Suncoast Credit Union Foundation Provides $10,000 to Tampa Bay Thrives

Tampa Bay Thrives announces a charitable gift of $10,000 from the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation. The funds will be used to strengthen youth mental health through early intervention and prevention strategies in school-based wellness rooms in the Tampa Bay area. Wellness rooms provide a supportive environment where students can prioritize wellness, build resiliency, and develop health coping mechanisms.

These rooms are dedicated to promoting emotional well-being and mental health among students by offering resources and activities like yoga and peer-led therapeutic conversations that help them manage stress, anxiety, and other challenges they may face. The need for this type of early intervention is critically important: According to Mental Health America’s 2025 State of Mental Health Report, Florida ranks 44^th nationally when evaluating the prevalence of youth mental illness and overall access to care. Over 19% (301,000) of our youth population (ages 12-17) in Florida experienced a major depressive episode in the past year.

“This funding allows us to expand upon the success of our Wellness Room programming. Students have expressed firsthand that they want a safe space where they can normalize conversations around mental health. To be able to make some students’ day easier so that they can dial in to the rest of their academic program is really everything,” said Carrie Zeisse, President & CEO of Tampa Bay Thrives. “Mental health is so fundamental to how we navigate our life.”

Suncoast Credit Union, Florida’s largest credit union, founded the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation to promote the education, health and emotional well-being of children in the community. Each time a Suncoast member uses their debit or credit card, the credit union donates two cents to the Foundation to fund local initiatives. Since its inception in 1990, the Foundation has raised and donated over $55 million.