Bank of America celebrates Sarasota-Manatee nonprofits

Brittany Lamont, president of the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance, is a member of the board and a program alumnus of Take Stock in Children.

“I came from a single mom, and my mom had a cancer diagnosis, so college was a dream without a way to necessarily pay for it,” Lamont said. “I was a freshman at Bayshore High School when I got the Take Stock scholarship.” 

The scholarship paid for Lamont to attend the State College of Florida and then the University of South Florida. 

Lamont and about 75 others attended a grantee celebration at Gold Coast Eagle Distributing on Sept. 4. Bank of America hosted the event for its 18 nonprofit partners in Sarasota and Manatee counties. 

The bank issued over $450,000 in grants to the nonprofits over the past year. 

“One of the things, when I moved down here in 2016, that was immediately apparent to me is how connected our nonprofits were with one another and how committed they were to collaborating to make this place better for all of us,” said Erik Vatter, president of Bank of America Sarasota/Manatee. 

In that vein, each guest was given a “passport” to get signed by members of other nonprofits as a fun way to network with one another. 

Vatter said the bank only donates to proven nonprofits that are making an impact. The charitable focus is on basic needs and postsecondary education.  

Take Stock in Children supports middle and high school students from low-income families. The students are provided mentors, college success coaches and scholarships.  

Lamont is living proof the program works.

“Her leadership has helped us grow,” Take Stock Executive Director Lisa Bechtold said. “We were in the trenches, doing the work and we would forget to lift our heads to tell people what we were doing. Then, Brittany came in with her marketing background.” 

After college, Lamont started telling her story at speaking engagements for Take Stock’s Sarasota chapter. She mentored students, then joined the board. Next year, she’ll chair the board. 

As president of the business alliance, Lamont looks at Take Stock as a benefit to the business community, too.

“I think it’s an opportunity for us to keep talent local,” she said. “With 80% of our students staying local (to attend SCF, some go on to universities), that’s a way for us to capture the workforce, too.” 

Bechtold credits Lamont for more than doubling the program’s participants. When she started, Take Stock was serving about 200 students. Now, the nonprofit serves about 600 students. 

“When you get someone who’s already lived it, and then they come in and get to be on the other side, it’s magic,” Bechtold said. 

Out of 46 Take Stock local affiliates in Florida, Lamont is the only alumnus to become a board chair.