Normally, at this time of year, Jennifer McCurry is making the rounds in the ballrooms of Naples, helping raise millions for charity. This year, many of those events have been cancelled due to the pandemic. But the need to raise money will remain. “We'll need to get creative this year,” she says.
Thankfully, McCurry has a knack for the creative.
She comes from a tight-knit extended family in Iowa that always encouraged her artistic side. Her parents, Susie and David McCurry, came to Naples about 20 years ago, and she followed a few years after. A budding jewelry designer with a degree from the Gemological Institute of America, McCurry held a trunk show for her line at Marissa Collections. She eventually became the boutique’s jewelry and accessories buyer, helping build the collection to feature more than 60 designers. In recent years, she’s shifted her focus. “It’s hard to explain,” she says. “You feel like you’ve done everything, but then you want to do more.”
She had become a mother of twin boys, who are now 4 years old. And she started to get more involved in philanthropy. Like her parents, she had been a fixture at Naples’ many galas. But recently, she started getting more involved in organizing. In the last couple of years, she co-chaired the American Cancer Society’s Bucket List Bash and the Naples Zoo Gala. Last year, the zoo event raised a record $1.3 million with her help.
Her reasons for donating time and energy are varied: She became more involved at the zoo after getting a behind-the-scenes tour from CEO Jack Mulvena; she joined with the cancer society after watching so many friends and family suffer from the disease. But, overall, she just feels a strong desire to give back to her community.
Typically, McCurry attends and supports more than a dozen events in a social season. And though this year will be different, she knows Naples will step up. “We will need to continue to support each other and remain dedicated to our causes,” she says. “I believe more than ever, it should be a year of gratitude and appreciation.” —Justin Paprock