Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille donates $3,915 to Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida
Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille on Sanibel Island and Fort Myers Beach raised $3,915 in 2025 for Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida – $1 and one drink at a time. The restaurant’s hospital drink program donates a dollar from each sale of specialty cocktails on the bar menu.
Doc Ford’s four locations, including two in St. Petersburg, have donated a cumulative $140,309 to the Fort Myers hospital and John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg since the drink program was launched in 2006. The hospitals provide critical lifesaving pediatric healthcare and specialized services. The St. Petersburg restaurants raised $3,394 in 2025.
“Our customers continue to make an impact on the lives of local children and families simply by ordering a specialty drink,” said Joe Harrity, a partner with HM Restaurant Group, which owns and operates Doc Ford’s. “Both hospitals depend on community donations to provide vital healthcare for the youngest residents of our community. We are proud to support them.”
Doc Ford’s launched the drink program two decades ago as part of community-wide fundraisers across Southwest Florida for Golisano Children’s Hospital, which opened in 2017. The program earmarks a dollar from the sale of five cocktails inspired by the past and created by local customers, including the Sanibel Stoop, Hook Line & Sinker and My Rummy Valentine.
Philanthropy and community outreach have been hallmarks of Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille since its founding on Sanibel in 2003. HM Restaurant Group, Doc Ford’s and its employees contribute to a variety of important causes year-round, raising money, awareness and donating their time at local nonprofit organizations dedicated to conservation, community, education and the environment.
They are avid supporters of F.I.S.H. of SANCAP, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, Sanibel CARES and Captains For Clean Water. Since 2012, Doc Ford’s has served as the title sponsor of the “Ding” Darling & Doc Ford’s Tarpon Tournament, which has raised over $1.57 million for conservation and water-quality research at Sanibel’s J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge. The 14th annual tournament is May 15, 2026.
“As a local company, we believe in being part of the solution to the challenges facing the community,” said Harrity.
Renowned for its legendary guest experience, Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille is open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Doc Ford’s offers food with a unique balance of flavors inspired by the Caribbean Rim. Beloved for its sauces, spices and signature Yucatán shrimp served daily, Doc Ford’s is highly regarded by locals and visitors alike as a spectacular seafood restaurant. The restaurant is a perennial Tripadvisor Travelers’ Choice winner. The St. Petersburg Pier location was named the nation’s No. 1 restaurant for Best of the Best Restaurants for Everyday Eats in 2023.