Our Charities
Ability 360
Ability360 advocates personal responsibility – by, and for, people with disabilities – as a means to independence. To help consumers achieve self-sufficiency, Ability360 offers comprehensive programs. Ability360 is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. Through its comprehensive programs, Ability360 touches the lives of individuals with disabilities and addresses the disability concerns of their family members, co-workers and employers. With more than 130 staff members, more than 2,500 personal assistants and hundreds of volunteers, Ability360 has offices in Phoenix, Gilbert/Mesa, Glendale, Tucson, Coolidge, and Prescott Valley, and provides services throughout Maricopa, Pima, Pinal, Gila, and Yavapai Counties. Ability360 programs are made possible through grants, fee-for-service contracts, and individual and corporate contributions.
Arizona Helping Hands
Arizona Helping Hands is a nonprofit organization that provides basic, essential needs to children in foster care. Nicknamed the “Care Barn,” we support children who have been removed from their families due primarily to abuse (physical or substance) or neglect. From our 8,000 square foot warehouse in Scottsdale, Arizona Helping Hands provides a bed in which to sleep, clean clothes to wear, hygiene products, books, toys and more to help ease the transition into a new family. In 2016, we will provide 2,000 beds and cribs, 1,000 personalized birthday packages, backpacks, school supplies and much more to ease the burden on boys and girls in foster care.
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale provides a positive, safe and fun environment to help 18,000 youth of all ages and backgrounds develop the qualities needed to reach their full potential. The Club offers more than 100 youth development programs at the organization’s nine branches and multiple outreach sites located in Scottsdale, Phoenix, Mesa, Fountain Hills and the Salt River Pima-Maricopa and Hualapai Indian Communities. Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale was established in 1954 serving 282 youth in order to keep them productive and safe during critical non-school hours. Since then, our organization has added, built and expanded Clubs, served thousands upon thousands of more children and teens.
Boys Hope Girls Hope of Arizona
Boys Hope Girls Hope serves promising, highly motivated children-in-need with alternative housing, private school tuition, college scholarships, academic support, enrichment opportunities, and the resources scholars need to break the cycle of poverty and reach their full potential. Boys Hope came to Arizona in 1989 with the opening of the boys’ home and our girls’ home followed in 1998. In 2003, the Arizona affiliate became the first in the nation to implement a Community-Based Program model, allowing us to serve additional children-in-need whose home lives are not so severe as to require residential placement.
Camelot Therapeutic Horsemanship
Camelot is a bridge leading to a life of freedom and self-fulfillment for children and adults with physical disabilities. Founded in 1980, our non-profit program offers horsemanship as a means of therapy that improves strength, balance, coordination, and self-esteem. More than a riding program, Camelot is a philosophy that views every human being as a masterpiece and rests on the belief that love and courage can slay the mightiest of dragons!
Using the horse as a metaphor of life, our students learn to become stronger than the obstacles in their paths. Together, we achieve this through one-on-one programming for each student, based on his or her unique abilities and needs. Camelot’s students proceed through a demanding curriculum that includes every facet of horsemanship: riding, driving, grooming, training, showing, veterinary care, tack selection and maintenance, and stable management.
Child Crisis Arizona
Child Crisis Arizona’s vision is safe kids and strong families. We operate the Valley’s only two Emergency Children’s Shelters for young children who have experienced abuse and neglect. We have one of the largest foster care and adoption programs to license, train and certify individuals and families to find homes for the 18,000 Arizona children in foster care. We create strong and successful families through our home visitation, counseling programs and family classes and workshops. We are expanding our Early Education Program to some of the Valley’s poorest children in Phoenix and Mesa. There are many opportunities to get involved through volunteering, donating and advocating.
Family Promise of Greater Phoenix
In Operation since 2000, Family Promise – Greater Phoenix has provided more than just shelter for families. For the past 13 years, the programs at Family Promise have helped over 500 families.
These programs have enabled families to move from homelessness to self-sufficiency.
At Family Promise, we give families the tools and training to care for their children, find employment and housing, and become independent and successful. We strive to provide a safety net for children and their families before they drop into a cycle of endless shelters, loss of school attendance, unemployment, family instability and foster care.
Family Promise provides basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter, but we also provide a safe, encouraging, and constructive environment for families that feel lost and scared. Family Promise’s long-term goal is to break the cycle of homelessness and create a sense of community for the families that participate in the program, and the thousands of volunteers that have contributed to this program over the years.
Feeding Matters
Feeding Matters mission is to further advances in pediatric feeding disorders by accelerating identification, igniting research, and promoting collaborative care for children and families. We value innovation by partnering in the latest developments to advance the research and treatment of pediatric feeding disorders. We exemplify credibility by combining practical experience with a deep knowledge of the medical, social, and personal impacts of pediatric feeding disorders. We value collaboration by working with healthcare professionals, families, and the community to address all facets of pediatric feeding disorders. We are determined and deeply committed to promoting awareness and understanding of pediatric feeding disorders and its impact on people’s lives. We offer understanding by providing perspective, context, and compassion for the children, families, and healthcare professionals impacted by pediatric feeding disorders every day.
Jewish Family & Children’s Service
The road to independence can be intimidating, especially for foster youth. Jewish Family & Children’s Service provides mentorship, guidance, and education for life skills and healthy living to give them the confidence they need to become healthy adults. JFCS is serving over 41,000 individuals of all ages and faiths. They are proud to be one of the longest-serving, most comprehensive behavioral health and social services agencies in Arizona. For over 80 years, they have been able to assist families coping with behavioral health challenges and domestic violence; help older adults live independently and get the services they need; and aid in strengthening families.
Miracle League of Arizona
There is something about playing the game that lights up a person’s eyes. But for children and adults facing serious physical and mental disabilities that opportunity can often be difficult to achieve. Baseball diamonds weren’t exactly designed with wheelchairs and crutches in mind.
The Miracle League removes the barriers that keep children with mental and physical disabilities off the baseball field and lets them experience the joy of America’s favorite pastime. Since the main barriers for these adults arise from the natural grass fields used in conventional leagues, Miracle League teams play on a custom-designed, rubberized turf field that accommodates wheelchairs and other assertive devices while helping to prevent injuries.
But it’s more than playing a game. The Miracle League is about making new friends, building self-esteem and being treated just like other athletes. To help the athletes, the Miracle League uses a “buddy” system – pairing each player with an able-bodied peer. The result is a bond that cannot be described. The Miracle League serves children and adults who suffer from any physical or mental disabilities, which causes them to be excluded, whether intentionally or not, from conventional Baseball leagues.
notMYkid
The challenges kids and families face today are complex and have the potential to devastate lives and derail futures. It is extremely important to work together to protect the kids in our community. The average age a kid will first try drugs is 13. Studies indicate that people who reach 21 without engaging in destructive behaviors are likely to never do so, which is why we passionately educate about current trends, warning signs, and the long-term impact of destructive behaviors. We believe proactive prevention on the part of kids, families, and communities is the answer to long-term success.
Ryan House
With world-class care and programs, Ryan House embraces all children and their families as they navigate life-limiting or end-of-life journeys. For Arizona families caring for children with life‐threatening conditions, every moment, touch and smile count. Quality time…, a must for sustaining energy and hope, is nearly impossible for most families to find on their own. Respite – short breaks from the continuous strain of round-the-clock care – is essential for families to remain intact, and for children to experience quality of life. That’s what Ryan House is all about. The mission of Ryan House is to provide respite and palliative care to children with life-threatening conditions and, as needed, end-of-life care.
Scottsdale Unified School District
The Scottsdale Unified School District has 30 schools serving about 23,000 students. More than 3,000 persons are employed by the district, including about 1,500 teachers. The district celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1996. Its boundaries include most, but not all, of the city of Scottsdale, almost all of the town of Paradise Valley, a section of the city of Phoenix and a section of the city of Tempe.
Southwest Human Development
Southwest Human Development is Arizona’s largest nonprofit dedicated to early childhood development. Since our founding in 1981, Southwest Human Development has been a leader in providing services for children ages birth to 5 and their families in the areas of childhood development and mental health, Easter seals disability services, Early literacy and Head Start, child welfare and professional education and training. Southwest Human Development serves 135,000 children and their families each year through more than 40 programs and services that focus on preventing problems before they start or, when they already exist, providing opportunities to intervene as early and effectively as possible.