Jason Futch: reporter2.riverbendnews@gmail.com
For the first time in its 68-year history, the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranches (FSYR) has welcomed its first female president and first Suwannee County native to helm the historic program.
Maria Knapp, who began her career with the FSYR on Jan. 16, 2001, took office a day before she celebrated her 24th year with the organization. Throughout her service to the FSYR, she has seen the organization grow into a modern haven for boys and girls seeking safe refuge to blossom into productive members of society.
Knapp’s service to the FSYR came at a moment when she had set her sights on another career. “I was looking for a different job,” Knapp said. “I didn’t enjoy what I was doing at the time.”
During her job search, she encountered some individuals she knew—some she worshiped with—who were involved with the FSYR and encouraged her to apply. She had already been familiar with the organization from her childhood, as she had gone to school with several residents who resided at the ranch.
She was eventually hired to serve as the office manager for public relations at the FSYR, which included desktop publications and other writing assignments. As she furthered her career, her curiosity peaked about the organization and how it was meeting its goals and maintaining its success. “That curiosity bred such an intense passion for the ranches,” Knapp said. “That is being willing to try new things and bringing new ideas to the table.”
Ultimately, that curiosity led her to serve in different roles within the FSYR, including Director of Marketing, before she became the Executive Vice President of the organization under previous President Bill Frye in 2021.
Knapp believes that, with her experience, she is able to guide the FSYR in a direction where she can quickly identify some of the organization’s strengths and weaknesses and help strengthen some of its initiatives. She emphasized the work that the Donald Ralph Cooke School was doing for both children who reside at the ranch and in the community. “We want to get the word out in the community that we have great teachers, a great program, and great after-school programs,” Knapp said. She also said that the school is open to children who live outside of the ranch. Since the school opened, it has served as the primary place of education for the ranch’s youths to attend, versus public school, which youths have attended in the past.
She also said that the ranch would continue its “Harmony in the Family” program, which is in partnership with the Florida Sheriff’s Association and the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice to strengthen families in the state. Knapp said that a grant provided by the FDJJ helps with the program but emphasized that the FSYR is not affiliated with the agency.
Knapp also wants to highlight the work that the FSYR does for children, emphasizing that over the years, the organization has been mislabeled as a place for “bad children” or juvenile delinquents. She wants to show that the children who reside at the ranch are anything but that.
“We are a place for children coming from bad situations,” Knapp said. “Every child has behaviors that they use to cope with whatever their situation is. Our job is to show kids how they can deal with their issues using different coping mechanisms.”
She also shared that the children who call the ranch home are from multiple different backgrounds. “We have children who are orphaned, some who have made poor choices, and some who are in-between. They all have needs, and we are working hard to provide those needs and help the families with whatever structure is needed so they can be together,” Knapp said. “That’s our goal.”
Knapp also mentioned that community engagement has been thriving. The opening of the Jim Black Memorial Pavilion has fostered relationships with the local equestrian community and the Donald Ralph Cooke School, and she believes there are great opportunities for the public to utilize these facilities and learn more about the FSYR and its mission.
While she has been able to lean on her team for support as she undertakes the daily duties of the FSYR, she said her biggest supporter has been her husband, Joey. “He is my biggest cheerleader, and I am so fortunate to have a spouse who understands the crazy schedule that this job requires,” Knapp said. “He is flexible, compassionate and, over the years, developed a love for the organization that almost equals mine.”
As she marks nearly six months as the FSYR’s chief executive, Knapp is confident that the organization will continue to run smoothly and ensure the community that the ranch is here to help and provide a safe haven for boys and girls who strive to become productive members of society. “We have a really great staff here at the ranch and across the state,” Knapp said. “We are fortunate to have wonderful people working for us, and they are going to be the ones that help us move forward.”