REAL Exclusive Magazine

United Way of Sarasota County Realtors For Kids

Katie Knight

By Tracy Eisnaugle

“Our goals are long lasting change, preventing problems from happening in the first place, and bringing people together to build a brighter future for children.”

United Way’s REALTORS® for Kids program is a collaborative partnership between real estate professionals and United Way of Sarasota County, Inc. Together, we recognize that early childhood development and learning begin at birth. Understanding the importance of this critical time in a child’s life, United Way REALTORS® for Kids program concentrates on providing uninterrupted quality childcare to children between the ages of 0-6 years old.

By age 3, a child’s brain has formed nearly 1,000 trillion neuron connections – about twice as many as adults have. Genetics plays a role in a child’s development, our nature, but early nurturing relationships have a decisive, long lasting impact on how children develop, their ability to learn, and their capacity to regulate their own emotions. The Stress in early childhood can either promote growth or cause serious damage depending on the intensity of the experience and the extent that caring adults are available to provide support to the child.

That is why United Way developed the Emergency Child Care Scholarship. To assist families who are experience an unexpected crisis or financial hardship the scholarship provides short-term funding which allows the child to remain in a quality preschool while the family gets back on their feet. 

United Way’s REALTORS® for Kids program supplies scholarships to high quality pre-schools to pay for one to four weeks of a child’s learning and care costs. By contributing to the scholarship, you are investing in our families and children.  You can get involved by donating:

$30 – $40  = 1 child/infant care for 1 day
$150 – $200 = 1 child/infant care for a week
$500 & up –  Leadership Giver

Since May 2002 over $420,000 has been raised for emergency scholarships leading to 3,311 combined scholarship weeks, assisting over 875 families and granting scholarships to 1,098 children.

Reaching out, REALTORS® have created a unified network and allowed for vast support, spreading the word on this important cause. We know that when children and families are supported in the first years of life, the return on investment is astounding. Children are more prepared for early learning and school opportunities and are more likely to succeeds throughout their lifetimes in school, workplace and beyond.

We all win when a child succeeds. Make a difference in a child’s life. To become part of United Way’s REALTORS® for Kids program contact:

Katie Knight
Senior Vice President
United Way of Sarasota County
1445 2nd Street
Sarasota, FL  34236
(941) 366-2686
katiek@uwsrq.com