JANIE GOULD

The postwar population boom was in full swing in Indian River County in 1961. The county had a population of 26,000, and the baby boom was fueling the need for more schools and more jobs for the little boomers’ parents. Three new elementary schools — Rosewood, Beachland and Osceola — had opened in recent years.  Piper Aircraft, which came to town in 1957, did a major expansion in 1961.  The first shopping center, Miracle Mile Shopping Center, started attracting customers in the early 60s.

But the growing prosperity was not universal. The Census Bureau reported in 1960 that 40 percent of Florida families lived on less than $6,000 per year.

In 1961, citrus grower and philanthropist Dan Richardson and other community leaders decided to organize the United Fund to raise money for community needs. In its first year, the United Fund collected $41,000 from local donors to aid nine nonprofit agencies.

Now, more than half a century later, the agency now known as United Way has raised more than $42 million. Chief executive officer Michael Kint says last year’s campaign brought in slightly more than $2.53 million, which exceeded the goal of $2.5 million.  He said giving has returned to where it was before the downturn starting in 2008 gave some folks a serious case of the jitters.

“This was the second largest campaign we had ever run,” he said. “The market was doing well, which was one indicator for some folks, particularly for some of our larger donors. They felt a little more at ease to enhance their donations. We also saw some nice boosts in our workplace campaigns, particularly Publix. Last year was a very successful year.”

Kickoff for the next campaign will take place in early November. The goal is still being determined.

United Way now assists 32 member agencies and supports more than 40 programs, along with a few programs that aren’t attached to an individual agency, such as the Mental Health Collaborative. Kint says early childhood development continues to be a major mission for the United Way, because quality child care is vital. Structured programs help children become ready for kindergarten and ultimately lead to higher rates of graduation from high school, he said.

The community has a waiting list of parents seeking good day care for their children, he said. The cost to care for two children can be up to $200 per week.

“There are a handful of quality slots if you can afford it,” Kint said. “But in many instances kids are being raised by neighbors or sitters or in the worst-case scenario, bouncing from home to home during the week.”

Day-care space for infants is at a premium, he said, because the state requires four caregivers per baby, making it too expensive for many day-care operators.

So the United Way has long been a supporter of agencies geared to the needs of the county’s youngest residents, such as the Early Learning Coalition, Child Care Resources and the Redlands Christian Migrants Association.

“Most United Ways everywhere have spent quite a bit on programs for kids,” Kint said. “In fact, there was a United Way program called Success by Six. But brain research shows the first three years of life are the biggest determinants of a child’s success. That really has little to do with child care, but everything to do with mom and dad and the environment inside the home.”

Kint says senior issues in the county are getting more attention these days. The Senior Resource Association just did a need assessment of this growing segment of the population.

“Because of its size, it’s a population that’ s going to need more resources,” he said.

“Transportation is a huge issue in this community,” he said, “There are people who can’t get from their home to where services are provided, at least not easily. This is not a slam on the Community Coach or Go-Line. We’re a small community! But we keep hearing from so many sectors that transportation is a huge issue, along with jobs.”

Kint and leaders from law enforcement, criminal justice, health care and social services have started an executive round table to address such issues and make some  decisions collectively.

“The round tables in Martin and St. Lucie counties have been around for a while and are doing an effective job, so we’re a little behind the curve,” he said. “There’s a group working to put it together here and figure out what we can do.”

The United Way supports a program called Family Wise, which offers a card for discounted prescription drugs to people who have no health insurance.

“I don’t think there’s a single pharmacy in town that doesn’t accept the cards,” he said. “The Walgreen’s, CVS and Publix stores all recognize that offering a discounted drug drives business.”

United Way also supports an income tax assistance program for familes with $41,000 or less in annual income.

“We sit at the table for a lot of other initiatives in this community,” he said. “Funding is so much a of what we do, but we’re more than that. The old model was throw a little bit of money at a lot of different needs. But our donors want us to stay relevant, and to do that we need to be more data driven. Results and outcomes will play an increasing role in funding.”

Born in Rockford, Ill., Kint grew up in Orangeville, Ill., a farm town with a population of 450. His father was the town’s barber.

“Downtown was one side of one block that kind of wrapped around a corner,” he said. “There were three churches and three bars. It was a wonderful place to grow up.”

Kint earned a bachelor’s degree in education and a master’s in theatre, specializing in directing, at Northern Illinois University. He taught high school and college, and in 1984 moved to Vero Beach. Here, he combined his academic credentials by becoming director of education at Riverside Theatre. He helped develop children’s programs at Riverside and eventually the facility that became Riverside Children’s Theatre. He also directed and occasionally acted in plays for the Vero Beach Theatre Guild.

He joined the United Way in 1995 as director of the agency’s new endowment fund, which got its start with a generous windfall.

‘The agency had an unexpected gift that turned out to be about $750,000 when was all said and done,” Kint said. “The board set that money aside as a cornerstone gift to get the endowment established.”

Kint has been married to his wife, Sandy, who works at Oculina Bank, for 40 years. Their daughter, Joana Streeter, taught elementary school and recently was certified as a paralegal. The Kints have two grandsons, Bryce, 12, a student at Storm Grove Middle School, and Connor, 8, who goes to Glendale Elementary School.

Kint taught Bryce to play golf but hasn’t been been out on a golf course in more than two years because of hip problems. He had  both hips replaced  this summer, and is looking  forward to returning to the links with his grandson soon.

He also enjoys the theatre, his computer, and says it’s also nice to “be able to go home at night and feel good about the work I do.”