can make all the difference.

At MCCF, our heart is to help generous people like you create a Giving Strategy based on biblical principles that empower you to be more faithful, generous, and fully alive.

If you want to give with more impact, cultivate unity in your family, and leave a legacy of generosity, let’s start a conversation.

Connections multiply through the MCCF Foundation, allowing the efforts of our ministries, partners, and community to flourish.

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Ministries

We support Christ-based ministries in Sarasota and Manatee counties.

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Partners

Donors are able to support the good work that is being done by local ministries that align with their values.

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Community

Our area gets better as people show the love of Christ through strategic generosity.

Access The Free Guide

Tips for Having The Greatest Impact With Your Donation

...and start strategically giving.

  • Steps for Choosing a Charity to Donate
  • Maximize Your Impact for Good
  • Inspiration for Being Generous
  • Discover Local Sarasota and Manatee County Christian Charities.

Our focus on relationships allows us to be mentors who walk alongside of others

From the simplicity of the Giving Fund to the multiplying power of non-cash giving, our innovative solutions can help you experience more impact, fewer taxes, less paperwork, and more joy.

We Tell Stories

The foundation’s work will result in many great things. We want to showcase these stories in a way that educates and inspires people in our community. 

Our goal with these posts will be to show how the foundation impacts the community while also illustrating the power of working together with a group of like-minded disciples.

We Are Discipleship Driven

We seek to make connections in conjunction with the Holy Spirit so that each instance of aid and assistance provides the opportunity to reach others through kindness and generosity, hopefully inspiring them to follow Jesus.

A Christian disciple is an apprentice of Jesus who participates in spiritual and relational growth within a safe and affirming group of like-minded disciples.

Our vision is that charities in Sarasota and Manatee Counties have all they need to accomplish their mission.

Our Leadership

Tom Bardwell
Board Member

Bryan Green
Board Member

Paul Cooper
President & Board Member

Terry Parker
Advisor

Scott Merritt
Advisor

Our mission is to mobilize resources by making local giving easy.

We do this by creating relationships with donors and ministries.

We believe in the biblical message of generosity. This is not specific to any denomination or church; it is for His body—the Church.

We exist to spread the message of generosity because we know it transforms lives. Spreading this message can be tricky. It’s easy to assume we’re asking for money—but we’re not. We host free events that help explore generosity without asking for anything in return. This leads to stronger families, renewed marriages, and deeper relationships with God.

Everything we do is centered around a conversation, guided by our core beliefs and principles of generosity.

Our Core Values

Giving is a heart issue

Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – Matthew 6:21

We invest our time, energy, and resources in the things that matter most to us. They are often things that ensnare us and stand in the way of liberation from materialism.

Remarkably, in much the same way your treasure reveals your heart, the purposeful reallocation of your ‘treasure’ can be an effective way to guide your heart away from earthly values and toward more meaningful treasure.

“My heart always goes where I put God’s money.” – Randy Alcorn

Giving is not only an indication of where your heart is, but it is also a means of moving your heart toward God’s generosity in a never-ending journey, expanding your heart to hold all the blessing of a closer walk with God.

God gave first

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son… – John 3:16

God is the most generous of all givers. God’s grace has blessed us with goods, skills, and opportunities to generate what we need in our lives and a rich and wonderful world in which to live out His calling. God gave at a level beyond anything we can fully comprehend, He gave His Son, whose life bought our salvation

God’s giving to us is like the filling of a cup, and our giving to others reveals the cup running over. In the context of our own blessings and gratefulness, we learn to be generous givers. We didn’t earn it; we never will. God’s gift was the highest demonstration of unconditional generosity:

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8

God owns it all

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. – Psalm 24:1

A money manager administers assets for the benefit of the owner, but is always aware that the funds he or she handles are not his own. With all the attention you place on managing our money, how does my perspective change when I come to understand that it is not my money, my wealth, my possessions, or my assets, but instead, that it all belongs to God? We are God’s money managers. The wealth of the earth and all its resources are entrusted to us, with the privilege to be stewards of its wise use. Our money is never ours to spend as we choose; our money is God’s to spend as He directs.

We are seeking first the Kingdom of God

But seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all of these things will be given to you as well. – Matthew 6:33

Jesus assures us that we do not have to worry about our earthly life because God has promised always to take care of us. And with earthly matters in God’s control, we are free to pursue more spiritual matters, seeking first and above all else, God’s kingdom and His righteousness through spiritual intimacy. Intimacy with Christ offers the highest levels of satisfaction both right now and for eternity.

Heaven, not Earth, is my home

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. – Philippians 3:20

Life is short. Eternity is long. And my home is in heaven, where I will spend eternity. This simple yet radical thinking begs an important question: Why should I invest a large amount of time, energy, and resources in what is short? Why should I focus on my (or even my children’s) very temporary life here on earth, when heaven is real and coming and calling?

It isn’t wrong for us to spend money on things that are temporary. However, if we have an eternal perspective and understand that heaven, not earth, is our real home, then we know that we can store up treasures in heaven where we (and those reached with the gospel) can experience them for eternity. A life of generosity—for all who know Christ—means the opportunity to draw closer to God, now, and in eternity. It means joy, a fulfilled heart, and the potential to store up treasures in heaven.

Giving brings joy

… remembering the words of the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive. – Acts 20:35

Our life becomes joyful, fulfilling, and purposeful as we live in God’s calling. Joy is experienced in the act of giving, but even more so in the alignment of your heart with God’s will. As generosity comes into your heart, it blesses you in ways you know in the moment, in ways you recognize over a lifetime, and in ways that are revealed to you only in eternity. Generosity enables you to live in the joy of a “life that is truly life.”

“In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.” (1 Timothy 6:19).

Would easier local giving help you?