Dear Community Leaders,
With heavy hearts, we say goodbye to David Pizzo, our founding chair and champion and Florida Blue West Florida Market President. Dave was truly a gem. He loved his family; he loved Florida Blue; he loved his Tampa community, and he loved Live Tampa Bay.
Live Tampa Bay is actually the product of Dave’s insistence that our business and community leaders get involved in stemming the rising tide of overdoses in our area. He pulled in the Tampa Bay Partnership and then pulled me in three years ago to launch this initiative.
Dave’s clear commitment to turning around the opioid crisis was evident from the very beginning, and his subsequent actions matched his intent. Dave was all in. From weekly calls focused on creating a strong organization to support our coalitionโs work, to evening texts about late night tv shows covering the crisis, to weekend ideas for how to engage even more of our business community, I marveled at the energy, enthusiasm, and innovation he brought to Live Tampa Bay. Much of our work, many of our coalition members, and nearly all our board members are a part of Daveโs legacy. I hope his legacy inspires us all to lead with joy, creativity, and kindness.
Sincerely,ย
Jennifer Webb