Mabel Schaefer’s Inspiring Legacy Story

Mabel Schaefer’s passion for early childhood education, her Catholic faith, and helping the elderly lives on thanks to her generosity

Her faith was central to her life and evident in her actions. Mabel modeled kindness, humility, and grace in both quiet moments and meaningful relationships. She was a steady presence for her family, her church, and her community, someone whose impact was felt far beyond what could be seen.

Through thoughtful planning, Mabel’s legacy is now extending that same care and commitment to others. Mabel’s guardian and trustee of her estate, turned to GiveWell Community Foundation (GWCF) to assist in assuring that her values continue to be carried forward to support causes that reflected her life—early childhood education, Catholic-based services, and care for the elderly.

In honoring Mabel’s legacy, GWCF awarded grants to twenty nonprofit organizations serving Polk and Highlands counties. These investments will support programs that strengthen families, expand access to education, and provide compassionate care for older adults, ensuring that Mabel’s lifelong dedication to others continues to make a meaningful difference.

Mabel’s life serves as a reminder that generosity, when rooted in purpose and guided by values, can extend far beyond a lifetime. Her legacy lives on not only in memory, but in actions, supporting and uplifting the community for years to come.

The following nonprofit organizations received funding for projects that focus on the causes that meant the most to Mabel during her lifetime:

• Bonnet Springs Park’s BSP Early Childhood Nature Exploration received $30,000.
• Boys & Girls Club of Highlands County’s Boys & Girls Club of Highlands County Lake Placid Life Skills and Learning Center received $20,460.
• Catholic Charities of Central Florida’s Walking With Moms In Need received $20,000.
• Central Florida Speech and Hearing Center’s Fall Prevention: VNG and Balance Diagnostic Capacity (The Balance Clinic) received $60,000.
• Faith in Action North Lakeland’s Thriving Seniors – Making Way for More Senior Care received $28,000.
• Florida Children’s Museum’s Cross-County Early Childhood Initiative received $100,000.
• Florida West Coast Public Broadcasting (WEDU PBS)’s Building Problem Solvers Together: Families Exploring Computational Thinking at the Museum received $20,000.
• Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay’s JA Muma BizTown Program at the Barnett Family Discovery Center of Junior Achievement of Polk County received $50,000.
• Lake Wales Care Center’s Elder Services received $43,000.
• Learning Resource Center of Polk County’s READY! SET! READ! received $68,000.
• Lighthouse for the Blind and Low Vision’s Early Childhood Development and Education for Blind Babies received $25,000.
• Magnolia Montessori Academy’s Growing Futures: A Sustainable Scholarship Initiative received $40,000.
• Mi Escuela Montessori’s Nurturing Foundations: Early Childhood Classroom Expansion received $75,000.
• Neighborhood Service Center‘s Senior Dignity, Wellness & Stability Initiative received $25,000.
• NU-HOPE Elder Care Services’s Reducing the Financial and Social Impact of Incontinence Among Low-Income Older Adults received $45,000.
• Polk Education Foundation’s Building Blocks Literacy: Building Better Readers Through Strategic Phonics Instruction received $80,000.
• PunchWorX’s Exercise for Parkinson’s Disease Program received $49,300.
• Society of St. Vincent de Paul South Pinellas’s SVdP CARES Ending Homelessness for Seniors received $20,000.
• Talbot House Ministries of Lakeland’s Early Childhood Stability and Development Initiative at the Center for Women and Children received $60,000.
• WonderHere Education Foundation’s The Mabel Schaefer Early Childhood Nature Center received $20,000.