This is organization is one of the most professional, honest and organized groups I have ever worked with. My children have been in the league for several years and with several sports and I can not thank the coaches and board members enough.
Living in a community made up of small Islands the FKYSF has given us all the opportunity to teach,learn and grow no matter our age or gender. I had the honor of being a volunteer coach of a Under 12 basketball team.The experience is one I will cherish the rest of my life. When I first met my Team I thought "No way is this going to work out". I had kids from all walks of life. After our 'Team Meeting' the first day I learned that this was all that some of these kids had to fill a void in their lives. One of our power forwards was a girl that stood 4'7" tall and had never played on a organized team before. Her first shot did not even reach the rim. Her teammates rallied around her throughout the year to the point where she made her first basket during the Leauge Championship game.We also had a chance to teach the kids about the importance of keeping parents under control. We had a 12 year old in our league that had a great advantage of being 6'1". The parents thought that this was an unfair disadvantage and would complain out loud. Well I had a couple of my kids go to their parents and explain that all we had to do was figure out a way to beat him in a fair way.Even though I was proud of their maturity, we lost by two in the championship game.Our purpose with all of this is to teach the kids that they can and will achieve their goals with a little hard work. All of this would not be possible without the help and dedication of the FKYSF. They are always there to help and support in any way to ensure that the kids get what they need. I will always feel good about volunteering because of the support that they give to us the coaches.
Our families experience with FKYSF has been all positive. It's completely funded by volunteers; which says alot for our small community. A great sports arena!
What sets this organization apart from all the others is the amount of time, effort, and hardwork Amy, Scott, and all the volunteers put into this program. I believe that every child feels so special and develops such a sense of self worth after being in the various programs that the FKYSF offer. They learn lesson that they can carry into their lives; lesson of respect for themselves and others and control. Amy and Scotty take time with each and every child. They know them all by name and true interest in them. They do all of this while raising there own family and working full time jobs. All the volunteers have families as well. My children enjoy their time playing sports with the FKYSF.I actually got an email from Amyyesterday that stated the sign up dates for FKYSF Basketball and when I told the kids, you would have thought I'd just told them that I had won the lottery they were so excited.
The experience with FKYSF is strictly positive. Everyone involved is completely motivated to make a difference in the small community. Recently the FKYSF helped raise $20,000 for the local schools' Physical Education and after school programs. I've been involved with FKYSF even before they were FKYSF. I actually played football for the same league since i was 6 years old. I'm now 18 and remain close with the league and those in charge. I can seriously say that it helped shape me into the 4.2 GPA, High School Varsity football player I am today.
This organization the members go out of their way to encourage each child as an individual- regardless if their are 150 youth involved in the activity. They try to include as many children as they can - they continually crunch numbers and seek aid to help children be involved with the activities they coordinate. They give back to the community - When the schools lost funding for afterschool activities, this organization assembled a festival to raise funds for these activities - their gift exceeded prior years budgets allowing all new equipment and uniforms for the teams and compensation for coaches where none was previously budgeted for. I have coached basketball for the past four years and it has been a great experience for our entire family. The program is well organized and well managed.
The FKYSF is one of the best organizations in the Keys. Their dedication to our kids is evident in their tireless efforts to bring programs to our children to keep them active and healthy. My kids have literally grown up on their basketball courts. Their recent efforts last summer in organizing a festival benefiting both our local schools only goes to show their community-wide commitment to our kids in all the Upper Keys. I look forward to many more years with this organization. Scott and Amy Stoky, along with their fantastic group of volunteers, should be highly commended. I thank them, and the whole community must share in this gratitude.
The FKYSF provides various opportunities for the children in the Florida Keys to participate in athletic activities. When school funding was cut, the foundation paired with the Upper Keys schools to raise over $22,000 so that the schools could continue to offer children athletics. This partnership also served to strengthen the interaction between the schools in other areas. The Foundation was very generous with their time, energy, resources and materials to help with a program that times may compete with their own sporting events.
My children, husband and I have been in involved with the FKYSF for the past 4 years. The Football, Cheerleading and Basketball programs in the upper Keys are very well organized, friendly and have been a wonderful experience for our family. We also have attended multiple fundraisers that the FKYSF have hosted to raise funds for different sports programs and special people. Our Family believes that the FKYSF organization is one of the best programs and Amy and Scott Stoky, (Founders) are very special people in this community.
