Jim Fischer & Skip Carr

The Fischer-Carr Scholarship Fund was originally established as the Jim Fischer Scholarship Fund in 2004 by the Kiwanis Club of St. Petersburg in honor of one of our most distinguished members, H. James "Jim" Fischer. Jim passed away on August 17, 2004 from Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. He grew up and lived in St. Petersburg and was a graduate of St. Petersburg High School, St. Petersburg Junior College, USF and Stetson Law School. Before attending Stetson, he taught Physical Education at Tyrone Middle School.

Jim practiced law in St. Petersburg from 1975 until his death. He was a past president of the St. Petersburg Bar Association, Suncoasters of St. Petersburg and our Kiwanis Club. He served as counsel for the Tampa Bay Sports Commission and was involved with many others in the efforts to bring Major League Baseball and the NCAA Final Four to this area.

In October, 2008, the Scholarship Fund was renamed the Fischer-Carr Scholarship Fund to honor another distinguished member who passed away on September 26, 2008, Robert L. "Skip" Carr. Skip grew up and lived in St. Petersburg, graduating from Boca Ciega High School and attended St. Petersburg College. Skip was a leader in the local banking industry for 43 years. In 1998, he organized Cornerstone Community Bank where he served as President, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. He was an active civic leader serving as Board Member for PARC as well as the Salvation Army and Northside Christian School. He served in various positions as a member of the Starkey Road Baptist Church. He was an officer of our Kiwanis Club and was a very active member of this Scholarship Committee until his death.

Skip Carr and Jim Fischer were very good friends and very active leaders. They touched many lives and were best friends to many people. When Jim Fischer passed away, those of us who were close to him organized the Scholarship Fund in order to perpetuate his legacy of community service. And when Skip Carr died, those same individuals felt it was only appropriate to add his name to the fund to also perpetuate his legacy of service.

Our Club has joined with the City of St. Petersburg’s St. Pete’s Promise and the Pinellas Education Foundation’s "Take Stock in Children” Program to provide free college tuition to deserving students. Students are selected from Grades 6-9. They have been qualified and selected by the Pinellas Education Foundation based upon financial need, good grades and attendance. If they maintain that status through graduation from high school, they will receive free college tuition. Mentoring is also part of the program.

Since 2004, our Club has provided scholarships for 397 students, many of whom could not have envisioned attending college.