​​S. Woods Bennet is from Kids’ Chance of Maryland. He started working with Kids’ Chance in 1997.

"What impressed me most about the organization when I first got involved was the commitment to helping the kids,” shared Woods. “The leaders in the state organizations, and those who went on to become involved in the national organization, were so genuine, so sincere in trying to meet this need. It was inspiring to me, and I just wanted to be a part of it.”

In 2006, he started working with Kids’ Chance of America and went on to be elected president for two years. He continued on as a member of the board until 2015.

“I was fortunate to be there when we had a period of important growth at the national level. You can imagine for the first few years of the organization, we were just laying the groundwork with some initial fundraising and trying to develop some new state organizations. But during my tenure as president, we were very fortunate to increase our fundraising significantly through a wonderful sponsorship from Paradigm. And that really took us to a whole new level of ability to help the children of injured workers, which is our mission.”

Kids’ Chance state organizations provide scholarships to children who have had a parent seriously or fatally injured on the job. Woods acknowledged that one of the most rewarding parts about working with Kids’ Chance is the clear need for what the organization does.

‍In 2016, 5,190 workers lost their lives on the job as a result of traumatic injuries. Each day in this country, an average of 14 workers die because of job injuries—and this impacts not only the individuals, but their families.

Kids’ Chance has grown rapidly since Woods got involved with the national organization in 2006. One of the primary goals has always been to have a Kids’ Chance in each state. At 47 organizations, there are only three more to go.

The ultimate goal is to ensure that every child affected by a workplace injury can achieve their educational dreams. “It’s a lofty goal,” Woods admitted. “But frankly, there isn’t any reason why we can’t reach it. We have made tremendous strides just in the last fifteen years or so. If we can find the kids, we’ll raise the money, and we’ll make sure that they get the opportunity to complete their educations.”

Woods was the 2019 Robert M. Clyatt Distinguished Service Award recipient. “I can't tell you how humbling it is to win an award bearing the name of Bob Clyatt. He has been such an inspiration to me and to Kids' Chance over the years. I saw his passion for this organization that he created. I saw the level of his commitment, what he sacrificed to get this organization up and running. All of the work he put into it, all of the personal expenses the he contributed to make this thing work. To have an award bearing his name is a tremendous honor.”

But he credits the award to others: “I’m tremendously pleased to receive the award, but it really is in the name of many others who were sort of right with me, by my side, leading me in my first years at Kids’ Chance. I’m really grateful to Kids' Chance for giving me that opportunity to make my own contribution.”

When accepting the award at the 2019 National Conference, he said to the room of supporters and volunteers, “You are the people that are going to make Kids' Chance a lasting, strong organization across the country. This honor, as far as I'm concerned, is because of you all.”

‍We now have a Kids’ Chance organization in almost every state. Connect with yours today.