PORT ST. LUCIE PEOPLE
The CHILD ADVOCATE
BY PATTIE DURHAM
When Sean Boyle and his wife, Jacque,
took a leap of faith and moved to
South Florida from snowy Chicago in
1997, he had no idea where he would
end up working. His wife had been promised a
job with her stepfather’s business, but his options
were left to the want ads. Boyle answered an ad
for a grant writer and training specialist with the
Children’s Services Council of St. Lucie County
and was hired.
At first, he didn’t think he was going to stay
for long, but his boss, Kathy Basile, a longtime St.
Lucie County educator, asked him what he would
like to do. She noted that the council needed a
website and a training calendar. So, Boyle went to
work on those items, which helped him to grow
with the job. He said he learned quite a bit from
Basile, who worked tirelessly to improve the lives
of the county’s children. When Basile became ill,
he began filling in as the acting director. Boyle was
named executive director in 2009, shortly after the
death of Basile.
Much about the CSC has changed in the 20 years
Boyle has been there, including an increase in the
staff since its inception in 1990. Boyle manages
a staff of nine employees, eight of whom are full
time. Described as an independent Children’s Services
Council, which means it has its own governing
board, it provides funds to agencies working
to benefit children. There are eight independent
councils in Florida and another eight or nine that
are governed by their county commissioners.
As executive director, Boyle oversees the distribution
of an annual $8.5 million budget that comes
from ad valorum revenue assessed in the county
and other matching funds from private foundations
and state dollars.
“We try to maximize our funding within our
program to draw down additional resources for
our community,” Boyle said.
Funding goes to after-school programs as well
as agencies such as Early Learning Coalition and
Tykes to Teens that deal with children’s health and
welfare. Many of the programs depend on parent
participation and community support to give the
children the tools to succeed.
“You need to connect with that child to increase
their likelihood of success,” Boyle said. “Most of
our agencies would love volunteers. People can
look at our program guide to see if there is an area
in which they might like to volunteer.”
Presently, one focus is on advancing reading
skills. The council spearheads a local grade-level
reading initiative, St. Lucie Reads, that is part of a
statewide push to ensure students are reading on
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46 Port St. Lucie Magazine
ANTHONY INSWASTY
Sean Boyle, executive director of the Children’s Services Council of St. Lucie County,
looks for children’s books to replenish some of the council’s Little Libraries where
books are provided to children in the community.