Fresh out of law school at Columbia University, Ed Soto P’02 ’03 ’05 ’07 returned home with his wife, Sandy, and started looking for ways he could engage more fully with Miami’s community. He started by volunteering at the zoo, a place he fell in love with as a child, where he eventually served as the Zoological Society’s chair. He found another opportunity at Ransom Everglades and was immediately hooked when he heard the mantra of the school’s founder Paul C. Ransom that students should be “in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it.” Soto wanted his four sons to understand the importance of giving back to their community and to benefit from the RE environment, and he wanted to contribute to those efforts in every way he could. He and his wife Sandy have never been disappointed.

Ed jumped in to help the school early on, inspired by what he saw of RE’s involvement with organizations like Breakthrough Miami (then Summerbridge), and recognizing the school’s leadership in the Miami community. He started in 1997 as a non-board member on the Advancement Committee and moved on to help the Ransom Everglades Parents’ Association. One volunteer opportunity led to another, and he joined RE’s board in 1999 and served for a decade on the Advancement Committee and as board chair in 2001-02.

Years later, as a Parent of Alumni (PAL), Ed credits Ransom Everglades for being a big part of his sons’ trajectory and success. “They’ve benefited from their education, and they care about their community,” he said. As each child settled into new communities at school or at work across the globe – from Coral Gables to South Korea, he reminded them: “Get involved. You know how to do that.” 

Following their father’s example, Zac ’02, Mac ’03, Cal ’05 and Luke ’07 have continued to find opportunities to give back through their professions and community service. As a corporate attorney in Coral Gables, Zac has volunteered in the community and represented individuals in need on a pro bono basis. In addition to his work at West Academic in Minneapolis, Mac has represented immigrant clients seeking asylum and refugee status in the United States. Using both his legal training and his desire to organize and assist individuals in need, Cal serves as the Director of Workers’ Rights for the National Day Laborer Organizing Network. Finally, with a master’s degree in social work, Luke has developed a career in the nonprofit sector at home and abroad, first in Turkey and now in South Korea.

Ransom Everglades’ continued commitment to community service as “a private school with a public purpose,” still resonates strongly in the Soto household. As managing partner of Weil, Gotshal and Manges’ Miami office and co-head of the firm’s global complex commercial litigation practice, Ed continues to make a difference through pro-bono work and service on various nonprofit boards. He has served as the board chair of the Human Services Coalition, now known as Catalyst Miami. He has also served as a member of the board of directors of Child Hope, Inc., and as the board chair of the Zoological Society of Florida. He currently serves on the executive committee of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

Ed and Sandy have an impressive 25-year streak of giving to Ransom Everglades. “Sandy and I,” he said, “will always help RE in any way we can.”