Stories

Each Tuesday, SHARE Omaha features a unique cause theme for #GivingEveryTuesday and encourages you to give and support in any way you can! The #GivingEveryTuesday theme for February 13, 2024 is Early Childhood Education nonprofits. How will you give today?

All Early Childhood Education Nonprofits

Child Saving Institute

Erin Weis of Child Saving Institute shares, "Donating to nonprofits that support Early Childhood Education directly impacts the youth of the generations to come. Students of Early Childhood Education are more likely to positively contribute to their communities in the future, as well as an increased likelihood of attending higher education."

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Child Saving Institute is making the Omaha-metro a better place each day, serving more than 3,000 children and families annually through mental health services, early childhood education, domestic violence recovery, teen parenting and more! 95% of their early childhood education students met or exceeded widely held expectations in social-emotional development. 

"One thing that Child Saving Institute needs from our community is support through monthly giving donations. These regular gifts help us secure our plans far into the future to continue meeting the needs of local youth and families," shares Erin.

Donate to Child Saving Institute

DIBS for Kids

Angie Miller of DIBS for Kids shares, "Early Childhood Education is foundational to lifelong well-being, from the beginnings of language and literacy, to heal, academic success, and more. Investing in Early Childhood Education is investing in the life of a child in your community."

DIBS for Kids bring the joy of reading, alongside continuous access to books to alleviate book deserts in East Omaha. By serving nearly 6,000 students in the Omaha metro area, DIBS students are making gains in their reading skills while also learning more about the world around them to spark their imaginations, dreams, and aspirations. 

DIBS for Kids' wish list is populated with books and they are all needed to reflect the students and community we serve, to replenishment well-loved favorites, and continuing to broaden their collection.

"We love books and more importantly, we love books that parents, older siblings, and others can read with their younger students.  Mo Willems Pigeon series, Pete the Cat, and books that capture the imagination and attention of all readers are always valued by DIBS students and families," says Angie.

Donate to DIBS for KidsSend a book

Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative

Julia Jackson of Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative shares, "By donating to nonprofits in the Early Childhood Education space, you’re supporting the ability for parents to go to work, for more child care businesses to flourish, and helping more children access high-quality, affordable child care in their communities at a time when access to care is growing increasingly difficult to secure." 

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Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative's Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership spans across 9 programs, giving the metro area’s most vulnerable populations of children access to high-quality care, education, and health services.  Their Resource Center offers free access to technology, meeting spaces, training rooms, and more to the child care providers and families with young children in the metro area. This year, they’re also proud to be a VITA Outreach Site in partnership with the Omaha Earned Income Tax Coalition, offering free tax preparation services to our clients and members of our community.

"We’re currently in need of sponsors for Elevate, a business summit like no other designed exclusively for child care providers. By becoming a sponsor of Elevate24, you give child care providers the opportunity to come together for a day of learning, growth, and collaboration around how to sustain and develop their businesses at no cost," says Julia.

Donate to Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative

CRCC

Cassandra Weisenburger of CRCC shares, "We Care for Kids, a campaign aimed at bringing quality early childhood education to all Nebraska families, says there is a direct connection to quality early childhood education and a child’s health and wellness."

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With 3.7% of Nebraska children having a disability, 14.7% being classified as special education, and 16.7% having a special health need, CRCC’s Day Health Program fills a gap to ensure children have equitable access to care. Only 16% of Nebraska children who needed specialized services began receiving them before age three. CRCC clients require a holistic approach to integrating health, education, developmental, and social well-being while reducing the number of transitions and disruptions to their daily routine. A holistic approach maximizes progress to reach one's potential, and CRCC is the only provider of its type in the region using this approach for children with complex needs.   

"At CRCC, our innovative services provide all children, special needs and typical peers alike, the opportunity to find security, support and mutual understanding. We give families access to a range of support and tools that allow them to prove what’s possible every single day, and with your help, we can continue to be a source of empowerment for years to come," says Cassandra

Donate to CRCC

High Hopes Foundation

Angela Lewman of High Hopes Foundation shares, "So many people think that people who run Early Childhood Education Centers are in it for the money and quite frankly some center owners get into the business for the wrong reasons. That being said, if the Early Childhood Education Center is well run, oftentimes the tuition paid for services such as these do not or just barely cover a center’s operating costs. The nonprofits that support Early Childhood Education services are integral to helping maintain access to quality child care within our communities. By their nonprofit status, whether they run a center directly or simply support a center, nonprofits such as the High Hopes Foundation have the opportunity to help supplement expenses to ensure that young children are provided with all the resources necessary to build a firm foundation for future success."

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The High Hopes Foundation supports early intervention and education services. They are a local nonprofit started by two moms from Bellevue, Nebraska, who had personal experience and knowledge of the lack of adequate child care options in our community for children with special needs. Through fundraising efforts, they were able to raise the money necessary to issue a start up grant to a local start up business, High Hopes Child Care, so that the organization could secure funding to serve children with special needs in an inclusive child care environment alongside their typical peers. The benefits of inclusion for children of all abilities in the early education environment are well documented. Children with special needs benefit greatly by interacting with children of typical development and children of typical development are more accepting and empathetic of their special needs peers as the gap in cognitive or physical abilities widens in their later years. In short, the empathy, understanding and kindness that children learn in these settings makes our community a better place. 

"Our greatest need right now is financial support. Times are tough everywhere and many people are struggling to make ends meet. Our organization is no different. We would benefit greatly from both one time gifts and recurring support. Getting a fair amount of donors who are willing to make a monthly donation commitment would be a game changer for our organization," says Angela.

Donate to High Hopes Foundation

Learning Community Foundation of Douglas and Sarpy Counties

Lorraine Chang of Learning Community Foundation shares, "Early childhood is the most important time to impact a child’s life - when healthy brain development is at its peak. During the early years, more than 1 million new neural connections are formed every second!  These are the connections that build brain architecture - the foundation upon which all later learning, behavior and health depend. Cognitive and non-cognitive abilities—including key workforce skills such as motivation, persistence, self-regulation, and self-control—are important for a productive workforce, and deficits that emerge early are difficult to change. Money spent on high-quality early care and education is an investment. One dollar spent on high-quality early care and education yields an average return of $4 over time. In circumstances where children are extremely vulnerable, the return can be as high as $13. Donations to nonprofits that support Early Childhood Education provide opportunities for children to experience enriched early learning environments and for parents to more effectively support their children’s healthy growth and development."  

The Learning Community Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Learning Community of Douglas and Sarpy Counties. The Learning Community is making the Omaha metro a better place by offering “2 Generation” programming for disadvantaged families and their young children in North and South Omaha as well as partnering with the Buffett Early Childhood Institute to share early childhood best practices across the eleven school districts in the metro area, including focusing elementary school teachers, administrators and parents on a “school as hub” model for children from birth to age 8.  

"The Learning Community Foundation needs the Omaha community to be aware of the positive impact that the Learning Community’s early childhood and “2 Generation” programming is having on children and families throughout the metro area and to support the expansion of the programming so that more children and families can benefit from them. In the meantime, support for the parents' and children’s basic needs to better enable them to participate in the programming is also needed," says Lorraine.

Donate to Learning Community Foundation

Kids Can Community Center

Mike Joyce of Kids Can shares, "Every child deserves a safe and nurturing start to their education. Supporting quality providers and granting children access and opportunities regardless of their family's resources goes far to develop a joy of learning, positive socialization, and mental/emotional wellbeing."

Kids Can’s new Community Center works with parents regardless of income level, ensuring their children receive safe and high-quality childcare. These parents in turn can dedicate their time to their own education and/or careers, increasing financial independence and long-term success.

" Kids Can needs your time! Please, sign up to mentor a child. Your guidance and support goes farther than you could know in ensuring your mentee has the best chance of becoming a successful, happy adult," says Mike

Donate to Kids Can