UFCF Named WESH 2’s February 2024 Community Champion

'You have to keep going': Central Florida Foundation celebrates a decade of uplifting communities

WESH 2’s Community Champion is celebrating a big milestone. Valentine’s Day marks a decade since Sandra Fatmi-Hall felt a need in her neighborhood that she stepped up to meet.

“Ten years ago, the conversation was, ‘The schools were the worst in the area in the Pine Hills area, the graduation rate was very low,’ and as a community leader, I felt I could do something different to uplift the community and to change those numbers for the better," Fatmi-Hall said.

That's how the United Foundation of Central Florida was born, aimed at researching programs that help clean up and empower communities. As word spread about its mission, community partners began pledging their own support.

Zorida Pritipal owns four Golden Crest locations across Central Florida and has been a community partner for years.

“I so admire the work that Sandra has done with the kids that I encouraged my twin daughters to join the program as well when they were in high school,” Pritipal said. “It has made them more attuned to the needs of a community and the social impact that they can have on these individuals.”

The statistics speak for themselves. In the last decade, the graduation rate at Evans High School jumped from 48% to over 90%, the Department of Juvenile Justice numbers are down and the Tangelo Park Program spurred job creation and crime reduction.

“I didn't even know I was going to get here,” Fatmi-Hall said. “There was a lot of discouragement along the way. ‘You're not needed. You don't have to do anything here, we already have programs here.’ I knew that perseverance and looking at the goal in mind would be the difference, and that means you have to keep going.”

With more than 100 events held each year, the United Foundation of Central Florida says it's made an $18 million economic impact in Central Florida, racking up more than 160,000 hours of volunteer and program hours. Powerful community partners are a big reason for the success, such as Dr. Trisha Bailey, who first got involved with the organization eight and a half years ago.

“I was one of those children they gave up on,” explained Dr. Bailey, “and for me, it's such a vital component to be able to put my hand back and pull them along with me so they can be the Oprah Winfreys of the world, the Trisha Baileys of the world.”

In the last 10 years, more than 200 graduates of the program are now off to do just that. But it’s more than just the numbers; it’s the lives they touch and the foundation they're building for the future.

“18 students have shared with me that because of this program, suicide was off the table,” said Fatmi-Hall. “You can't put a price on that… it's a passion project, because I'm determined to leave the world better than I saw it, and I can't just sit on the sidelines and not do anything.”