The Art of Belonging: Celebrating 10 Years of the Jessie Ball duPont Center’s Mission
As the Jessie Ball duPont Center—known as The Jessie—celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2025, we reflect on how this beautifully restored mid-century modern architectural landmark has become a vibrant engine for community engagement, cultural dialogue, and nonprofit collaboration in downtown Jacksonville. Originally serving as the main public library, The Jessie now stands as a testament to the vision and legacy of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, thriving as a center for social purpose.
Over the past five decades, the Jessie Ball duPont Fund has emerged as a philanthropic force in Jacksonville, infusing a focus on access to opportunity and the power of vibrant places into the heart of the city’s transformation. From small business development to vibrant public parks, this quiet philanthropic engine is reshaping the concept of building communities with a sense of belonging. Based in Jacksonville, the fund is a private foundation dedicated to creating “communities of belonging” through strategic grants, investments, research, and partnerships.
At the center of this effort in Jacksonville is The Jessie, which serves as the fund’s headquarters and one of its most visible place-based endeavors. Originally constructed in 1965 as the Haydon Burns Library (designed by Taylor Hardwick at a cost of $3.7 million), the building served as the main Jacksonville public library for four decades before closing in 2005. After standing vacant for several years, it was purchased in 2013 by the Jessie Ball duPont Fund for $2.2 million and was meticulously renovated with a $20 million budget. The building was intentionally designed not just as an office but also as a community cultural space.
