Little Seeds Matter, a non-profit organization that empowers families with young children in under-resourced communities throughout Riverside and San Bernardino counties, is getting a big boost in the new year.
A recent grant from Inland Empire Community Foundation through the Community Impact Fund comes at a critical time for the nonprofit, which, like many other organizations, has kept a close eye on funding cuts in 2025.
“When the grant arrived, I remember letting out a huge sigh of relief,” said Yvonne Choyce, Founder and CEO of Little Seeds Matter. “It felt good knowing that this grant was literally going to help sustain and strengthen our organization’s ability to continue serving the families, but most of all, to keep delivering high-quality literacy, health and wellness programs, and resources at a time when families have limited access to any early learning and wellness supports.”
Choyce added that funding is vital in helping the nonprofit’s clients grow stronger, healthier, and more reliant.
The nonprofit’s mission, in fact, is twofold: to promote a culture of health, wellness, and resilience; and to offer access to comprehensive health education, innovative wellness programs, and needed community resources.
Choyce said Little Seeds Matter is committed to removing gaps in both health and academic education. Ensuring there is equitable access to health resources within schools and homes is also key. Supporting children and families from marginalized communities and offering community engagement also aids in creating more resilient neighborhoods.
“I’m very passionate about working with our communities,” Choyce added. “I’ve been in community since I was a child. My mother’s middle name was ‘community,’ and that’s where I’ve placed my focus for the past 30 years. My mother sent her 10 children out into the community, and that’s what we’ve always done. I don’t know anything else more important than that.”
Besides helping close many critical gaps, Choyce said the recent grant will help strengthen the nonprofit’s ability to evaluate its programs and listen to the voices of the families that they are serving.
“We want to continue improving and responding to the real needs of the community,” she said. “Beyond that, the grant allows us to enhance our materials and training abilities for our Lit-Well Program. Our main primary service comes from that program.”
The Lit-Well Program has been well received praised for how well it provides literacy, health, and wellness education to families of young children. It has been a vibrant collaboration between Little Seeds Matter (LSM) and community partner, My Healthy Reader (MHR), a diverse team comprised of program administrators and staff skilled in early-childhood development, pre-K and elementary academics.
Other elements that factor in include ASL and Spanish translation, and several art disciplines. Both entities remain committed to sharing providing quality programming and resources.
“We were really at a point where the lights were going out [when the funding arrived],” Choyce said. “We were attempting to figure out how we’re going to get through the rest of the year and into next year. Ultimately, this investment truly ensure uninterrupted programming and it builds a long resilience for us.”
That optimism bodes well for Choyce and the Little Seeds Matter Team, but there’s more. She wants the community to know more about the nonprofit’s work and its impact.
“As we head into this new year, I want people to know that we are here, and we need partners,” she said. “There’s a lot of us out here doing the similar work and we each have a piece of the pie. If we could just come together and be more supportive and collaborate, we can get much more achieved.”
This story originally appeared in the Press Enterprise, January, 2026.
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