Tickets on Sale for SBCO Home Tour
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
The 2021 SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) home tour, which will focus on remodeled homes, will be held on Saturday, Nov. 13. The 2018 and 2019 tours were so well received (the 2020 tour was cancelled due to the pandemic) that the events committee decided to host two showings of the 2021 homes: 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. When tickets are purchased, buyers will need to indicate which showing (morning or afternoon) they will attend.
The seven homes selected for the tour offer SaddleBrooke residents an opportunity to see how their neighbors have adapted their homes for open concept living, improved storage, or created additional space to accommodate their hobbies or guests. Tour tickets will only be sold to SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch residents.
This event helps provide funding for SBCO programs that provide food, clothing, and educational opportunities for children in local communities. Our Kid’s Closet and Teen Closet programs, as well as our annual food drive and many educational grants and college scholarships, make a significant difference in the lives of thousands of children and their families.
Tickets go on sale at 9 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 11 at the SBCO office at Suite L in the SaddleBrooke business complex. Tickets are $20 each and may be purchased using cash, check, or credit card.
The events committee is looking for volunteers who can serve as docents in the tour homes. If you would like to participate in this upcoming event, send an email to Heidi Wagner at [email protected].
Get Rid of the Clutter—Shred Old Paperwork
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Bring your outdated paper files to the shredding and recycling event on Saturday, Oct. 30 from 9 a.m. to noon (or until the truck is full). The event, hosted by Long Realty-Golder Ranch, SaddleBrooke Community Outreach, and the Beacon Foundation, will be held on the SaddleBrooke One bocce ball courts.
All documents are put into containers at the drop-off site to protect your privacy. The containers are locked and transported to the Beacon facility for shredding. In addition to documents, only computer hard drives, which may still be inside computers or laptops, will be accepted for donation/recycling.
To ensure proper social distancing during the pandemic, please load items to be shredded or recycled into your car trunk or the back of your SUV. Be sure to wear a mask while in the drop-off area, and stay in your vehicle. For each bag or box of items delivered for shredding or recycling, please bring $5 or five cans of food. All donations of cash or food will benefit the Tri-Community Food Bank and the Beacon Group.
For more information, contact Long Realty at 15250 N. Oracle Road, #110 or 520-665-4200.
Lori Ward serves as a co-chair of the annual SBCO food drive.
Andrea and Dan Stephens serve as co-chairs of the annual SBCO food drive.
Outstanding Volunteers Lead the Annual SBCO Food Drive
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Each year, SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) hosts a food drive to benefit the Tri-Community Food Bank (TCFB) based in Mammoth. TCFB serves 900 to 1,000 people living in Mammoth, San Manuel, and Oracle, including hungry children, their families, and seniors in need. During the food drive, volunteers in SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch gather donations of money and packaged food, which are then sorted and delivered to TCFB. During the pandemic, only monetary donations could be accepted.
Andrea and Dan Stephens and Lori Ward serve as co-chairs for the food drive in SaddleBrooke. Robert Wample and Betty Ryan lead the event at SaddleBrooke Ranch.
Andrea and Dan Stephens have lived in SaddleBrooke for the past 16 years, having moved from their home state of Michigan. Their introduction to volunteering for SBCO was as food drive unit captains about 10 years ago. Andrea then volunteered as a receptionist at the SBCO office. Andrea and Dan knew Joan and Rich Roberts, and when they wanted to retire as food drive chairs, the Stephens volunteered to lead the event.
Andrea notes, “Working on the Food Drive has definitely been the most gratifying work we have done for SBCO. It’s wonderful to know we are helping to put food on the table for so many people. We were overjoyed earlier this year when, during the pandemic, the communities of SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch donated $226,000 to the cause. Since we were unable to collect food, we had no idea what response we would receive. The generosity was overwhelming.”
Lori Ward and her husband, Bob, moved to SaddleBrooke 11 years ago from southern New Hampshire. Today they own homes in SaddleBrooke and Massachusetts. She began her volunteering work with SBCO, helping children select clothing items at Kids’ Closet, where she still serves as a substitute when needed. Approximately eight years ago, the Wards signed up to be unit captains for the food drive. They did this work for three or four years, one year serving as captains for two units. Now, Lori co-chairs the event in SaddleBrooke, helping to coordinate the unit captains. She particularly enjoys working directly with others in the community, helping them understand the need for a food drive and their role in making it a success.
Lori’s community service work is part of a lifelong pattern, starting with her work as a Peace Corps volunteer. After working for many years as a nurse, she recently volunteered to help with the COVID-19 vaccination drive in SaddleBrooke.
Andrea and Lori both say that volunteering allows them to make a difference by helping those less fortunate. It also gives them a sense of purpose. SBCO provides many volunteer opportunities to SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch residents. Visit community-outreach.org/Volunteers for more information.
Ani Robles received an SBCO scholarship for her undergraduate studies and now is receiving a scholarship to help finance her PharmD degree.
SBCO Is Proud of Its Scholarship Program Graduates
Ron Andrea
The SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Scholarship Program uses a team of volunteers to select local college scholarship students based on financial need, academic performance, and community service. Each student in a four-year degree program is awarded $1,500 per semester, and students enrolled in a two-year degree program are awarded $750 per semester. The scholarships remain in effect as long as students carry a full load of classes and maintain the required grade point average.
Recently, SBCO has awarded a limited number of graduate school scholarships to students who have opted to continue their education but continue to need financial assistance. One of those students is Ani Robles. She writes:
“I graduated from San Manuel Jr./Sr. High School in 2014, which was also when I was awarded the SaddleBrooke Community Outreach Scholarship. Since then, I have received a Bachelor of Science in Physiology with a minor in Biochemistry and am currently in my second year at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy pursuing a PharmD degree. The Community Outreach Program supported me through undergrad and graciously extended their support with my graduate program. This enabled me to focus more on my education, as it lessened my financial burden. It also encouraged me to keep my grades up in order to maintain eligibility and I currently have a 3.8 GPA. Knowing the Community Outreach Program believed in me gave me the courage to persevere when school got stressful. I want to thank everyone involved in the program not only for all they’ve done for me, but also all they do for the community. This program has been a blessing and I will be forever grateful.”
In 2019, SBCO created the Scholarship Endowment Program to increase funding for students like Ani. The beauty of the endowment is that only the earnings on donations are used for scholarships. In this way, the amount donated lasts forever and continues to grow and provide funding for students for generations to come.
All contributions to the endowment fund must be made payable to the Community Foundation of Southern Arizona (CFSA) and designated for the “SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund.” (CFSA’s Tax ID is 94-2681765.) The minimum contribution to the fund is $5,000.
Tax-deductible donations can be made any of four ways:
* A personal check, sent directly to CFSA, made payable to Community Foundation of Southern Arizona with “SBCO Endowment” in the memo line
* A distribution from your IRA to CFSA for the SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund
* Include CFSA as the manager of the SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund as a beneficiary in your trust or estate plan
* In-kind contributions (e.g., stock, securities, real estate, autos)
Send donations to:
The Community Foundation of Sothern Arizona
SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund
5049 E. Broadway, Suite 201
Tucson, AZ 85711
For more information, send an email to [email protected] or call the SBCO office at 520-825-3302.
Local Students’ Education Enriched by SBCO Grants
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
The SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Education Committee receives grant requests from local schools and community organizations to support programs that provide educational and recreational opportunities for local students. Every grant request is reviewed to ensure funds will be used effectively and provide significant benefit to students.
In July, SBCO approved two grant requests for the 2021-22 school year. One will support the Oracle Preschool Program, and the other is for the Discovery Time program in the Miami Unified School District.
The Oracle Preschool Program was awarded a grant of $10,000 to help provide 35 to 50 three- to four-year-old children residing in Oracle, Mammoth, San Manuel, and the Eagle Crest housing development with early childhood education. This program runs from Aug. 15, 2021 through May 23, 2022, and students are evaluated in the fall and spring to assess the benefit received from the program. This grant is a renewal and provides funding for five children at $200 per month over 10 months. Other funding for the program is provided by donations, a county grant, and fundraising by the Oracle School Foundation.
The Discovery Time grant to Miami Unified School District (MUSD) and Lee Kornegay Intermediate School of $15,000 helps fund a new educational program for students in grades 3 through 5. The program’s concept is to provide opportunities to use skills across the curriculum using applied learning. Mathematical calculations and vocabulary will be incorporated into all instruction modules. Robotics kits purchased by the district will be used, with the assistance of high school robotics program advisors, to apply science concepts. Recorders will be purchased to enhance the music instruction provided by MUSD. Recipe use, cooking, and gardening are also potential modules. Community advisors and business partners have agreed to develop interest modules. All students in the school will be invited to participate on a weekly basis and journal about their experiences. MUSD and the school will cover all overhead costs associated with the program, along with facilities and compensation for teacher time spent developing and implementing instruction modules. The teacher cost paid by MUSD is approximately $15,932 for the 32-week program. The SBCO grant will cover $12,000 in program supplies and $3,000 in stipends for program advisors.