Over 800 community leaders, advocates, and dignitaries fi lled Jungle Island\u2019s Bloom Ballroom on April 16, 2026, for The Children\u2019s Trust\u2019s 20th Annual Champions for Children Awards Ceremony. The sold-out event, presented by TD Bank, celebrates exceptional individuals and programs making a meaningful and lasting impact in Miami-Dade County.<\/p>\n
This signature celebration brought together everyone from longtime advocates to rising youth leaders, all united in their commitment to advancing child welfare. With heartfelt acceptance speeches and special recognitions, it was an inspiring afternoon. \u201cFor 20 years, The Children\u2019s Trust has honored dozens of individuals and programs whose exemplary leadership and high-quality work have helped children and families across Miami-Dade thrive,\u201d said The Children\u2019s Trust president & CEO James R. Haj. \u201cOur community continues to succeed and innovate because of leaders like today\u2019s Champions.\u201d The event\u2019s highest honor, the David Lawrence Jr. Champion for Children Award, was presented to Gepsie Metellus, Co-founder, Sant La, for her lifelong commitment to her community and the success of every child.<\/p>\n
The ceremony also celebrated other outstanding leaders making an impact across Miami-Dade County. Honorable Alexis Calatayud, Florida State Senator, was recognized for the Excellence in Advocacy Award for her tireless work in policy to support early learning and other key issues.
Twala Kelly, a social worker with the University of Miami, School Health Initiative, received the Excellence in Direct Service Award for her hands-on commitment to families navigating complex challenges, making sure students\u2019 needs are addressed in a holistic and personalized manner.
Andrea Cabrera-Elguezabal, a high school student at Young Women\u2019s Preparatory Academy, was honored with the Excellence in Youth Leadership Award for her commitment to children, youth, and families.<\/p>\n
Families First Program at UHealth Mailman Center for Child Development, Little SEALS Program at UM Linda Ray Intervention Center and The Children\u2019s Trust Parent Club \u2013 FIU Center for Children and Families were honored with the Program of the Year Award.<\/p>\n
The event\u2019s success was made possible through the generous support of sponsors, including Presenting sponsor TD Bank, Platinum sponsor City National Bank and Gold Sponsors Barry University, Community Health of South Florida, Senator Rene Garcia, University of Miami, Webauthor, WELS, WOW Marketing, and Miami Herald\/El Nuevo Herald. Silver Sponsors include Agencia Central, Armstrong Creative Consulting, Baptist Health, Corcoran Partners, Cigna Healthcare, Early Learning Corps, EdFed, Florida International University Center for Children and Families, Greenberg Traurig, Health Foundation of South Florida, Key Biscayne Community Foundation, Miami Dolphins Foundation, The Miami Foundation, Nicklaus Children\u2019s Hospital, Q-Q Research, Reach Out & Read Florida, Ramax Miami, Commissioner Raquel Regalado, Uber and United Way Miami.<\/p>\n
Little SEALS Program \u2013 UM Linda Ray Intervention Center, recipient of the Program of the Year Award<\/p>\n
The Children\u2019s Trust Parent Club \u2013 FIU Center for Children and Families, recipient of the Program of the Year Award<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Over 800 community leaders, advocates, and dignitaries fi lled Jungle Island\u2019s Bloom Ballroom on April 16, 2026, for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":277052,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[123,125,124],"class_list":["post-277051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277051","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277051"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277051\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/277052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}