Florida & the Caribbean Islands Impact Report
Each year Xiomara and I send information to CBF Global about the impact CBF Florida & the Caribbean Islands has on our region. This "Impact Report" is provided by all of the CBF regions and eventually complied into an annual booklet that CBF published every year (see 2025 Impact Report towards the bottom of the newsletter).
We thought it would be fun to give you a sneak peek and see what we submitted to CBF before it shows up in the CBF Global report.
There is more work going on in our region that we couldn't put in this update, so make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date on all we do and stay connected to our mission.
We Gave Away $54,000
This year we gave $54,000 in funding to
Local Church Communities
Seminary Students
Kids Goin To Summer Camps (Passport, VBS)
Individuals In Need
Local Organizations/Ministries That Support CBF Values.
Church Plants
One area of funding we are super excited about is our support in Puerto Rico, where we are spending $10,000 to support local pastors to plant 10 new Baptist churches in the area.
Ministerial & Leadership Development
Here ways we tried to help minsters and lay leaders this year.
Florida Baptist Women in Ministry
Formed in 2025 & led by Rev Kristina LaGuardia, Pastor to Youth and Children. This group hosted several events across the state including Winter Park, Vero Beach, St Petersburg, and Orlando.
Educational Studies
Tomatoland and Having Nothing Possessing Everything are past book studies we’ve hosted for ministers and lay leaders.
Today (Oct 19) Xiomara is hosting a study of "40 Days Of Gratitude" with the books author Rafa Gonzalez.
Training Sessions
Safeguarding Our Churches @ FBC St. Petersburg talked about how to protect children and adults from abuse in church settings
Working With Neurodivergent Kids coming in Jan 2027
Cohort MIBAREDO
Xiomara & Women of the Baptist Churches of the Dominican Republic hosted 3 events that helped train women in pastoral and lay leader church work.
Pastoral Retreats
Retreats were held for ministers in Florida, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic in 2026.
Representative Assembly Leadership Retreat
Last September, our Representative Assembly (people who serve on our cbf_fl_ci leadership team) had our first ever retreat with 100% attendance. Together and over the weekend we built community, refined our purpose and deepened our friendships.
Hosted CBF General Assembly In Jacksonville, FL
One of the highlights was our CBF FL/CI Dinner Cruise where we entertained 120+ people from across CBF and several countries. The dinner cruise turned out to be the perfect gathering spot.
Good food, good views, and a boat full of people who were ready to enjoy themselves — it was the perfect space for connection. In addition, 81 people from across CBF FL/CI attended General Assembly for the very first time!
Disaster Response
Throughout the state of FL, we have 4 churches who are storing Disaster Response Buckets. Thank you:
Riverside Baptist Church, Jacksonville
First Baptist Vero Beach, Vero Beach
First Baptist St Petersburg, St Petersburg
First Baptist Church Gainesville, Gainesville
In November 2025, we worked with our connections in Cuba to help support people and communities impacted by Hurricane Melissa (category 5 hurricane wind speeds over 185mph that made landfall over Jamaica and Cuba in late October, 2025).
Disaster Training continues across CBF at both the Global and Regional Levels. The Disaster Ready Church program has been launched with the first session being held in conjunction with the 2026 General Assembly in Jacksonville. This program is open to all our churches who complete the training.
Immediately following Hurricane Isaias, CBF FL/CI was on the ground handing out tarps and Muck Out Buckets and assessing damages. Thanks Kenny Phillips!
New Churches Joined CBF
Welcome!
New Hope Baptist Church, Valparaiso, FL – July 2026
Primera Iglesia Bautista de Country Club, Puerto Rico – Dec 2025
Continuing The Work
In the 2025–26 fiscal year, our CBF Florida & the Caribbean family contributed $161,889.15 to support our shared mission. Thank you to our generous supporters — and to those whose long‑term endowment gifts continue to bless our ministries, we cannot do this work without you.
For 2026–27, we’ve set a giving goal of $187,000 as we continue expanding our impact.
If God’s been whispering to your heart about giving — starting fresh or stepping a little deeper — won’t you join us?
Your generosity keeps this good work going.
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