Community Resources for Parents of the East Valley
Each month we profile a different organization in the East Valley. It is our hope that people in the community who see this might be able to help meet the organization's needs in some way. If you have an organization you would like profiled, please take a moment to fill out the information form by clicking below.
We are starting a summer and after school program for children of low-income children at Sunset Ranch in Tempe, Arizona. Some of our needs are:
Toys and games (new or used) for 5-12 year olds.
Tables or desks and chairs (new or used).
Computer equipment (new or used).
Healthy snacks.
Money donations.
Project Shoestring is an organization made up of ordinary people - friends, relatives, neighbors, from a number of different countries - dedicated to the proposition that everyone can get involved in helping the less fortunate.
The people of Project Shoestring believe that no action is too small, no contribution in time, money or goods too insignificant, to make this world a better and more equitable place.
Created by ordinary people, who
believe that little things can add up, dedicated to equality of opportunity, and the proposal that everyone deserves a life of dignity and respect.
Scott Lawrence Spehr - Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Scott is the founder of Project Shoestring and an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the Kazakhstan Institute of Management, Economics and Strategic Research in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Maria Leticia Govea-Spehr - Co-Director and Chief Operating Officer.
Maria is a native of Chihuahua, Mexico and as such has witnessed first-hand the negative effects of living in an atmosphere of fear and poverty. Maria has a wealth of experience in dealing with people at the personal as well as professional levels, and is an invaluable asset in Shoestring's efforts to connect with those who need assistance and those eager to provide it.
Wendy Aimee Porter -
Wendy is a dynamic young woman with 15 years of executive experience in the fields of job training and the placement of people in productive, rewarding work. The product of a multi-cultural family, she is herself the mother of three tri-racial children and as such brings a particular passion to Shoestring's efforts to promote ethnic and racial equality.
We believe that every human has the potential to become as great as they can imagine. But if their imagination is not nurtured, they cannot fathom the potential of themselves.
Our Mission
We will provide an artistic outlet for foster children, ages 8-18 which will enable them to discover their talents, and use those talents to succeed in life. We are an organization consisting of mentors and teachers who are both incredibly passionate as well as talented and eager to share that passion to stimulate the minds of our foster youth. By providing the children with the best quality and guidance, we will convince them that their worth is far more than they have realized.
We will also increase the awareness of the importance of inner-community adoptions. The notion of adopting an older child, rather than waiting on lists for newborns, or adopting outside of the country will not be a new concept, but rather a familiar idea and open possibility. We will voice the importance of a home for every child, while enhancing the situations they are in currently.
Our Vision
The number of children in shelters and group homes will decrease, while those who do remain will graduate with confidence and pride in themselves and everything they are ready to offer as an outstanding member of society.
Our Means
We believe that in order to accomplish extraordinary feats, such as ours, we must set forth in an extraordinary way. Rather than operating solely with the funding provided through outside sources, as much as it is needed and appriciated, we will take a different, and perhaps more steadily reliable approach. We will generate the majority of funding ourselves. We will open a second-hand children's store whose sole purpose is to fund this organization. This store will be located in Phoenix, AZ and it will be called Unfolded. We will take pride in the quality of clothing we accept and distribute and also maintain a very structured and unique pricing strategy. Clothes are clothes, and that is how they will be sold, the name on the tag will not effect the price. Since LifeUnfolded is aimed at serving a specific age group, our store will allow us to contribute to two other incredibly important groups of society. The first group will be the families who shop at our store. We believe that no child should ever feel ashamed of themselves simply because they do not have the same quality of clothing as their peers. And as sad as it is, children are sometimes taunted and belittled for this status alone. We will provide a way for families to afford nice, quality clothing and we will offer nothing less. We will also provide those same families a way to sell or exchange the clothing that they have already, as long as the apparel meets our quality standards. The second group that we will serve will be the remaining age groups in the foster system. All of our excess clothing will go directly to group homes and shelters. We will also hold clothing drives every other month that will further contribute to these children. We believe it is possible to help everyone, and this will be our means of doing so.
Special Olympics Arizona is always searching for wonderful volunteers, coaches, partners, participants and sponsors.
Special Olympics Arizona's vision is to help bring all persons with intellectual disabilities and closely-related developmental disabilities into the larger society where they are accepted, respected and given the chance to become useful and productive citizens.
Special Olympics has been in Arizona for over 30 years.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS