Heather Hawley returns to the show to introduce Big Top Dreams Foundation, a new nonprofit she is helping launch alongside its founder, Niles Garden, owner of what she describes as the world's largest circus. Garden, looking to build a philanthropic legacy, approached Hawley to help develop and launch the organization after noticing how many skilled trades, electrical, mechanical, carpentry among them, already run through the circus's own operations in every city it visits. The hosts' friend and guest co-host, a local roofing company owner, has joined the foundation's board after years of simply buying tickets to other local galas, drawn in specifically because trades work is close to his own background.
Hawley and her co-host spend much of the conversation making the case for trades over traditional four-year degrees, arguing that a stigma against skipping college is fading as automation and artificial intelligence make hands-on skilled work increasingly difficult to replace. Hawley notes her own path went through college and grad school before circling back to trades work, and both guests describe watching kids who struggle in traditional classrooms thrive once they start working with their hands, seeing tangible results and a faster, cheaper path to a stable income than a four-year degree typically offers.
Two fundraisers to launch the mission
The foundation's first Sarasota-area event is a celebrity guest-bartending fundraiser on July 1st at Gateway Live in Gulf Gate, running 6 to 9 p.m. with free admission, local business owners sponsoring individual bartenders, and all tips benefiting the nonprofit. A second, more formal event follows August 22nd at Skyway Motorspace, a $200-a-ticket gala themed Driven for Dreams, held in a donated event space with tips matched by the venue's owner. Hawley says the funding model keeps every donor dollar local: money raised in Sarasota funds Sarasota-area trade scholarships, following the circus's city-by-city tour schedule so each community's giving stays in that community.
What a scholarship actually covers
Hawley breaks down real costs behind the mission: an electrician's tuition, lab fees, registration and required tool kit run about $5,700 for a roughly 760-credit-hour program, with HVAC and plumbing programs costing about $5,300 each, expenses Pell grants typically do not fully cover since they exclude tools. The foundation's goal is 25 scholarships by year's end, paired with a mentorship program pairing students with established local trades businesses so they graduate not just with a license but with an employer relationship already underway.
What you'll take away
- Heather Hawley is helping launch Big Top Dreams Foundation with founder Niles Garden, owner of the world's largest circus, to fund trade-school scholarships
- A celebrity guest-bartending fundraiser runs July 1st at Gateway Live in Gulf Gate, followed by a $200-a-ticket gala August 22nd at Skyway Motorspace
- Electrician training costs roughly $5,700 per student and HVAC or plumbing programs roughly $5,300, expenses Pell grants do not fully cover since they exclude tool kits
- The foundation's goal is 25 scholarships by year's end, paired with a mentorship program connecting students to local trades businesses
- Donor dollars stay local to whatever city the circus is touring, meaning funds raised in Sarasota go to Sarasota-area trade students
“Don't get a job. Get a career. Do something you love so much you would do it for free, but do it so well somebody pays you for it.”
“The return on investment dollars when it comes to trade versus a university is like tenfold.”
Places mentioned: Gulf Gate, Skyway Motorspace