There are many resources available for parents to find different activities for their children, including thousands of websites, newspapers, magazines, schools and community centers.  It can take a lot of time and effort to sift through and verify all of this information, and for parents who juggle busy schedules, time is a luxury many don’t have. 

Amy and Craig Platt of Syosset were the first of their friends to start a family, and as Amy began looking for activities to do with her children, she became known as the go-to person for recommendations and opinions.  “People came to me for advice,” says Amy. “They asked me how to find a nanny or a pre-school or a play. I liked helping my friends.” 

Besides her role as wife and mother, Amy was also a CPA and had a successful career working in both the city and Long Island, but she wanted to spend more time with her family. “I couldn’t do this for 30 more years. This can’t be what my life is going to be,” she recalls.

Amy listened to her instincts and made the life-changing decision to work from home. “I gave myself an 18-month timeline to do research [for a home-based career] and and 12 months to implement [my idea].”
 
A friend recommended a California-based website hosted by ParentClick.com and Amy realized it included everything a parent needed to know on a broad range of topics organized in one place and was a media resource for parents, businesses and non-profits.

Amy wanted to bring that information to LI parents, and in 2006, she launched www.LIParentSource.com.

“Parents get home from work, make dinner and put their kids to bed. At 8 p.m., they begin planning their child’s birthday party or bar mitzvah, looking for camps or schools. They can’t call most businesses at that time [of night] and they need information that’s easy to find,” Amy explains. ParentClick.com provides the site framework, server space and maintenance and Amy provides the website content and all of the marketing and advertising collateral. She found her niche.

“Our goal is to get the information you need to make the right choice for your family,” Amy says. With the climbing cost of living and parents putting in additional hours at their jobs, they are looking for more free things to do with their children.

“[Because of the economy] many parents aren’t sending their kids to camp this year,” says Amy. “[But] there are a lot of [free] local camps that people don’t know about. It’s fun letting them know this information, and they’re very appreciative.”

LIParentSource.com sends out a weekly newsletter and you can register on the site to receive coupons, special offers and find parenting tips supplied from a variety of contributors. Amy recently hired another local mom as her director of sales to allow herself more time to concentrate on generating new content. “We work with our clients and help them grow their business and get them in front of families,” she says. Amy supports many local non-profits and believes in encouraging families to give back to the community. “Parents need to teach their kids about volunteering,” Amy says. “It doesn’t have to take a lot of your time or money.”

While many mothers struggle to strike a balance between work and home in these shifting economic times, Amy, the mother of Aaron, 6, and Camryn, 3, enjoys the best of both worlds and says, “I want to be the premiere online resource for families on Long Island.”

For more information email amy@LIParentSource.com or go to www.LIParentSource.com.
If you know a super woman who deserves good Fortune—and a profile—e-mail your nominations to Beverly at bfortune@longislandpress.com.