ABOUT US
Making A Difference
We provide educational assistance in the form of school supplies and classroom resources to the children and educators at The All Age School and The Green School in Harbour Island, Bahamas.
This assistance is funded by YOUR donations.
Fundraising Efforts
We plan to fundraise throughout the year to purchase classroom supplies for both the The All Age School and The Green School.
There are almost 400 children spread between both schools!
Supplies Needed
We have received lists of classroom supplies and textbooks needed for each school, as well as bigger wish-list items, such as generators and air-conditioning units for the classrooms.
Our Involvement
The schools are largely underserved, and benefit greatly from the community as well as our involvement.
Our Goal
Our goal is to have completely supplied classrooms for both schools by the beginning of the school year, at end of August each year.
Our History
Each year in early summer, we plan a two-week excursion to the Bahamas with our MarineMax yacht clients. We travel by boat from Naples, Florida to the Exumas Islands in the Bahamas over the course of 2 weeks. We do this with anywhere from 10-20 yachts, ranging in size from 50-100 feet! We plan several stops at various ports along the way, and one of those stops has always been Romora Bay Resort in Harbour Island.
On our trip in 2023, we had the idea that we would like to give back to the community in Harbour Island that has always been so welcoming and kind to us during our travels.
We wanted to engage our own kids in an outreach to the children of the community by donating backpacks and school supplies for the upcoming school year. With the help of Joe Dargavage and Lorria Whitfield of Romora Bay Resort and Marina in Harbour Island, we organized a 'mini-school supply drive' for the kids on Harbour Island. We packed our boat full of backpacks and school supplies and, together with our kids, drove through town on golf carts so we could distribute the supplies to the kids on the island.
Our last stop was The All Age School, the primary school for most of the children on the island. We were able to tour the school, and the local kids were so proud to show off their classrooms. It was both humbling and eye-opening to be able to experience this with our kids. We were able to supply about 50 kids with backpacks and school supplies for the 2023/2024 school year.
Energized from our giving campaign, and eager to do even more, we set about creating Harbour Island Outreach, Inc., a non-profit organization that will enable us to continue our mission to assist the students and educators of Harbour Island.
Our Team
Joe Dargavage
With its stunning pink sand beaches, phenomenal fishing, and some of the most welcoming people you’ll ever meet, Harbour Island is a quite a treat to visit. A true ambassador for the whole island, Joe Dargavage is a huge proponent of Bahamas boating and tourism and thrives on the networking and connections that naturally form between the two. Joe is the managing partner at the iconic Romora Bay Resort & Marina, the premier marina destination in Harbour Island, as well as current President of the Association Of Bahamas Marinas. No stranger to The Bahamas, Joe has been involved in the marina and yachting business in south Florida and The Bahamas in one way or another for the past 20 years. Joe has earned the distinction of serving as the only non-Bahamian elected president of the Marina Operators of The Bahamas, as well as a frequently quoted source in the media on the value of the yachting industry to The Bahamas.
During his illustrious career, Joe has achieved great recognition from many business groups in Florida, as well as the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism. He is an active member of the Broward County Boys & Girls Club Yacht Rendezvous Board, The U.S. Super Yacht Association, International Yacht Brokers Association, Founding Board Member of The Bahamas Super Yacht Association.
James Corts
Based in Naples, Florida, James is a top yacht sales professional with MarineMax, the nation's largest recreational boat & yacht retailer. For over 20 years, James' commitment to his clients is to deliver the highest level of service during and after the sale by building strong relationships to provide the ultimate yachting lifestyle.
Each spring, James and his team at MarineMax lead a two-week flotilla of yachts to explore the islands of the Bahamas, and give his clients a firsthand experience of the yachting lifestyle. It was this trip that spawned the idea to give back to the community of Harbour Island that had so graciously hosted the MarineMax group of boaters year after year.
James is an active member of his community, and his professional accolades include being elected Associate Board Member of the International Yacht Brokers Association, as well as receiving the Top Gun Sales Award for the MarineMax Chairman’s Circle and number one salesman within all of MarineMax.
Suzanne Hatcher
Suzanne is based in Naples, Florida and part of the award-winning sales and brokerage team at MarineMax that has generated numerous top-of the industry awards.
With over two-decades in the marine industry, she has an extensive background in hospitality, having been part of the original team to develop and institute a successful F&B program at a private yacht club in Naples, before joining James Corts' team at MarineMax in 2017.
The impetus of Harbour Island Outreach stemmed from a desire to expose Suzanne and James' families to different cultures and experiences outside of thier home of Naples, Florida. The kids were essential hands-on helpers, delivering school suppplies to the kids of Harbour Island on the first trip in 2023. This experience fueled the creation of Harbour Island Outreach, and the excitement of giving to this underserved community was contagious. Suzanne is eager for our next mission and to see what the future holds!
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