Sarasota’s nonprofit sector has no shortage of visionary leadership, but some of its most pivotal shifts are being driven by women who are redefining what community change can look like. Their approaches differ, but their shared commitment to pushing boundaries—and to pushing Sarasota forward—anchors the work they do every day. Together, their stories offer a snapshot of what breakthrough leadership looks like.

In 2017, during what she describes as “a very divisive time in our country and our community,” Jane Watt went away on a girls’ weekend with two friends, and they returned with a conviction: Sarasota needed a new way to bring people together. They didn’t yet know what that would look like—until Watt’s mother suggested they look up a women’s collective-giving model she’d heard about called Impact100. Within weeks, they had met the model’s founder, filed for nonprofit status, and begun building what would become one of the fastest-growing Impact100 chapters in the country.

The simple idea—at least 100 women donating $1,000 each, with 100 percent of funds granted to local nonprofits—quickly caught fire. In 2019, Impact100 SRQ’s first giving year, 228 women awarded two $114,000 grants: to Mothers Helping Mothers and The Haven. Today, just seven years later, the chapter has 864 members and will distribute eight grants of $108,000 each to local organizations in categories ranging from arts and education to health and the environment.

For Watt, the model’s grassroots power is personal. As a single mom working full-time, she often felt she couldn’t give “enough.” But Impact100 SRQ shifts that narrative: one woman, one vote, one mission. Members don’t just fund grants; they learn about local needs, review applications, visit nonprofits, and often discover causes that resonate far beyond their membership.

Building an all-volunteer collective from scratch meant overcoming skepticism and limited resources, but Jane sees the results every day.

“When women come together, anything is possible,” she says. “We’re not just funding projects—we’re changing our community, and we’re doing it together.”

impact100srq.org

The colorful billboard-sized artwork of the Embracing Our Differences exhibition is an annual fixture in Sarasota’s Bayfront Park from mid-January to mid-April. For nearly 12 years, Sarah Wertheimer has devoted herself to the EOD organization, which she now leads as president and CEO. What began as a job became a calling, shaped by her own childhood in Sarasota.

“I knew what it felt like to be ‘other,’” she says, recalling being one of the few Jewish students in her public school classrooms. “If I experienced discrimination, how much worse must it be for so many others?” That perspective made EOD’s mission—promoting kindness, respect, and inclusion through art and education—feel deeply personal.

The art exhibition is only the public face of EOD, as most of the work happens year-round in schools across the region: professional development for educators, empathy-building programs for students, and partnerships that expose children to cultural experiences—from reading days to trips to the Sarasota Opera.

These efforts persist even amid rising polarization. In recent years, the organization has faced vandalism, political pressure, and harassment of staff and volunteers. Wertheimer works closely with the city to ensure safety while continuing to expand programming. The community’s support, she says, far outweighs the hostility. She recalls a woman visiting the exhibition last year who burst into tears, hugged her, and said, “I’m just so grateful this is here. I didn’t know if it would still be allowed.”

Wertheimer remains steadfast. “Our work isn’t political,” she says. “I’m hopeful we’ll get to a better place—and I’m proud to be part of a community that believes these values we’re teaching still matter.”

embracingourdifferences.org

When Rebecca Blitz first moved to Sarasota in 1995, she volunteered as a dog-walker at the Humane Society of Sarasota County—long before it became the flagship, no-kill shelter it is today. Three decades later, after building a career leading major philanthropic organizations across the region, she’s back where she started—but now as the Humane Society’s senior director of advancement, helping chart its future.

“If I were an animal, I would want to come here,” she says, a simple line that reflects both her commitment and the organization’s transformation.

Blitz oversees an operation that is entirely community-funded, a point she returns to often because so many people assume the shelter is government supported. In reality, HSSC relies entirely on donors and grants to fund the organization and the programs she’s helping expand—including trap-neuter-vaccinate-release initiatives that prevent thousands of unwanted litters, the Military Match and Seniors for Seniors adoption programs, and the Pet Pantry, providing free pet food to the community.

A lifelong animal lover with five dogs and a horse, Blitz brings both strategy and heart to her role. She leads within an overwhelmingly female-driven organization, something she considers a strength.

“Women have come a long way in having a voice,” she says. “We need women to empower women, and I try to lead by example—for my team and also for my daughter.”

As Sarasota’s population surges—and with it, the number of animals needing care—Blitz is pushing HSSC to meet the moment, from doubling next year’s fundraising goal to expanding education, outreach, and services.

“At the end of the day,” she says, “it’s all about saving the life of an animal.”

hssc.org

Megan Howell didn’t set out to launch a homelessness nonprofit—she just wanted to help one person. For more than a decade, she waitressed at Patrick’s restaurant in downtown Sarasota, where she befriended a homeless man who lived on the sidewalk outside. He had been unhoused for 25 years, struggling with schizophrenia, and Howell sat down beside him one day and started asking him questions.

“Meeting people where they’re at is a core value of mine,” she says. Over several years, they built a rapport.

When he finally said he was ready to leave the streets, Howell helped him navigate legal issues, taught him how to live in an apartment, and persuaded a landlord to take a chance—promising she’d figure out the rest. She did. And then she did it again for someone else.

What began as one act of compassion grew into a personal mission, then a calling, and—thanks to a mentor who recognized her drive—a nonprofit. Second Heart Homes launched on January 1, 2020, built entirely on donations and the belief that housing, support, and love can change lives.

Today the organization owns 11 homes (with two more on the way), providing permanent housing and daily “care management” for individuals with mental illness who have experienced chronic homelessness. So far, she has helped 68 people rebuild their lives—while assembling a 12-person team and a community grounded in dignity and accountability.

“Everybody benefits when people are off the streets,” Howell says. “My goal is simple: help more people get the lives they deserve—and build a community where everyone is part of the solution.”

secondhearthomes.org