We borrowed the Impact truck in order to deliver presents for 249 Apache children at San Carlos in one trip. Left to right: Truckers Tom Drake, Bruce Fink, Bob Stephens and Dave Wisniewski.
Adopt-a-Child 2016
Ken and Ellen Perkins
We have been watching the heartbreaking news stories about families in Syria who are suffering great hardship and can’t find a safe place to raise their children. They are truly in need of help and their plight just seems to get worse with each passing day. But please don’t forget that there are many children in need right in our area. Unfortunately, with unemployment near 80% on the San Carlos Reservation, Apache Indian children have been severely impacted. Once again we would like to spread some joy to these children during the holidays. Most of the children are of elementary and middle school age and will be identified by Tribal Social Services (TSS) agents, school teachers and school counselors.
The suggested donation is $60 to $70 per child with roughly half of that spent for a special gift or toy and the other half spent on durable play clothes (the children are all very needy). If you want to shop for the child yourself, we will provide you with a list of clothing sizes and the child’s wishes. We generally have almost all of the Indian children by mid-November. We should be able to get the children’s names and wish lists to you before November 21 so you can go shopping before the Black Friday rush.
We plan to deliver to the San Carlos Indian Reservation early in the week of December 20. In order to avoid overwhelming the SBCO office and their all-volunteer staff, we will collect the gifts for the Apache Indian children at our house. Gifts for Apache Indian children should be wrapped and packaged with the child’s full name, the agency (Rice or TSS) and the TSS counselor or Rice Elementary School teacher and grade affixed tightly to the bag or box. We prefer to use clear plastic bags but they are hard to find locally. We have a supply on hand so we can give you as many as you need.
Last year the SBCO Adopt a Child project provided gifts for 249 Apache children on the San Carlos Reservation. If your unit wasn’t involved last year, but would like to participate this year, please call for additional information. It’s fun and very rewarding! There is no overhead charge for this project so 100% of gifts and cash donations go to needy families and children.
We would like to invite any and all of you to join us in this worthy cause. We need donations and we also need help with shopping, wrapping and delivery. Please make checks payable to SBCO with Adopt a Child in the notes section. You can drop off donations at the SBCO office at Suite L in the SaddleBrooke business center or you can mail them to SaddleBrooke Community Outreach Treasurer, 63675 East SaddleBrooke Boulevard, Suite L, Tucson, Arizona 85739.
If you have any questions you can reach us by email: [email protected] or by phone at 520-825-6570.
Nevaeh Derrick with her parents Danny and Teri Derrick
Community Outreach supports Teens Sew Cool
Linda Shannon-Hills
For some students, learning to sew opens up new opportunities for them: learning a new skill, becoming independent, learning how to become creative in design and skills to share their art by making gifts for family and friends. Teens Sew Cool provides an opportunity for teens and pre-teens living in Oracle, San Manuel and Catalina area to learn those skills but we can’t do it alone without the generous sponsors like SaddleBrooke Community Outreach.
SaddleBrooke Community Outreach recently presented a check to Teens Sew Cool for $1,000 to help fund the many sewing projects and gifting sewing machines to worthy students in Teens Sew Cool.
Recently we donated a new sewing machine at the San Manuel location to a four-year student of Teens Sew Cool. Nevaeh Derrick, 11 years old, daughter of Danny and Teri Derrick, received a new Brothers Project Runway machine. Nevaeh has demonstrated all the skills the TSC required for submitting a student to be considered for the Gifting Program. Nevaeh has wanted a machine for a long time and we are pleased to be able to present her with this machine thanks to donations by groups like SaddleBrooke Community Outreach.
We will continue to evaluate other students that may qualify for the Sewing Machine Gifting Program in the coming weeks.
Teens Sew Cool is always in need of fabrics and sewing notions as well as volunteers. Go to the website www.teenssewcool.org for more details.
Used iPads needed
Elise Grimes
Last year the Education Committee tutors started an experiment using iPad Tablets to help fourth and fifth grade students learn math. They found that using the traditional methods, including flash cards to teach multiplication and division in groups of nine or ten students, was not progressing very well. Working with the school administrators and teachers they developed a program where they moved the kids into the library and started using tablets loaded with approved free math programs.
The program included games and competitions. One of the fifth grade classes had an end of the year NCAA basketball type competition. The kids loved this new format and their progress was incredible. Other math skills were also taught using the tablets with the students showing the same level of progress.
The Education Committee is looking for donations of used or unwanted iPads that are in good working condition so we can expand the math tutoring program. We are asking that the tablets be erased of all personal information. If you are unable to do this, Messabyte, The Computer Store in SaddleBrooke, has generously volunteered to erase the tablets of all personal information before they are loaded with the math apps and assigned to the students.
The tablets may be dropped off at the SBCO Office at 63675 E. SaddleBrooke Boulevard, Suite L, Tucson, Arizona 85739, Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. If you have questions, please contact the Education Committee Vice Presidents Elise Grimes at [email protected] or Steve Groth at 333-4262.
How do you know if you make a difference?
Nan Nasser
You ask the people involved in your programs. SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) has three major areas to target: clothing, education, nutrition. We received responses that we didn’t even request!
Clothing started with Kids’ Closet almost 20 years ago. Children in designated areas of need, primarily elementary school ages, selected by school administrators, were welcomed to Kids’ Closet. They could select school clothing assisted by a volunteer. One little boy was overheard saying out loud, “I love this place.” Families expressed gratitude for the new, stylish outfits; children wrote special notes.
Teen Closet focuses on high school kids. One youngster sent a card to SBCO saying that we had been angels that God had sent to her. She thanked us for showing her how to help her community and for the love we have for everyone.
The Governing Board of Amphitheater School District thanked us for our donations, noting that they supplement the budget, fill vital needs and enrich educational opportunities.
Enrichment programs in our service area also expressed great appreciation for our support. A speakers’ program at Central Arizona College (CAC), in Aravaipa, exposed students (and adults) to new ideas, challenged them to think critically and opened eyes to new careers.
A trip for high school students from Kearny to Washington D.C. resulted in the comment that small towns are great places to grow up, but those in small towns forget to explore the rest of the world. The trip helped students expand their horizons.
College for Kids is held at CAC, Aravaipa, and the return comments from kids and parents were wonderful, talking about the excitement of the day. One child loved the computer lab because he could look up stuff and learn new things.
Some scholarship recipients also sent letters. A nursing student at A.S.U. completed 14 credits last semester, made the Dean’s List for the College of Nursing and was accepted to a summer program in Peru exploring healthcare, culture and ethics in Peru.
A student at Northern Arizona University will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in biomedical sciences with a minor in chemistry. She also is volunteering in a local community dealing with security and safety. She is gaining hours as an EMT, with hopes of helping Kearny.
SBCO supports the Tri Community Food Bank. A summer food distribution for kids was much appreciated by kids and families. One youngster at College for Kids loved the breakfasts! He hadn’t eaten one in two weeks.
We do make a difference! And you can help us continue. Check our website for ways to get involved: www.community-outreach.org.