Tampa Bay Defense Alliance Background and History
The Tampa Bay Defense Alliance Articles of Incorporation were approved and filed in January of 2012. In forming the TBDA, the founding Officers purposely selected an eight (8) County region, which mirrors the region served by the Tampa Bay Partnership (TBP). Appreciating the reach of MacDill’s business influence with respect to businesses, the defense industry and where families live, the TBDA sought to capture and include as much of the defense community as possible. Over time, the TBDA’s definition of “Defense Community” has evolved and broadened. Most often, the defense community focuses on Department of Defense, the Armed Services and its Civilians. TBDA adopted a fluid definition that allows consideration and adjustment. Today, the TBDA’s definition of “Defense Community” includes: National Guard, Reserve Forces, Coast Guard, Intelligence Community, Veteran’s Affairs (VA), Academia (Veteran Education; Research) as well as International Partner nations of US Central and Special Operations Commands Coalition.
By expanding the mission statement to include the defense community and to include other organizations and companies that support the military, the TBDA was in a better position to specifically serve the military community. The expansion of the mission statement was also an acknowledgement by the Alliance of the scope and impact that the defense community had and continues to have on the Tampa Bay Region.
As the TBDA continues to evolve, we are faced with the compelling need to insure that we have created a sustainable organization, which will not only self-fund, but will become a critical and necessary force in the execution of our mission, To Champion Our Defense Community within the Tampa Bay Region and the eight counties represented by the Alliance.