Philanthropy | Working Hard to Make a Difference

Mike Horan and the Horan Family Foundation

By Ryan G.Van Cleave | April 2022

After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Michigan Tech University, Mike Horan worked for five years with Ajax Paving Industries, Inc. based in Michigan. It didn’t take long for him to distinguish himself as someone capable, dependable, and honest. When the owners wanted to establish a Florida branch of the company in 1981, there was one clear choice about the best person to send. 

“They shipped an asphalt plant here from Michigan so we could do our first job in Englewood,” Mike explains about the company branch he was asked to launch. Because of the boom in Florida construction, Ajax Paving Industries of Florida grew to what it is today—eight asphalt plants, 500+ employees, and more than 600 pieces of equipment that handle paving jobs throughout Southwest Florida. As of 2022, Mike has acquired full ownership of Ajax Paving of Florida from the original owners who sent him here so many years ago. 

“I’m blessed to have worked for such a great family and with so many good people over the years,” Mike adds. “A lot of those who’ve helped me from the beginning are retiring, some have passed away. We have worked hard to find the right mix of good young people working with us now. In addition, my oldest daughter and son-in-law, along with our youngest son—all civil engineering graduates of Georgia Tech University—are working here and doing very well. We are so fortunate.”

From the start, Mike and his wife, Carol, learned the value and importance of hard work. “My dad and my wife’s father were factory workers in the spring and car parts industry, and my mother-in-law cleaned houses for a living. My mother worked part-time in a department store,” he says. “We didn’t grow up with lots of money, but even so, they taught us that it’s important to give back to the community, to be part of the community. That’s how you live a life of character.”

Mike found an opportunity to put that commitment into practice soon after he moved to Venice. At the point, he had two very young daughters, so Mike and Carol took them to Mote several times—which, of course, they loved. Mike soon got to know some of the people there, and offered to provide an American flag, flagpole, and monument at Mote’s entrance on City Island. That flagpole is still on site today. Another such opportunity came when Board of Trustees Chairman Emeritus Fred Derr, who one day asked Mike if he would donate the asphalt paving for the then-new Mote Aquaculture Research Park in east Sarasota County. Mike was happy to help as Fred is a friend and respected customer of Ajax Paving. “We did the paving for Fred and was able to take our people and crew who did the work on a tour of the facility, which was so very educational and interesting.”

Other local opportunities to help quickly emerged. Mike and Carol began supporting Catholic Charities, which among other programs offers free housing for unwed mothers along with training in life and job skills. Mike and Carol got involved with All Faiths Food Bank, too, because “the need is so huge.” Mike’s also on the Board for the YMCA of Southwest Florida, and he’s excited by the plan to put a YMCA in Arcadia. “There’s no place for any of the kids In the Arcadia area to learn how to swim!” he says. “Getting a YMCA out there will provide aftercare, summer camps, and exercise equipment, and there will be activities on the weekends for families. The people do not yet have what we have here in Sarasota or Manatee County, but making it happen for them has become my personal endeavor.” 

In addition to donating money and in-kind services, Mike and Carol hold an annual charity event sponsored by their company, Ajax Paving Industries, that raises about $65,000 each year. “Because of COVID, we’ve given to a variety of charities to help those that are struggling in all the 18 counties we do business. It’s just the right thing to do.”

The primary focus of Mike and Carol’s philanthropy is education and the environment, so it makes perfect sense that supporting Mote has been a constant for them. When asked about the paving for Mote SEA, again Ajax stepped up to donate a large portion of it. In addition, to help with the ongoing Mote SEA campaign, the Horan Family Foundation made a sizable donation to build a high-tech classroom to support educational programming. Mike notes, “Every kid who goes to any kind of school—public, private, or parochial—will have a chance to take classes there and learn about our oceans. They will find out about our rivers, lakes, and our environment. That’s super exciting.”

The moment Mike starts talking about Mote, his voice speeds up with excitement. “If you haven’t been to Mote and you haven’t talked to those dedicated people, it’s a life experience that you don’t want to miss,” he raves, citing the good work of President and CEO Dr. Michael Crosby and others. “People—especially young kids—need to go there and see what these people do. It’s just an environmentally positive experience. The research that they do is incredibly important. If you are at all interested in the future of Florida and the future of our environment here on Earth, you must go there because it’s an education. A real education.”

Mike wants to ensure that his family carries on the traditions he and Carol have created. To that end, all four of their kids and all eight grandchildren have (or will be) asked to work for one summer with the company so they can build up a good work ethic and appreciate the business that has given them more advantages than Mike and Carol had in their youth. All the kids will also learn firsthand about philanthropy, as well. “We are thinking we might give them each $1,000. They will have to research and pick out what charities they want to support, then we will ask them to do a write-up. The oldest grandchild is fifteen and the second oldest is thirteen, so they’re getting to that threshold where it’s time to do things like this.”

Odds are that more than a few grandchildren will choose to support Mote, just as how they’ve seen their parents support it over the years. 

“We’re family people,” explain Mike and Carol, who are humble people who often choose for their gifts and support to be anonymous. As Mike says, they live frugally and simply focus on faith and family. “We’ve been married for 46 years, and we are determined to do good for others because we’ve been so blessed. We have financial wherewithal that we never thought we’d have, and we are adamant that we’re not going to just sit here and do nothing. It’s time for us to give back.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION about Mote SEA, please visit mote.org or call 941.388.4441.