Learn How Start Young Helped Perla and Valeria

Celebrating Start Young’s Seventh Year

As Start Young embarks on its seventh year, we proudly reflect on the incredible impact we’ve achieved with your support over the past six years. Thanks to this generous community, more than 400 families – encompassing nearly 600 children – have received scholarships since 2018, totaling over $1 million. This gap funding ensures that families in Wyandotte County can keep their children in consistent and stable care. 

In addition to filling more of the financial gaps our child care system presents – such as the incentives Start Young pays to quality teachers – the program also partners with TFC’s early childhood education coaches and trainers, and our early childhood mental health specialists to ensure each classroom has the support they need to provide the best start possible; and our partners at Juniper Gardens Children’s Project are supporting the literacy and numeracy development. 

It’s a truly special program specifically designed to meet the varied needs of our community, who can sometimes feel the odds are stacked against them. When we met Perla last year, she was one such family. She valued the best educational start for her daughter, Valeria, while working and going to school herself. But the options available to her just wouldn’t cut it. 

We were excited to get an update from Perla last month, sharing her gratitude for the role Start Young has played in Valeria’s education. Valeria began kindergarten in August, and Perla is grateful and excited to see how well-prepared she is – thanks to Start Young and our partners at El Centro.

“Thank you so much for everything. I will keep each one of you in my heart because that also inspired me to keep going for my daughter and all the other kids in our community.”

All of this is possible due to our funders and supporters – thank you for your commitment to our mission. Your continued partnership is vital in helping us create lasting change in our community, empowering families and shaping brighter futures for our children.