Last year, the Arizona Republic’s Season for Sharing campaign awarded grants to 164 Arizona nonprofits to help struggling children and families, boost education, and help people elderly. Thousands of our neighbors in need received the help they needed.
The recipients who received the largest amount were St. Mary’s Food Bank ($30,000) and the Arizona Food Bank Network ($40,000), both of which were working to address urgent hunger issues related to COVID- 19.
Arizona nonprofits often fill the gap between government services and what it really takes to live day-to-day in a state with rising inflation and rising housing costs. We should all be grateful that they are there.
Donate now: To donate to Season for Sharing, go to sharing.azcentral.com.
Since 1993, Season for Sharing has raised and donated nearly $72 million to make Arizona a better place for everyone. Here are five reasons to give back:
- When a child is seriously ill, the whole family suffers. The Ronald McDonald House in Phoenix received a $15,000 grant last year to provide housing for out-of-town families traveling to the Valley for life-saving pediatric medical care. Similarly, Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels is providing 200 families struggling with life-threatening and serious childhood illnesses with emergency food and financial assistance. The Arizona Burn Foundation helps family members with housing, transportation, food and financial support while victims of all ages are treated at the Arizona Burn Center in Phoenix and Tucson Medical Center .
- Education gaps are real. Republic reports and academic studies agree: Homeschooling during COVID-19 shutdowns has sent many children and teens back to school. Groups like the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale, Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley, and Boys Hope Girls Hope of Arizona use their Season for Sharing grant to provide homework help, tutoring, academic support, and even supplies and snacks to keep learning on track. Programs at the Children’s Museum of Phoenix, Arizona Science Center, and Phoenix Public Library build science and literacy skills.
- In non-metro areas of Arizona, services can be sparse. Get out of the Phoenix or Tucson metro and services can be sparse. Meals on Wheels drivers travel hundreds of miles to deliver food to the elderly. In Payson and Parker, Time Out and Colorado River Regional Crisis Services, respectively, are the only domestic violence shelters for hundreds of miles. The Flagstaff Family Food Center supports 13 hunger relief programs in sprawling northern Arizona.
- Artistic and cultural education is also an education. The cost of admission is often a barrier to arts education for low-income students and their families. A Season for Sharing grant to Act One provides in-person and virtual field trips to arts venues in the Valley for 25,000 children. A grant from the Heard Museum helps pay for tours and resources that educate students about Native American culture and art. The black theater troupe goes one step further by instilling confidence and civic pride in students through an arts literacy program during the school weekend.
- We all want to live as independently as possible for as long as possible. Driving, maintaining the house and even cooking a basic meal can become a challenge as you age. Benevilla has used a Season for Sharing grant to help more than 300 West Valley seniors and adults with disabilities with essential services like groceries and minor home repairs. In Glendale, the YWCA Metropolitan Phoenix delivers up to 120,000 meals a year and supports 1,000 seniors and adults with disabilities. Likewise, in Tempe, the Community Action Agency serves thousands of meals at senior centers and through delivery programs.
Ways to donate to Season for Sharing
