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Make‑A‑Wish, Chamber and Civil War roundtable present funding requests to Carolina Beach council
Summary
At a public hearing, Make‑A‑Wish highlighted local need (364 children in the chapter pipeline; 16 in New Hanover County and one in Carolina Beach), the Chamber asked to renew last year’s ROT funding, and the Cape Fear Civil War Roundtable requested $3,500 for an interpretive sign plus $300 annual maintenance.
Carolina Beach held a nonprofit public hearing on March 11 that included presentations from Make‑A‑Wish, the Pleasure Island Chamber of Commerce and the Cape Fear Civil War Roundtable. Council heard each group's funding request and noted staff will compile the requests and return with budget recommendations.
Janice from Make‑A‑Wish (speaker 11) explained the chapter’s mission to grant wishes for children with critical illnesses and said the eastern North Carolina chapter keeps donations locally. She reported that the chapter has 364 children on its wait list, 16 from New Hanover County and one child from Carolina Beach currently waiting. "Every dollar raised in our chapter area stays here and grants wishes to children here in our community," Janice said.
Jim DiGiglio (speaker 10), executive director of the Pleasure Island Chamber of Commerce, requested the same room‑occupancy tax (ROT) support the Chamber received the prior year to continue tourism and business services; he reviewed last year’s events and attendance figures and previewed a 2025 events calendar including Music Fest and other seasonal programming.
Helene Howell (speaker 16) and Dr. Chris Fondwell (speaker 14) sought $3,500 in upfront town funding to place a Civil War Trails interpretive sign at a locally significant site and proposed the roundtable cover an annual $300 maintenance fee. They argued the marker would help heritage tourism and public education about Sugarloaf Hill and Fort Fisher campaign history.
Council did not vote on nonprofit requests during the hearing; staff will take the requests and return with a recommendation during budget deliberations. The mayor explained the hearing only collects information and that Bruce (staff) will prepare a proposal for council consideration during the budget process.
Why it matters: Nonprofit and chamber funding decisions directly affect local events, visitor services and community programs that rely on town support and ROT funds. Make‑A‑Wish noted local children awaiting wishes, and the historical signage request ties to heritage tourism opportunities.
What's next: Staff will compile the requests and recommend allocations as part of the town’s upcoming budget process; council will vote on funding when they act on the budget.
