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What did you eat on your summer vacation? For too many kids, the answer is “Not enough.” Summer is supposed to be fun, but it’s not so fun for children who depend on free or reduced meals during the school year because they may not get the nutrition they need. That’s where our Summer Food Service Program comes in. The program’s designed to ensure kids don’t go hungry while they’re out of school. Unfortunately, Arizona children face a unique set of barriers when it comes to hunger.

When I was little, I considered American Girl dolls one the most perfect presents a girl could receive. Each doll was inspired from a different era in American history with their own background story. I played dress-up with them, but what I loved most was reading their stories.

Ask Levi’s mother, Katie, and she’ll tell you that one of his favorite books is The Goodnight Walk, by Elisha Cooper. It is the story of a mother and child who take a walk down the block to the bay. As they turn to walk back home, evening falls upon the neighborhood, and they begin to notice all the little changes that have occurred in the short time since they started their journey.

Valley of the Sun United Way offers many opportunities for you to make a difference in your community. Please check out the volunteer calendar on our website for the ones that most interest you.

My friends planned a happy hour Downtown, and then they were headed to Crescent Ballroom for a concert. I was only supposed to meet them for a happy hour. I’d been working long hours and felt like I hadn’t been home much in weeks, but I remember them trying to convince me to join them at Crescent and explaining the concert wasn’t just a concert. It was a food drive. A local band, The Senators, was giving out their CD for concert goers who brought canned food donations. By my friend’s comedic logic, if I didn’t go and support the cause, I was against feeding starving Valley children. That got me – I ended up going and I’m glad I did.

Every child deserves a quality education and a bright future. Unfortunately, not all children have a level playing field. Children in families struggling with poverty can be left behind or miss out on key opportunities that will prepare them for college or career.
You can make a difference to grow strong students, and here’s how:

Volunteers of all ages, from 5 on up, are invited to share in packing the food that goes into United Way’s WeekEnd Hunger Backpacks. Each backpack provides enough meals to get a Valley child through the weekend and come back to school on Monday ready to learn. It’s both a celebration of community and a chance to give back.

As a Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) of Arizona employee, it’s part of Sarah Jacobsen’s role to keep clients healthy, but she also works hard to keep her coworkers happy through the spirit of volunteerism.

Because of the needs of people in our community, like Lawrence, we at United Way set a high bar for ourselves, our partners and the Valley. We work hard every day to achieve our community objectives, including to End Homelessness. Although some might scoff and say it isn’t possible, we believe it is. We believe that by changing systems away from a focus on managing homelessness to one of ending homelessness, we will, as a community, make homelessness a vestige of the past.

Jerry Malone recently drove 80 plus miles at the crack of dawn from his home in Wickenburg to Mesa, not for his latest construction contract, but to volunteer to help people experiencing homelessness. He makes the long-distance drive to other sites around the Valley every month as an ambassador for United Way’s Project Connect, a role he’s proudly held for five years.