TAMPA, FL – The Tampa Bay Lightning honored Laura Calco and Nanci March as the Lightning Community Hero this evening during the first period of tonight’s game against the Florida Panthers. Calco and March, who received a $50,000 donation from the Lightning Foundation and the Lightning Community Hero program, presented by Jabil, will donate the money to Friends of Joshua House Foundation.
Calco and March are both integral parts of supporting the children Friends of Joshua House support. Calco serves at as Friends of Joshua House’s Life Enrichment Program Manager, where she works tirelessly to create a schedule of activities that meet the needs, desires, and interests of residents. She coordinates with therapists, residential staff and their complex schedules, case managers, volunteers and community organizations to bring in a plethora of activities for the children Joshua House serves. March manages Joshua House’s donation center, ensuring all of the children they support have all of the items they need and want. She is a vital part of the community at Joshua House, and continues to impact hundreds of children annually when the need the support the most.
The funds from tonight’s grant will be used to support Friends of Joshua House’s Therapeutic Life Enrichment Services. Joshua House provides residential care to foster children, ages 6-17 years old, in five homes with a total of 48 licensed beds. Therapeutic Care and Life Enrichment programs are activities that allow the youth at Joshua House to explore interests, learn new skills, practice collaboration, engage with one another, and progress in their personal development and healing. Joshua House serves between 200-400 youth each year in their residential program and another 400-500 foster youth by providing resources they need.
Calco and March became the 606th Lightning Community Hero since the Vinik Family introduced the Lightning Community Hero program in 2011-12 with a $10 million, five-season commitment to the Tampa Bay community. Through tonight’s game, in total, the Lightning Foundation has granted $32.67 million to over 760 unique nonprofits in the Greater Tampa Bay area. During the summer of 2021, the Vinik Family announced that the Community Hero program would continue its commitment with an additional $10 million through the 2025-26 season. Upon joining the ownership group of the Tampa Bay Lightning in October 2024, Doug Ostrover, Marc Lipschultz, and their families have teamed up with the Vinik Family to contribute to the program and ensure its continued success and lasting impact across the Tampa Bay community.
