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Edit Template MDCT gives you the ability to create a fund for charitable giving, in any area-of-need you are passionate about, that will continue to gift needed resources long after your lifetime.
You can give a tax-deductible gift now or opt for future gifts through your will, IRA or Trust. We welcome gifts in all charitable areas to develop an increasingly diverse group of donors who want to establish long-term charitable funds.
The Mount Dora Community Trust is dedicated to developing, nurturing, and sustaining the charitable goals of our donors and the communities we serve through charitable giving. The staff at MDCT will assist you every step of the way—from planning your initial gift to making the impact you desire. Contact us to start not just a process, but a personal, impactful relationship.
Reach out to MDCT staff to determine the best type of fund to accomplish your individualized charitable goals.
Consult with your professional advisor — CPA, Estate Planning Attorney or Financial Advisor — on the best asset(s) to give as a charitable gift.
Decide on the name of your fund, and work with MDCT staff to complete a short fund agreement.
Make a gift to MDCT to establish your fund. MDCT can accept a wide variety of assets as your gift — cash, appreciated securities, retirement assets, real estate, gifts through a will, etc. You receive a tax deduction in the year your gift is made to your fund.
Then, you are ready to start making a difference, and MDCT staff members are here to help you.
Provide flexible funding to support a wide variety of community projects and local nonprofit organizations based on current community needs.
Support nonprofit groups working in specific areas important to the community, such as arts, youth programs, helping people in need, animal care, or protecting the environment.
Allow individuals or families to suggest exactly where they want their donations to go, making it easy to support causes they personally care about without starting their own separate foundation.
Provide financial assistance to students to help them attend college or complete training in specific trades or careers.
Give continuous, ongoing financial support each year to specific organizations or charities chosen by the donor.
Funds established and supported financially by companies to support charitable causes. Although they are separate legal entities, these funds maintain close ties to their sponsoring companies.
W.T. Bland, Jr. Charitable Fund
Mr. Bland is MDCT’s largest legacy donor to date. He cared deeply about local philanthropy. Bill grew up in Lake Jem, in a home called Blandford, now on the National Register of Historic Places. The family’s original fortune came mostly from banking — his father, also W.T. Bland, founded the First National Bank at Orlando in 1934, which later became SunTrust, now Truist. Bland Jr. went to a one-room schoolhouse in Tangerine and later attended the University of Florida, where he studied animal husbandry, and for pocket money he’d capture and milk rattlesnakes, selling the venom for medicines and research.
Bill served in the Navy on a destroyer during the Korean conflict and married and had two daughters when he returned home. He worked briefly for Minute Maid, when the company operated the juice- processing plant in Leesburg now owned by Cutrale Citrus Juices USA, then joined his father in the Lake Jem citrus and ranching operations. Mr. Bland passed in May of 2018 and left his fortune to become the W.T. Bland, Jr. Charitable Trust, which is now a private foundation that will be a significant grant maker in and around Mount Dora – forever.
Rich Critters
Marie Rich, a former Mount Dora City Council member, local real estate agent and an advocate for any animal in need, passed away in July of 2020 in a car accident. She was best known for her VW Bus painted to be a rolling mural of the Beatles, and her “Hippie Dog Day” events at a local restaurant, where there would be live music and patrons would fill the hippy bus full of bags of dog/cat food to deliver to the local food pantry for people in need or living on a fixed income.
Marie set up a fund with MDCT and called it “Rich Critters,” to collect donations for animals in need and assist with operations, spaying and neutering, senior care and more. When she passed Marie left the sale of her home and assets to this fund – which will now continue to help animals forever.
Joiner Scholarship
Aileen Mary Joiner died in August of 2006 at 78 years old. In her last will and testament, Ms. Joiner left her modest estate to the Mount Dora Community Trust to establish a scholarship that will aid local students who are attending a post high-school institution in Florida and keep a 3.0 GPA. Since receiving Ms. Joiner’s donation (bequest), the Aileen Joiner Scholarship has given over $200k+ to students and their college education.
Maggie Evans Fund
Maggie, age 60, of Umatilla, passed away on Friday August 20, 2010. She was a Christian and a member of the Board of Directors of the Florida Hospital Waterman Foundation and Florida Hospital Waterman. She was also active in the Mid Florida Guardianship Association, was Past Co-chair of the Florida Bar Judicial Nominating Commission and Past Chair of the Florida Bar Grievance Committee. When she passed, she left a portion of her assets to the Community Trust to establish a fund to support animal welfare.
Liveright Endowment for the Performing Arts
Mr. Liveright passed in January of 2020 at 86 years old. He was an international economist with the U.S. Department of Commerce before moving to Mount Dora in 1971 to publish what became the award-winning weekly newspaper, The Mount Dora Topic. Upon selling to a newspaper chain years later, Mr. Liveright embarked on travels with his wife that took them to more than 90 countries and territories. He served as President of the Mount Dora Area Chamber of Commerce before retiring for good in 1992.
Mr. And Mrs. Liveright established a fund at the Community Trust to be funded when they passed, and now is, called the Liveright Endowment for Performing Arts. Their fund supports arts such as theater, ballet, and music.
Harold & Janet Esch Endowment
Harold Esch passed away on April 18, 2010. Harold was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to J. Lester Esch and Martha L. Esch. The family moved to Orlando, FL in the 1930’s where Harold developed what would be a lifelong passion for baseball. That passion would lead him to write a sports column for the Orlando Sentinel in the 1960’s. Harold enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942 and served his country admirably until the end of World War II.
Janet Esch, his wife passed away on October 6, 2006. She was born in Cazenovia, NY and was a resident of Mount Dora since 1973. Jan, as everyone called her, was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother who volunteered countless hours for charitable organizations.
They left their estate to the Community Trust to establish the Harold and Janet Esch Endowment, which annually gives a significant grant to the Mount Dora Christian Academy Women & Children’s Home to help single mothers get on their feet and provide a good education to their children.
