RSS
Print This Post Print This Post

Lee Wetherington

Lee Wetherington

Building Dreams

by Tracy Esinaugle

lifestyle photography by Chad Spencer

 
Revered, Respected, Influential, Generous, Honorable, Unexpected…

Lee Wetherington is a prominent figure in the Suncoast, when asked to describe Lee the popular depiction would mainly be in regard to his professional persona; Lee is a successful and respected award winning homebuilder. Known primarily as a man who tells it like it is, stands firmly behind his convictions, and is not afraid of a little hard work to get the job done right. But there is a contrary side to Lee, concealed behind his resilient builder façade is a humorous and modest man who is often overcome by his generous heart and continual passion for the community and the families who declare it home.

A former Marine who still lives by the honorable code, appreciates his freedoms and is grateful for the opportunities a life of hard work has bestowed. After his tour of duty Lee returned to Jacksonville where he worked for the family drywall business; starting as a construction laborer and working his way up the ranks. In 1976 Lee relocated to Sarasota where he and a partner launched RichLee Construction, the partnership later dissolved and in 1981 Lee Wetherington Homes was established. Working from a model home garage, Lee performed every function of the business from sales, design, and selections through the completion of construction. Years of hard work, determination and developing lasting relationships has resulted in successfully transforming the Lee Wetherington brand into the well-regarded enterprise it is today. Presently, Lee still works full time, is very much involved in the daily transactions and is notorious for taking a personal interest in each home they build.
 
With all his success and fortune one might assume that Lee would be jet setting around world to lavish vacation homes on a private plane or cruising the oceans on a magnificent yacht but the truth is he remains humble and lives a modest lifestyle. No abundant list of toys, boats, planes or multiple addresses. Instead Lee enjoys living downtown, eating at local hangouts and an occasional round of golf. Continuing to give back to community through acts of service and granting gracious gifts to those in need.
 
Lee’s first charitable act was in 1977 delivering for Meals On Wheels. This later led to his involvement with Girl’s Inc., Children’s Heaven, the United Way’s Day of Sharing and the construction of the reading garden at the Fruitville Library. Working with multiple organizations overtime allowed Lee to find his niche, taking great satisfaction in focusing his philanthropic mission on the education and character building of children and families.
 
In 1991 Lee joined the board of The Boy’s and Girl’s Club of Sarasota, he was attracted to the opportunity to work with Mac Reid and shared Mac’s vision to take the club from a gym and swim to an educational and character building facility, with an emphasis on making the club accessible to kids from every economic background. In 2000 Lee chaired the building, fundraising and architectural committees to assist in the construction of the new 38,000 square foot Lee Wetherington Boy’s and Girl’s Club of Sarasota, Lee personally donated $500,000 for the resurrection of the facility.
 
Also concerned with the effects of development and building on our local environment, Lee recently received accolades for his land and monetary donations to the Oscar Scherer State Park. Lee’s company proudly employs the Florida Green Building Coalition’s Green Building Standards for every home they build and they are also the first homebuilder in the Sarasota /Manatee area to become a 100% partner with ENERGY STAR.

To broaden his philanthropic efforts and to gain support with fund management Lee entrusted The Community Foundation with an endowment of two million dollars over the past five years. Believing in the benevolent aspirations of The Community Foundation Lee has taken on the role of the 2007-2008 Chairman of the Board.
 
Supporting the causes he strongly believes in, Lee is a complex man who modestly conceals his giving nature. Inspiring others and making a conscious effort to give back to the community that has blessed him with great success, Lee Wetherington proves to be a gracious man of honor who walks the walk and talks the talk.

www.lwhomes.com

Share

Tags: ,

Leave a Reply


Featured Properties

Ads

REAL HAPPENINGS

April 2, 2020 Ringling Underground

April 2, 2020 Ringling Underground

CANCELLED Ringling Underground CANCELLED. Enjoy live music, and art in the Museum of Art Courtya[...]
CleanSlate Property Services Opens

CleanSlate Property Services Opens

CleanSlate Property Services, a local concierge handyman business. My name is Tim White, former [...]
March 5, 2020 Ringling Underground

March 5, 2020 Ringling Underground

Ringling Underground Returns. Enjoy live music, and art in the Museum of Art Courtyard 8:00pm -1[...]
March 6, 2020 Gettel Toyota Grand Opening

March 6, 2020 Gettel Toyota Grand Opening

You're Invited To Gettel Toyota Of Bradenton's Grand Opening. On Friday, March 6th, from 12pm-2:[...]
March 12-13, 2020 Pop Up Art Show

March 12-13, 2020 Pop Up Art Show

Sarasota Architectural Salvage Hosts Event To Support Local Artists. For more information and/or[...]
February 6, 2020 Ringling Underground

February 6, 2020 Ringling Underground

Ringling Underground Returns. Enjoy live music, and art in the Museum of Art Courtyard 8:00pm -1[...]
January 25, 2020 Spoons And Tunes

January 25, 2020 Spoons And Tunes

TheWineToBuy.com Hosts Innovative Wine Tasting. Tired of the same old BS? Then join TheWineToBuy[...]
February 7, 2020 Thunder By The Bay Kick Off Party

February 7, 2020 Thunder By The Bay Kick Off Party

White Buffalo Saloon Hosts Born To Be Wild! Join REAL as we kick off 2020's Thunder by the Bay. [...]
Curb Appeal Detailing Opens New Sarasota Location

Curb Appeal Detailing Opens New Sarasota Location

Auto Enthusiasts Take Note. Curb Appeal Detailing announced the opening of their new location i[...]
January 11, 2020 National Hot Toddy Day

January 11, 2020 National Hot Toddy Day

How To Warm Up On A Chilly Day. Today is National Hot Toddy Day! A hot toddy is a delicious drin[...]
Anheuser-Busch Launches New Hard Seltzer

Anheuser-Busch Launches New Hard Seltzer

Bud Light Seltzer Arrives Just In Time For The Super Bowl! Anheuser-Busch is launching a new har[...]
Ocala Gains New Urgent Care Center

Ocala Gains New Urgent Care Center

StatMed Urgent Care Center Ocala Opens January 2, 2020. StatMed Urgent Care Center is a step abo[...]
New Year's Eve 2019-2020 Tow To Go

New Year's Eve 2019-2020 Tow To Go

Everyone Have A Safe New Year’s Eve Tonight! Tow to Go is a partnership between AAA & Budweiser.[...]
Wyze Labs Data Breach

Wyze Labs Data Breach

Multiple Data Breaches Exposes Information Of 2.4 Million Customers. Wyze Labs' low cost, inter[...]
Westbound SR 70 Southbound I75 Ramp To Close

Westbound SR 70 Southbound I75 Ramp To Close

8 Months of New Detours Loom Large! Starting at 11 p.m. Thursday, January 2nd, the westbound on-[...]
Wawa Data Breach

Wawa Data Breach

Wawa Facing Wave Of Lawsuits Over Data Breach. On December 10, Wawa's information security team [...]
December 26, 2019 Deck the Halls @ Ca' d'Zan

December 26, 2019 Deck the Halls @ Ca' d'Zan

Ca' d'Zan All Decked Out. On December 26th, from 5:00pm – 8:00pm join The Ringling for Deck the [...]
January 22, 2020 Ringling's Wisconsin Pullman Tour

January 22, 2020 Ringling's Wisconsin Pullman Tour

Private Tour of the Wisconsin Pullman Car. Join Jennifer Lemmer-Posey, Tibbals Curator of Circus [...]
Commercial Investment Division Changes Name

Commercial Investment Division Changes Name

RASM Commercial Division Now Know As Commercial Real Estate Alliance. The Realtor Association of[...]
December 3, 2019 GivingTuesday

December 3, 2019 GivingTuesday

Join the GivingTuesday Movement. GivingTuesday is a global generosity movement unleashing the po[...]
Translate »