Feb 26, 2026
The Tampa Bay Lightning honored Jeanne Tate as the first Lightning Community Hero of the season
TAMPA BAY - The Tampa Bay Lightning honored Jeanne Tate as the first Lightning Community Hero this season during the first period of tonight's game versus the Florida Panthers. Tate, who received a $50,000 donation from the Lightning Foundation and the Lightning Community Heroes program, will donate the money to Gift of Adoption.
Jeanne has worked for the past 30 years helping find homes for abused, neglected and abandoned children. She does this through her pro bono work with the State of Florida foster care population and Bay Area Legal Services where she has donated over 1,000 hours as a volunteer, pro bono attorney and mentor. Tate also founded two adoption agencies; Heart of Adoptions Alliance, Inc. and Heart of Adoptions, Inc. as well as a law firm where she has agreed to assist any and all indigent families with free adoption services.
Judges, social workers and adoption professionals regularly reach out to Jeanne for assistance in finding homes for special needs children. Her visionary work and innovative approaches both nationally and internationally have led to changes in our laws and over 3,000 children have landed in their forever homes due to Jeanne's efforts. She also works as a volunteer for Gift of Adoption Fund and created the St. Frances Fund to assist adoptive parents of special needs children.
Jeanne Tate becomes the 324th Lightning Community Hero since Jeff and Penny Vinik introduced the Lightning Community Hero program in 2011-12 with a $10 million, five-season commitment to the Tampa Bay community. Through this evening's game, in total, the Lightning Foundation has granted $16.3 million to more than 400 different nonprofits in the Greater Tampa Bay area. During the summer of 2016, the Vinik's announced that the community hero program will give away another $10-million over the next five seasons.
