Go Giver: George Foote

Posted on May 30, 2012 By Editor Our Community

By Julie Kerns Garmendia

George Foote is the kind of dad and volunteer who can motivate an extremely busy middle school principal to alert the community newspaper that he should be recognized for exceptional contributions to Julia Landon College Preparatory and Leadership Development School in San Marco. Foote and his wife Michele, a senior business analyst at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, have three children. Their youngest, daughter Regan, 14, is an eighth grader at Landon.

“Mr. Foote has been incredibly generous with his time, talents and energy as a volunteer at Julia Landon Middle School, and we continue to be grateful for the chess club program he has built over the past three years,” said Landon principal, Dr. Kelly Coker-Daniel. “The JLMS Chess Club recently placed 1st in the Jacksonville Scholastic City Chess Championship. Mr. Foote also started the chess club at Hendricks Avenue Elementary School while his daughter attended there.”

Foote is a San Marco resident and business owner who offers publishing and website development through his company, Silent E Publishing. Foote grew up in New Smyrna Beach where many of his friends’ parents worked at the Kennedy Space Center. He attributes his keen interest in the sciences and rockets to unique early experiences and exposure to the space program. He still remembers the thrill he felt when the Saturn 5 rocket was launched and shook the windows of his home.

“At Landon I volunteered to sponsor a chess club which has grown to approximately 26 students. I also suggested that the school participate in the Team America Rocket Challenge (TARC), where middle and high schools from around the country compete to design and build a rocket for launch and landing. The students must figure out the math, complete theoretical and hands-on work, utilize computer-aided design, manage the payload (two raw eggs) and successfully launch the rocket. The rocket must fly to the required altitude and return with the two raw eggs intact. The flight data is recorded and evaluated for the competition and placings,” Foote said. “I appreciate the assistance and involvement of Landon teachers Mr. Lee (chess club) and Mr. Cook (TARC), who are also sponsors of these activities.”

While his daughter attended Hendricks Avenue Elementary School, Foote mentored the chess club. He also volunteered to teach Rocket Science to the gifted students, worked with the Math Superstars and for Science Days, among other activities.

“I have always loved doing all kinds of activities with my kids,” Foote said. “Besides volunteering for their school activities, I especially enjoyed the Scout High Adventure camps my sons and I were able to attend together in Philmont, New Mexico and Florida Sea Base in the Florida Keys. The Philmont Scout Ranch is 214 square miles of rugged mountainous terrain near Cimarron, NM. To reach the Florida Sea Base we had to paddle out six or seven miles to an undeveloped island without electricity or running water.”

Foote’s community volunteer activities cover many areas and are longstanding. He served as president of San Marco Preservation and is now president of the San Marco Merchant’s Association. He was den leader for Cub Scout Pack 35 and assistant scoutmaster and merit badge counselor for Boy Scout Troop 35 when sons Joseph (an Eagle Scout now pursuing a computer science degree) and Garrett (philosophy major interested in law school) were involved.

He also has donated his professional skills and resources to assist community efforts through the publication of two books. He published The Hendricks Haiku Project, a book of poetry by the students, teachers and staff of Hendricks Avenue Elementary School with proceeds donated to the Friends of Hendricks support group. The publication Southbank Sojourn by Robin Robinson, which chronicles the early history of South Jacksonville and San Marco, was a second philanthropic project with proceeds donated to The San Marco Preservation Society.

The Foote family members are active members of Southside Baptist Church where Foote has taught Sunday School and volunteered with the Youth Missions group for the past 15 years. He has coached Little League Baseball, youth ice hockey, soccer and Pop Warner Football. He has also volunteered for: St. Johns Riverkeeper clean-ups, usher for The Florida Theatre and Theatre Jacksonville, penalty box official for East Coast Hockey League (Lizard Kings), Scholastic Board Member with Florida Chess Association and volunteered to work on the political campaigns of Matt Carlucci, Art Shad and Lori Boyer.

The Foote family has lived in San Marco since 1988 because of its proximity to excellent schools, their love of the community and their 1936 two-story Georgian style red brick home. Another perk is their enjoyment of bicycling through the river neighborhoods. The whole family also enjoys board games and — of course, they all play chess. The Footes travel frequently in the U.S. and overseas.

“I believe that volunteering is a big part of the San Marco community culture, and that is one big reason this is such a great place to live and work,” Foote said.