Now in our second year, Inspire305 has had a busy few months, from our kickoff in March to announcing our 2019 winners recently. Check out how Inspire305 is continuing to innovate for good.
Kicking Off Inspire305 2019
Launching this year’s action-packed initiative on March 5 (305 day!), Inspire305 kicked off its efforts with a panel discussion among community leaders at Venture Café’s Thursday Gathering on March 7th. The topic, inspiring a smart city, sparked a conversation that dug deep into how our community can come together to transform Miami. Among the panelists were Joan Marie Godoy from Radical Partners; Saif Y. Ishoof from Florida International University; Juha Mikkola, from Wyncode and Stephanie Sylvestre from The Children’s Trust, with Chris Adamo of WhereBy.Us moderating.
A Day of Service
On April 13, Inspire305 joined forces with over 30 volunteers who dedicated their Saturday morning to painting and gardening at the Opa-locka Urban Farm. Volunteers painted a mural, built the foundation for a new children’s garden and installed a fence around a community park — all while learning how together we can inspire change.
Meet the 2019 Finalists
After initially putting out a call in March for local nonprofits doing new and innovative things in Miami, five inspiring nonprofits were selected by Inspire305 and United Way volunteers and put to an online vote.
Food Rescue US is a nonprofit with a technology based, volunteer-driven platform that delivers fresh food from businesses that have too much to people that have too little.
ICU baby is a nonprofit that offers financial and emotional support to families with a premature or critically ill baby in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Holtz Children’s Hospital at UM/Jackson Memorial Medical Center and Baptist Health System’s South Miami Hospital.
S.E.E.K Foundation is a nonprofit that provides equal access to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) through mobile STEM programs in underserved communities.
Strong Girls, Inc. is a nonprofit that facilitates a free after school program designed to break the cycle of poverty by providing young girls the skills and support needed to stay focused on learning through their social emotional learning curiculum.
Students Care is a nonprofit dedicated to matching pediatric patients with college student volunteers who provide fun, friendship and support throughout their hospital stays.
Celebrating Innovation
After a two-week voting period and two unique text-to-vote opportunities, our 2019 Grand Innovator and Trailblazer winners were recognized for their work in our hometown and dedication to our community. But not before all five finalists were celebrated and each had an opportunity to pitch their work to a live crowd. The event hosted more than 100 guests at Akerman, in the heart of Brickell City Centre.
Meet the Winners
Grand Innovator: Strong Girls Inc.
The $25,000 Grand Innovator award went to Strong Girls, Inc., who is using the Inspire305 grant to expand their Social Emotional Learning curriculum to two more Title 1 elementary schools.
Trailblazer: ICU baby
The $10,000 Trailblazer award went to ICU baby, who is using their Inspire305 grant to provide transportation stipends to low income families with a baby in the NICU in the form of bus passes, parking vouchers, gas cards and Uber rides.
What’s Next:
Join us Saturday, July 13, 2019 for Strong Girls Garden Day at Beacon College Prep. Volunteer and help Strong Girls Inc. build the first edible garden at the school by creating vegetable garden beds, building a micro nursery and seedling station, and building a seating area.