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© St. Petersburg Times, published October 11, 2001
The American Red Cross' Tampa Bay chapter had raised $576,698 as of last week for victims of the attacks on the United States, spokesman Steffan Strayer said.
The money was raised through corporate matching programs, donations from Tampa Bay area sports franchises, children giving their lunch money and individual donations.
Some people held fundraisers on their own. Kevin Kladakis, a real estate agent in Tampa, raised $5,500 at a Sept. 29 house party at which Tampa City Council member Rose Ferlita was a guest.
"Everybody I knew was just miserable over this, and nobody had anything they could do," he said. Kladakis spent $350 of his own money on the party. "I consider it a pretty good investment in charity."
The Tampa Bay chapter has sent 20 staff members to New York, New Jersey and Connecticut to work on the relief efforts there, Strayer said. The Red Cross is feeding and sheltering recovery workers, providing financial help to the families of attack victims and arranging counseling for those who need it, among other services.