‘Keep The Rage Up’: Tampa Bay Abortion Fund Ramps Up Work In FL

TAMPA BAY, FL — Abortion-rights activists haven’t slowed their work in Florida in recent months, even as Republican President Donald Trump took back the White House and a constitutional amendment allowing abortion up to the point of fetal viability in Florida failed to get the votes needed Nov. 4 to take effect.

The newest Florida law, which went into effect in May 2024, bans abortion after six weeks.

Now, there’s more work to do than ever, Bree Wallace, director of the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund, told Patch.

“It’s been a crazy few years for sure, leading up to this, and there’s so much more to do,” she said. “And the need has been more steady than ever after the election.”

The TBAF, one of five abortion funds in Florida, was founded in 2017 to help pregnant people seeking abortion in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties by removing the financial and logistical barriers to the procedure.

The fund offers financial assistance, as well as “practical/travel support at numerous out-of-state clinics for Floridians over (six) weeks, due to unnecessary abortion restrictions in Florida,” according to its website.

“It got started because we saw a need in the Tampa area,” Wallace said. “We assist people with paying for clinic appointments and helping people get out of state to clinics.”

Since forming, the fund has exploded as Florida’s abortion laws became more restrictive.

“It’s been crazy,” she said. “We started off relatively small and especially in the past few years, we went from bringing in a few thousand (dollars) a year to a few hundred thousand a year.”

The only thing that has changed is how the fund is assisting those seeking abortions.

“When it went to six weeks, it shifted from mostly people coming into Florida (for abortions) to people leaving Florida,” according to Wallace.

And there are no signs that this will slow down in 2025.

“We’re still seeing high numbers — higher than ever — and just seeing more people leaving the state for abortions,” she said.

Last year, the fund assisted funding or practical support to more than 2,200 abortion-seekers, according to its 2024 Impact Report, which was shared to Instagram.

TBAF paid more than $657,000 for this assistance, including about $566,000 in clinic fees and $91,000 for travel and other support in getting people to their appointments.

“We couldn’t have done it without the support of our community and we're ready to keep assisting abortion-seekers and those around us in 2025,” TBAF wrote in an Instagram post.

Those who work and volunteer at the fund also attended more than 50 community events, where they gave out free Plan B and emergency contraceptives.

Despite everything, Wallace remains positive about Florida’s fight for access to abortion and women’s health care.

In November, 57 percent of Florida voters voted in favor of Amendment 4, the proposed constitutional amendment to allow abortions up to fetal viability in Florida, according to the Florida Division of Elections website.

Despite earning the majority of the vote, the amendment still failed, as the number of votes was 3 percent shy of the 60 percent required to pass.

“We were all kind of surprised it didn’t earn the 60 percent,” Wallace said. “But it shows that most Floridians want this.”

While a number of what she calls “rage donations” came in after the election, the fund is seeking ongoing donations, which can be made directly through the fund’s website.

“We saw a jump in donations, but the momentum does, unfortunately, die kind of quickly,” she said. “There’s so much going on in the world and that attention is going somewhere else a week later. It’s important that people know that when they’re donating, the No. 1 thing they do is assist people with financial needs.”

Wallace added, “We hope people keep the rage up. Keep ragin’.”