The winter holiday break food-bagging and delivery team consisted of (left to right) Rich Lovett, Charlie Weimer, Marie Mantoura, Vida Kaczmarek, Susan Knight, Jeff Kaczmarek, Gretchen Annan, Don Cox, and Anthony Signorelli. Not pictured is Dianne Signorelli (the photographer).
SBCO Helps Feed Students During Winter Holiday Break
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Many students in the Mammoth/San Manuel Unified School District receive free breakfast and lunch when they attend school. When the extended winter holiday break rolls around, some of these children are in jeopardy of not having enough good quality food to eat, since they cannot receive two meals a day, five days a week at school.
The school counsellor identified 30 students who required extra food during their holiday break and prepared a list of the desired foods, along with the quantities needed. SaddleBrooke Ranch resident Anthony Signorelli led a team that placed the food order with Fry’s. On Dec. 13 the team picked up the food and organized food bags for each student. Then the bags were delivered to the school prior to the start of the holiday break on Dec. 22.
SaddleBrooke Community Outreach recognizes that good nutrition is vital to a child’s growth and development. The need for nutritious food isn’t controlled by a school’s holiday calendar, and we are pleased to be able to help fill this gap for local youngsters. Next year, the team plans to purchase all perishables for this project when the Thanksgiving baskets for Oracle are assembled. Those non-perishable items will then be stored and combined with perishables for delivery in December, prior to the start of the school’s winter holiday break.
SBCO 2026 Home Tour Tickets Available Feb. 14
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
The annual SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Remodeled Home Tour will be held on March 21, and you won’t want to miss this opportunity to see extensive changes as well as budget-friendly transformations that have been made in SaddleBrooke homes. This tour of six remodeled houses is designed to show you changes that may inspire your own home improvements.
This event helps SBCO inform the SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch communities about its food, clothing, enrichment, and educational programs for children in nearby communities. It also helps SBCO recruit the volunteers needed to make these programs work. Tour attendees can choose between a morning (9 a.m. to noon) or afternoon (1 to 4 p.m.) tour on Saturday, March 21. During those three hours, you’ll be able to visit all of the homes. In addition to viewing the latest interior design, you’ll see skillfully redesigned bathrooms and kitchens, casita additions, revised floor plans, and renovated outdoor living spaces.
Tickets for this much-anticipated annual event go on sale online on Saturday, Feb. 14, at community-outreach.org. In-person sales (check or cash only) begin at 9 a.m. on Monday, March 16, in the SBCO office at Suite L in the SaddleBrooke business center on SaddleBrooke Blvd. There will be 300 tickets available for each time slot. When tickets are purchased, buyers will need to indicate which showing (morning or afternoon) they will attend. Tickets cost $25 per person and are sold only to SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch residents.
Call your friends and make plans before the tickets sell out!
If you would like to serve as a docent in one of the 2026 tour homes for the morning or afternoon session, please email Jody Snodgrass at jodys@msn.com. Docents receive free admission to the tour.
Amber Walden, principal of Mammoth San Manuel pre-K-12 schools, told pizza party attendees about how SBCO scholarships have helped local students reach their academic and career goals.
Annual Pizza Party Celebrates SBCO Scholarship Students
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Every December the SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Education Committee invites its college scholarship students and their guests to a pizza party. The event, held at Kids’ Closet in Mammoth, is an opportunity for SBCO to recognize the students’ academic achievements and for the students to visit with their Education Committee liaison and other students. The event is timed to coincide with the students’ winter break when many come home to visit family for the holidays.
This year, 32 students registered to attend the party, with many joined by family members and friends. In addition to the students and their guests, the event was attended by members of the SBCO Education Committee and their spouses and Scholarship Endowment Fund donors, for a total of 85 attendees.
Two scholarship students, Aracely Aguirre and Amaya Sommer, each spoke about how their SBCO scholarship has been important to their academic success. In addition to the money SBCO provides, their Education Committee liaison offered support as they adjusted to campus life and the academic demands of college. Amaya Sommer is currently attending U of A, and Aracely Aguirre is a Central Arizona College student. She will take this spring semester off to prepare for applying to nursing school.
Amber Walden, principal of Mammoth San Manuel pre-K-12 schools, also spoke to the attendees: “I truly appreciate SBCO for their scholarship contributions to San Manuel High School and all the students from surrounding districts. These scholarship funds make a big impact for our students, helping them with their housing costs, their college books, resources, and supplies. Some students have been able to use these resources for transportation. These are the items that often get overlooked and really help make a difference in a student’s success while they attend college.”