It doesn’t get any easier.
The 2015 Valley Partnership Community Project planning process has officially begun.
Sixteen grant applications were received, reviewed and ranked by hard-working committee members. The committee short listed the applications to four potential charity recipients. Juliana Norvell of Marc Taylor Inc., led the charge as the charity recipient liaison for the community project committee. She set up visits for the committee to tour the four top sites who are finalists of the 2015 community project.
All four nonprofit organizations opened up their worlds to us and gave us an opportunity to learn more about them and those they serve. Over the course of two days, the committee toured:
•Tumbleweed Center for Youth Development
• Florence Crittenton Services of Arizona
• Fresh Start Women’s Foundation
• Save the Family, The Bridge Family Campus
The first day began at Tumbleweed’s new facility in Phoenix. Tumbleweed serves the homeless and forgotten youth in the Valley. It has done so since 1975. It offers multiple residential, day service center and outreach programs to meet the needs of more than 1,600 youth and young adults each year.
The committee members then toured the Florence Crittenton facility in Scottsdale. For more than 118 years, the organization has been dedicated to serving at-risk and underserved girls and young women. It provides them with safety, hope, and the opportunity to succeed. The Scottsdale facility has up to 15 teenage moms with their children who call the Scottsdale campus home.
The second day started at the Fresh Start facility in Phoenix. Women come to Fresh Start to thrive after facing huge personal and financial challenges. Fresh Start provides a safe place for them and offers education based supportive services to meet their needs. Many of the women who find Fresh Start are fleeing domestic violence.
The final stop was Save the Family, The Bridge Family Campus. The Bridge is a 15-unit gated campus that provides secure transitional housing for women with children who are fleeing dangerous domestic violence. Residents receive specialized programming that is targeted to their unique needs. Save the Family empowers families to conquer homelessness and achieve life-long inter-dependence.
All four finalists shared stories of inspiration and hope. They all provide wonderful services to the underserved, forgotten, and most important, they help children and young people in the Valley.
The annual community service project is a cornerstone for Valley Partnership. This is the second year that I have been involved in the entire process. Again I see the benefits of engaging with the committee early in the process.
“I am excited that the community project committee keeps growing,” says leadership chair Dena Jones of Fidelity National Title. “The membership of the committee is starting off the year with 77 active members and a leadership team of 14. We have more than 65 companies represented on the committee and 10 companies are new to the committee.
“The committee is comprised of some of the most outstanding industry professionals who I have had the privilege to work alongside,” Dena adds. “This group is committed to giving back and believes that ‘Together, We Build a Stronger Valley.’ ”
The real engagement comes Nov. 7 of this year when 200 or so volunteers come together and lend a lot of helping hands.
