Ann Rutherford is Junior League of Boca Raton’s
2014 Woman Volunteer of the Year.
Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
By Rich Pollack
Think of a major not-for-profit organization in Boca Raton, and chances are Ann Rutherford has been a part of its beginning, its growth or both.
You’ll find Rutherford’s fingerprints on such venerable institutions as the YMCA, the Boca Raton Historical Society & Museum and the Spirit of Giving Network. A Boca Raton resident for more than 40 years, Rutherford has been a longtime member of the Junior League of Boca Raton, was the driving force behind a physical education program at a local elementary school and helped create the booster club at St. Andrew’s school.
And if there’s an organization she hasn’t touched, chances are her husband, Charlie, has been involved in it.
“We have probably been a part of most of the major organizations in the area,” she said.
Her support of the community over the last four decades, and her latest challenge — serving as the liaison between organizers of the Boca Raton Bowl and its official charity, the Spirit of Giving Network — resulted in Rutherford’s being named Woman Volunteer of the Year during ceremonies hosted by the Junior League of Boca Raton last month.
Rutherford was one of 27 women nominated for the honor and was recognized along with two other familiar faces in the Boca Raton volunteer community — Connie Berry and Helen Babione — who both received Lifetime Achievement awards from the Junior League.
For Rutherford, 69, solving problems and finding ways to meet needs in the community is just a part of what she does, when she’s not working at her job selling real estate.
“After 40 years of being involved, its just part of my essence,” she said. “I love people, I love Boca Raton and I don’t want to let it go. It’s just a part of me.”
The mother of two successful adult sons, Rutherford first got involved in the community when her boys were in an elementary school that lacked a physical education program.
An athlete growing up, Rutherford worked with the fledgling YMCA to bring a program to the school.
“We raised money to run the program,” she said.
Soon Rutherford was serving as a member of the Y’s board and helped start the organization’s Women’s Auxiliary, which helped raise money to fund various programs.
“Everything was new here back then and there weren’t that many programs for children,” she said.
As her sons got older, Rutherford became involved in St. Andrew’s School, where she played a leading role in creating a booster club to support athletic programs and also served as chair of the school’s 25th anniversary celebration.
“We used Green Stamps to buy equipment,” she said.
Over the years, Rutherford stayed involved in athletics, helping to run tennis tournaments and fundraisers.
She also stayed active in the Junior League, which led to her involvement with the Boca Raton Historical Society, where she was the driving force behind Boca Bacchanal, the organization’s major fundraiser, which she guided for more than a dozen years.
Today, Rutherford’s focus is on the Spirit of Giving Network, an organization that she also helped start and which now supports more than 60 nonprofit organizations in the area.
“The Spirit of Giving Network started in Barbara Schmidt’s garage in 2005,” says Rutherford, who remains on the organization’s board of directors.
Begun during the holiday season when a group of 14 friends decided that instead of bringing gifts to holiday parties, they would collect gifts for kids in need, the Spirit of Giving Network quickly grew into a major force in the community.
This spring, the Spirit of Giving Network was selected as the official charity for the Boca Raton Bowl, the first college football bowl game held in Palm Beach County, which will be televised nationally by ESPN on Dec. 23.
As the liaison between the network and the event, Rutherford is helping to coordinate efforts to bring 250 volunteers, as well as 5,500 local disadvantaged children, to the game. The Spirit of Giving will receive funds that can be distributed back to the community as a result of its involvement in the game.
While a time-consuming challenge for Rutherford, the role of liaison to the bowl game is the perfect fit for someone who loves sports and has played such a key role in helping others.
“You really feel a part of a community when you have this level of involvement,” she said.
Comments