A decade has passed since Chris Culhane was hired to work at the Center of Anna Maria Island.
But his connection with the nonprofit runs even deeper.
Culhane spoke with The Islander Nov. 7 about his history with the community center and the 10-year anniversary of his hiring.
Culhane grew up on the island and was a self-described “center rat” as a kid.
“I used to get out of Anna Maria Elementary School and my mom used to work on the north end up here. I’d ride my bike and she’d give me two quarters and I’d come to the center just about every day and get candy out of the vending machine,” he said.
Culhane said he spent a lot of his time as a kid at the center, hanging out with friends and participating in youth sports, which used to include a wrestling team.
“That’s how I came to love the center,” he said.
Culhane moved off the island in 1994 but returned only a few years later.
After graduating from the University of South Florida in 1999, he became the owner of a cafe, then a property management company.
While adult life had taken him away from the community center, having kids of his own brought him back.
Culhane, who has three children, said he once again found himself visiting the center daily in the early 2010s, and he took up coaching for his kids, who participated in youth sports.
“I was just back out here every day, coaching the kids … and just fell back in love with the place,” he said.
So when an opportunity to become the nonprofit’s operations director presented itself in 2015, Culhane took it.
When the executive director position became available in 2018, Culhane was encouraged to throw his hat in the ring.
He was appointed executive director in February 2018.
“I was fortunate that they chose me,” Culhane said. “I never thought that I would be running a nonprofit. … Never thought I would have all this responsibility.”
October marked 10 years on the job.
“I can’t believe that it’s actually been 10 years,” Culhane said. “It’s been an interesting journey. … But I love it.”
He said his proudest accomplishment over his time with the nonprofit happened last year, as the center helped support islanders following hurricanes Helene and Milton.
“It’s not what I have done, but it’s what this community did to take care of each other. … This whole community stepped up and helped each other rebuild,” Culhane said. “It’s pretty impressive that it’s just about a year later and it’s like nothing ever happened out here.”
Moving forward, he said he was excited to continue building up the center and see it build financial stability for future generations.
“I’m only interested in protecting this place and taking care of this place and trying to make it better for future generations,” he said.