Founding Donor and Purpose of The Kiaora Society
Ed McAmis, an attorney and philanthropist, was a champion of the work of YES since our inception. To honor Ed as our first private contributor, we named our donor society after the street on which he lived, Kiaora Street. Coincidentally, “Kia ora” is a Maori word that conveys “welcome, hello friend, thank you” making our chosen name uniquely fitting. On June 3, 2023, Ed passed away. You can learn more about Ed and his commitment to our mission, and contribute in honor of Ed.
We encourage our donors to be part of our work by participating in dialogues and courses throughout the community.
Thanks to donors’ incredible generosity and commitment to making the world safer for our youth, we are not confined by the financial priorities of foundations. Instead, we have become leaders for the entire community, staying on the razor’s edge of innovative services and programs.
Please Click the Logo to Join or Renew Your Kiaora Donation
Donors of our Kiaora Society contribute $1,000 or more each year. The generous support of Kiaora donors forms the lifeblood of our work and empowers us to take our education programs where they are needed most. As a donor to our Kiaora Society, you are our partner in creating a safer world for all youth. A major benefit of being a Kiaora donor is that our courses are all complimentary to you.
Also, supporting YES Institute with your Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) is simple and impactful. You can recommend a grant directly from your fund to help us continue creating safe, inclusive communities where every person is free to be themselves. Your generosity fuels education and dialogue that changes lives.
When making a recommendation, please use the following information:
Legal Name: Project Y.E.S., Inc. dba YES Institute
Tax ID (EIN): 65-0646667
Mailing Address: YES Institute, 5275 Sunset Drive, Miami, FL 33143
| TRUSTEE $50,000 | MENTOR $1,000 |
| Carol Marie Weber Family Foundation, Inc. | Lewis Aaron & Nigel Stirk |
| Community Foundation of Broward | Jose Alonso |
| Florida Blue Foundation | Alper JCC Miami |
| The Our Fund Foundation, Inc. | Connie Barden |
| The Wildflower Foundation, Inc. | Sam Blum |
| LUMINARY $25,000 | Ellie & Zach LLano |
| Dan Heininger | Rusty Collins |
| Howard Greenfield Charitable Foundation | Russell Corbett |
| The Jonathan D + Mark C. Lewis Foundation | Cecilia de Almeida |
| F. Lynn Leverett & Lane W. Park | Olga & Ignacio del Valle |
| Patricia McKay Verbeeck–In Loving Memory of Hope Eric Verbeeck | William Dewald |
| The Miami Foundation | Samantha Dietz |
| Micky & Madeleine Arison Family Foundation | Docurapid Corp. |
| The Raben/Pernick Family Fund | Michele & Jonathan Drucker |
| Andrew E. Zobler | Jess Hope Elias |
| Anonymous | Evensky & Katz Charitable Fund |
| GUARDIAN $15,000 | Florida Trust & Estate Counsel, PLLC |
| The Batchelor Foundation, Inc. | Viktor Frengut in honor of Naomi & Ry Canning |
| The Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation | Martha Fugate |
| The Joseph H. & Florence A. Roblee Foundation | GableStage |
| Anonymous | Tori & Tom Gabriel |
| VISIONARY $10,000 | Liebe & Seth Gadinsky |
| Allegany Franciscan Ministries | Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau |
| Baptist Health South Florida | Emeritus Donors: James Gross & Bruce Healy |
| The Brothers Jackson | HALPERN | SANTOS | PINKERT |
| Scott Huizenga | Douglas Houghton |
| Joseph M. Kraus | Lawrence R. Hyer – Donor Advised Fund at Our Fund |
| Emeritus Donors: Ed McAmis & Gerson Gonzalez | International Institute of Clinical Sexology |
| Paula Morabito & Maria Yip | Kelsey Johnson |
| Raul R. Rodriguez | Jamie M. Joseph, Ph.D & Michael Krameisen |
| Sain Orr Royak DeForest Steadman Foundation | Kaufman Rossin |
| CHAMPION $5,000 | Tracy Koço |
| Patricia Caicedo & Eduardo Salazar | Leesfield Family Foundation |
| Coral Gables Community Foundation | Alfredo & Cristy Leon |
| Jeffrey Davis & Michael Miller | Barry Long |
| Denise & John Gordon | Weston Lyons & Raul Vasquez |
| Gulfstream Philanthropic Foundation | Dr. John J. Martin Jr. & Forrest McSurdy |
| The Jack Kagan Foundation | William Mathisen |
| David Knoble & Douglas Choo | Evan McEwing |
| McCutcheon Foundation | The Miami-Dade LGBTQ+ & Allied Chamber of Commerce |
| Jose Luis Pere & Trae Williamson | Morcate Family |
| TD Bank | Thomas J. Murrell |
| Cynthia & Emilio Vázquez | Robert Oldakowski & Luis Mendoza |
| The Walter and Adi Blum Foundation, Inc. | Noah & Natalie Pantaleon |
| The William R. Watts Foundation, Inc. | Nicolas Pisano |
| Carol & Ed Williamson | Dr. Restrepo & Mr. Legeros |
| Anonymous | Bill Ross |
| LEADER $2,500 | Steven Santiago, MD |
| Greg Baldwin & Jose Castro | Hudson Santos |
| Tim & Meredith Birrittella | Lee Schrager & Southern Glazer’s |
| Tim Bush & Xavier Boyaval | Roxy-Cary Sora |
| Naomi Canning-In Honor of John Canning’s memory | Rachel Sottile |
| Dennis Edwards & Mark Steinberg Foundation | Eugene Sulzberger |
| Enterprise/Taylor Charitable Entities | Laura White |
| Maria Gabriela Contreras | Dr. Terilee Wunderman |
| Barbara T. Gray | Anonymous (3) |
| Grove Bank & Trust | |
| The Gruen Tolman Family Charitable Fund | |
| The Juan Antonio “El Nene” Mas, Jr. Charitable Fund | |
| Key Biscayne Community Foundation | |
| The Margaret McCartney & R. Parks Williams Charitable Foundation | |
| The Mofsky-McLean Family | |
| Michael Guttman Fund | |
| Raymond Bravo Foundation | |
| Kevin Veilleux | |
| Tim Wagoner Family Memorial Education Fund | |
| Joseph Zolobczuk | |
| Hector Zuazo & Bob Medina | |
Every attempt has been made to acknowledge our donors with gratitude. If we omitted your name, listed you incorrectly, or at the wrong level, please contact [email protected].