There’s no need to extend the deadline for Charles and Jo Ann Lester’s $50,000 Challenge sponsored by The Islander newspaper to raise money for the Anna Maria Island Community Center.
Sandy Pruett of the center’s staff said last week that when all the checks were counted, the center had received $56,000.
The Lesters donation of $50,000 brings the total to $106,000 for the center in the 2011 Challenge.
The Challenge deadline was Dec. 31, although Charles Lester said two weeks ago he would extend the deadline to Jan. 18 if necessary to reach the $50,000 mark. The center had not provided the total funds collected by Dec. 31.
Since the Lester Challenge began in 1997, more than $800,000 has been donated to the center, while the Lesters have contributed more than $400,000 for the center endowment, capital building fund and general fund.