Southeastern University professor Joe Davis was recently honored at the Florida Blue Foundation’s 2026 Sapphire Awards, receiving first-place in the Individual Category for his leadership and lifetime advocacy for youth in foster care.
Davis will receive $100,000 toward Anchor House Ministries, a faith-based organization based in Auburndale that serves youth in crisis across Central Florida. Davis just concluded his 12-year tenure as executive director, SEU said in a news release.
Davis, a professor of religion, has served within Southeastern University’s Barnett College of Ministry & Theology for more than 20 years.
The Florida Blue Foundation, the philanthropic affiliate of Florida Blue, honored recipients during its annual Community Health Symposium and Sapphire Awards on April 16 in Orlando. The awards recognize programs, organizations and individuals improving health and well‑being across Florida, the foundation said in a news release.
Under Davis’ leadership, Anchor House grew more than 600%, expanding housing, education and therapeutic services, the SEU release said. When he first joined the organization in 2013, it operated as a single campus serving foster care boys younger than 18 with a team of 12 staff members.
Anchor House now employs about 75 staff members and has served thousands of young people through several transitional and residential homes, the release said. Davis helped launch Polk County’s first transitional home for young men aging out of foster care, providing them educational support, life skills development and a pathway to independence.
Since then, Anchor House has established three additional transitional homes in Polk County, with plans to open another in Volusia County.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Southeastern University professor honored for foster care advocacy
Reporting by Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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