Arizonans for Children

Join Arizonans for Children at California Pizza Kitchen at Tempe Market Place on #Giving Tuesday November 27th! 20% of the sales will go directly to Arizonans for Children but even better, if you purchase a California Pizza Kitchen gift card ahead of time and use it on the 27th an additional 10% will support the kids in foster care we serve! Here is the link to buy California Pizza Kitchen gift cards to benefit Arizonans for Children:  California Pizza Kitchen Gift Cards California Pizza Kitchen is also doing a toy drive for the Arizonans for Children Annual Holiday Party for kids in foster care. Drop by with a new unwrapped toy and help make the holidays Merry & Bright for these kids! #GivingTuesday is a international day of giving Buy a gift card, bring the flyer, pick up a toy this #GivingTuesday and be the difference.   Some of the Arizonans for Children staff and volunteers may be on site to help serve and kick off the event....

Need something to get you in the holiday spirit?  Watch this video from the Arizonans for Children Annual Holiday part for children in foster care.   Holding a toy drive is an effective and easy way to help.  Would your work, your gym, your church, your school, your neighborhood, your club, your youth group consider holding a donation drive? Have you claimed the AZ Foster Care Tax Credit for 2018?  You can designate this to go directly to the Holiday Party....you decide where your tax dollars go! http://www.arizonansforchildren.org/page/supporting-arizonans-for-children Shop the Arizonans for Children Amazon Smile Wish List!  If you choose Arizonans for Children as the charity then .5% of the purchase price supports Arizonans for Children and the kids we serve and the toys are shipped directly to our Visitation Center ready to get wrapped for the party! Arizonans for Children Amazon Smile Wish List

Arizonans for Children was thrilled to partner with MCSO and Franklin Police and Fire High School today to have the first Franklin Fitness Fiesta for kids in foster care. Did you know there is a high school in Phoenix that focuses on Police and Fire? It was a beautiful sunny day that started off with yummy pastries provided by Cafe' Valley Bakery!  Then the kids learned a bit about the school and what the days look like for the students. Seriously - how cute is this little guy in turn out gear? "Tell me and I forget.  Teach me and I remember.  Involve me and I learn." The kids separated into groups and participated in timed fitness activities.   Team tire lift and carry.  Kids that have never met each other before had to work together to lift and carry the tire the length of the parking lot.  They were amazed at how they could easily do it when working together as a team. They did the obs...

The University of Phoenix has some VERY creative staff!  For the second year they have shared the pumpkins they decorated with Arizonans for Children and the Phoenix Visitation Center has been transformed into a magically festive space! Wow!  These are incredible and the families on site are going to love discovering all the creations! Thank you, thank you, thank you University of Phoenix! Extra shout out to the Arizonans for Children staff and volunteers that picked up the pumpkins and brought them to the visitation center!  Your willingness to help is inspiring and greatly appreciated!!

The Arizona Grand Resort & Spa is having a golf tournament/toy drive for Arizonans for Children collecting toys and gifts for the Arizonans for Children Annual Holiday Party for children in foster care. We have already collected some pretty fantastic raffle prizes from: Anytime Fitness Dobson Ranch Artist Allen Edge Wear Me Pro Junk King California Pizza Kitchen Gold Canyon Candles Diamond Back Suite for 18 Teeth Whitening and more! There are sponsorship opportunities available: Want to be a sponsor - email Laura at az4children.laura@gmail.com  How fun would this golf tournament be for a holiday event for your company? This could even be a new family tradition of golfing fore gifts! If you haven't seen how powerfully healing this event is - watch the video: Arizonans for Children Annual Holiday Party Together we can make her dreams come true! And the dreams of the 1000 other children coming to the party!

In 2011 when my now husband and I planned our wedding one thing we really wanted to do was capture memories of our family.  We had a professional photographer on site but we also gave every child in attendance a camera so we could see what they captured and what was most important to them. One of our Arizonans for Children Mentors Kelly recently shared a post that had me reflecting on this special time in my life and looking through our pictures. Kelly said " My mentee wanted to me to take photos of him so that he could give them to his family...but, when I handed him my camera he fell in love with it! He said it was one of his favorite things to do that day! Now I have lots of photos of my family, thanks to my personal paparazzi!  😂  " Arizonans for Children Mentors have such a wonderful opportunity to discover and re-discover through the eyes of their mentee.  When we stop and see what is the most important to the child then our perspective shifts....

We are just about ready for the families to dress up in costumes and trick-or-treat at the Arizonans for Children Phoenix Visitation Center! We have some pretty amazing treats to pass out!  MCSO delivered boxes and boxes of books today and the kids will be able to choose a book as a treat! Wear Me Pro dropped off 3,000 pairs of sunglasses!  The kids are going to LOVE these treats! We have reusable water bottles, stuffed animals, super hero capes, goodie bags from Rachel P. and fidget spinners to pass out as well! And of course we have candy thanks to Maya! Charlotte G. shopped from the Arizonans for Children Amazon Smile Wish List and we got a book perfect to read for our STAR (Story Time and Reading) program. The kids are going to LOVE Ten Timid Ghosts! Arizonans for Children Amazon Smile Wish List Did you know that if you choose Arizonans for Children as the charity of choice on Amazon Smile .5% comes t...

The Arizonans for Children STEM Pi-oneers class was lucky to have Paul with PEM attend and talk with the kids, kids in foster care last week.  Paul sat right with the kids and talked to them and listened to them offering valuable life lessons. The kids in class are good kids in a bad situation.  They did not chose to be in foster care.  They have been bounced around from placement to placement, school to school, family to group home.   To have someone to listen to them, actually hear what they have to say was powerful and healing.  It gave the kids a sense of value-that what they had to say and could contribute was important.   Within 15 minutes of the class ended I had calls asking when Paul would be back next.  That is pretty telling of the impact his conversation had.   Thank you Paul for being there and listening to these kids and sharing your knowledge and experience.   There is always a way to make a diff...