WOW Cares

Giving back to our community...

Food DriveResults0123b

Westchase Thanksgiving Food Drive

 

WOW's Annual Thanksgiving Food Drive is the largest community food drive benefitting Metropolitan Ministries. Participating communities include Westchase, Tree Tops, Westchester, Mandolin, Windsor Place, West Hampton, Waterchase, and Highland Park. The Food Drive is made possible due to the numerous volunteers across all of these communities who step up year after year to distribute fliers, collect food, and work on-site on the day of the drive sorting and boxing up food. We are also grateful to the businesses that step up each year to match resident donations.

In 2025, the drive resulted in the collection of:

  • 40,090 pounds of food
  • 885 turkeys
  • $5,870 in monetary donations thanks to the generosity of our business matchers and individual donors.

 

The Great West Chase

The Great West Chase is a popular event hosting a 5K, 10K and Children’s Fun Run on the last Saturday in October. Thousands of runners and scores of generous volunteers and race sponsors come together to raise funds to help local schools with struggling kids.

Recent donations include:

  • $31,000 for Davis Elementary (Title I), 2017
  • $26,000 for Davidsen Middle’s ESE and ELE students, 2018
  • $33,000 for Woodbridge Elementary (Title 1), 2019
  • $15,000 for Citrus Park Elementary (robust special needs program), 2021
  • $27,000 for Town and Country Elementary (Title 1), 2022
  • $23,000 for Bellamy Elementary (Title 1), 2023
  • $35,000 for Morgan Woods Elementary (Title 1), 2024

WOW has awarded nearly $400,000 in Great West Chase funds since 2002.

The 2025 Great West Chase will be held Sat., Oct. 25. Check back in the spring of 2025 for sponsorship opportunities and registration details.

WOW Spring Egg Hunt

Proceeds from the 2024 Spring Egg Hunt benefitted the following organizations:

  • $2,000 to the LaVoy Exceptional Center, a Title 1 school serving students with special needs
  • $2,000 to Clothes To Kids, a local nonprofit that allows low-income or in-crisis students to shop for school clothing free of charge.
  • $2,000 to the local chapter of End 68 Hours of Hunger, a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that puts nourishing food in the hands of school children to carry them through the end of school on Friday to the start of school on Monday (approximately 68 hours).
  • $2,000 to nearby Oldsmar Cares, a nonprofit offering gap utility and rent assistance, a food pantry and a clothing closet to those in need at no cost.
  • $500 to Northwest YMCA Scholarship Fund
  • Holiday meals for Angel Tree families at Westchase Elementary and Davidsen Middle schools for a total of $2,000

Thank you all for a successful 2025 Spring Egg Hunt. We'll update the list of beneficiaries at the end of our fiscal year. 

WOW Cares

WOW is a 501(c)3 charity that publishes the WOW newsmagazine, builds a stronger community by hosting important Westchase events and uses the proceeds to make charitable contributions. Since 2004 WOW has given over $1 million in direct donations to local schools and charities. In addition to donations made possible through our three signature events, in 2024, the WOW also donated:

  • $400 Jacob's Touch Charity Golf Tournament sponsorship
  • $250 Westchase Freebooters Charity Pickleball Tournament sponsorship
  • $1,000 Westchase Santa Parade sponsorship

 

Scroll to Top