The most charitable college football bowl in the nation, Arizona’s own Fiesta Bowl, is donating $1 million in emergency relief to nonprofits across the state with a focus on feeding children and providing youth programming where it’s needed most during the coronavirus. 

Fiesta Bowl Charities also has officially opened its annual 2020-21 to award funding and support to organizations dedicated to three pillars: youth, sports and education. In September, it will open applications for its Wishes for Teachers program. 

In all, the charity will donate $4 million this fiscal year, it’s highest amount since it was founded almost a half century ago. 

One million to fill gaps for food and youth programs  

The charity is providing $1 million to 18 nonprofits to help fill the gaps for food services and youth programming that are their biggest shortfalls right now, said Patrick Barkley, chair of the Fiesta Bowl of Directors. 

“When we started thinking about how we could best help, we picked up the phones and asked charities what their most urgent needs are,” Barkley said. “Overwhelmingly, they said the biggest impact would be made in providing the increasing numbers they are now serving with enough food to eat and helping them manage the larger amounts of emergency programming for children and single-parent families.”

With schools closed down, organizations need food to feed families and more youth programming as parents perform essential jobs. Organizations in the Phoenix metro region, Tucson, Nogales, southern Arizona, Casa Grande, Prescott, Flagstaff and the Navajo Nation are recipients.

Here are some of the organizations found to be most in need that are receiving funds:

Amanda Hope Rainbow Angels in Phoenix: Amanda Hope’s financial assistance requests from families have doubled as schools have shut down and parents have been laid off. Now, it will be able to provide families with groceries for the next four months.

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley in metro Phoenix: Operating expenses more than tripled overnight between staffing costs and extended hours. Now serving as many as 1,115 kids per day with extended hours at 12 sites across the Valley, the goal is to extend to additional sites as needed. Clubs are now operating with expanded hours from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., instead of its usual after-school schedule. Normally, it operates at a 1-to-20 ratio of staff-to-child, but current rules require a 1-to-9 ratio. 

Boys & Girls Clubs of Casa Grande: One branch is operating specifically for health care professionals and essential workers, serving 60 kids. The donation will allow the branch to provide the necessary programming for nearly three months.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Flagstaff: Of the five locations, one will be open to severely impacted families and essential workers. Funding will be used for new needs across the branches including paying for added staff and cleaners for six weeks.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson: The club is opening up more academic programming at some sites for children who do not have access to online tools. The funds will serve over-and-above costs for up to two months.

Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona: Numbers served have more than doubled, despite reduction in staffing and volunteer hours, and the donation will go directly to feed families in April and May. The Tucson warehouse food cooling system’s compressor went out, so the warehouse is getting new equipment.  

Maggie’s Place in Phoenix: With no donations coming in for diapers and wipes, the stock was almost entirely exhausted. Food donations were also down. The donation will help to pay for  emergency food boxes, food for the homes and shelters, diapers, and wipes over the next several months.

St. Mary’s Food Bank in Phoenix and the Navajo Nation: Donations will provide nearly 15,000 backpacks for food to last every weekend for a month for children in Maricopa County and Navajo Nation in Apache County, one of the most food insecure counties in the U.S. 

Fiesta Bowl 2020-21 grant applications being accepted now

Fiesta Bowl Charities also has opened up its 2020-21 grant season for non-profits that support youth, sports and education. 

Arizona nonprofits can submit applications through May 26. Recipients will be honored at the Arizona Bank & Trust Fiesta Bowl Kickoff Luncheon August 25.

There are three levels of grants: Spirit of the Fiesta Bowl Grant at $100,000, Touchdown Grant at $50,000 and the Field Goal Grant at $25,000. 

For more information, go to: . 

Wishes for Teachers grants to open in September

In addition, the Fiesta Bowl Wishes for Teachers will once again give $5,000 grants each to 200 teachers during its annual Draft Day. Applications for the 2020-21 program. Applications are set to open in mid-September.

Most charitable college football bowl  

For almost 50 years, the Fiesta Bowl has been focused on charitable giving in between hosting several events each year including the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl, the Cheez-It Bowl and the Desert Financial Fiesta Bowl Parade.

“Charitable giving is at the Fiesta Bowl Organization’s core and it’s inspiring to see how the nonprofits utilize the grant funds they receive,” Barkley said. “From creating a mobile science center to developing anti-bullying programs, we take great pride in our giving and serving our state through youth, sports and education.”For more information about the Fiesta Bowl, go to: .

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Boeing announced Tuesday it would be donating grant packages totaling $48 million to charities around the world in observance of Giving Tuesday.

Boeing is the largest aerospace company in the world and a leading provider of commercial airplanes, defense, space and security systems, and global services. It supports commercial and government customers in 150 countries, with more than 150,000 employees worldwide.

The grants will support 404 charitable organizations in 50 countries, funding programs through 2020 and beyond, according to Boeing.

More than $700,000 of the company’s investment will go to 10 organizations in Arizona that help veterans in the community and inspire prospective aerospace scientists and engineers.

“Boeing’s people bring to life our values and our enduring commitment to supporting the communities where we live and work,” said Dennis Muilenburg, president and CEO of .

Boeing says its employees amplify the aircraft manufacturer’s giving: By the end of 2019, Boeing employees will have donated nearly $40 million to charitable causes, bringing total employee contributions to $350 million in the past 10 years.

In 2018, Boeing’s 4,300 Arizona employees volunteered 11,000 hours mentoring FIRST Lego League and Robotics teams, building school gardens and helping veterans write resumes to help them re-enter civilian life, according to a company representative.

“Through their close collaboration, our teams and community partners are working to inspire the next generation of aerospace innovators, support our veterans and create lasting change in the communities we call home,” Muilenburg said.

The Giving Tuesday charitable grants package includes $8 million for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and workforce development programs that help build a “talent pipeline” of civil aviation pilots and maintenance technicians, according to Boeing.

Boeing’s Pilot and Technician Outlook 2019-2038 that 804,000 new civil aviation pilots, 769,000 new maintenance technicians and 914,000 new cabin crew personnel will be needed to fly and maintain the world’s fleet over the next 20 years.

The includes the commercial aviation, business aviation and civil helicopter industries.

“At Boeing, were committed to helping students succeed,” said Cheri Carter, vice president of Boeing Global Engagement. “We want students to know that their future belongs to them — it has no boundaries.”

The company also committed $800,000 to launch the first Newton Flight Academy in Turkey in 2020, expanding on the existing Newton Europe in Spain and Poland that launched this year. The program teaches STEM skills to high school students through hands-on methods; grant dollars will support a permanent classroom in Turkey that includes three full-motion Boeing flight simulators.

“We believe our success as innovators depends on everyone coming together to inspire the next generation to share in our aerospace advancements,” Carter said. “That’s why we’re investing more than 50 percent of our philanthropic dollars to fund programs in the U.S. and abroad.”

A previously announced $10 million for veterans’ recovery and rehabilitation programs, as well as workforce transition services, is also included in the $48 million investment.

Giving Tuesday is a started in 2011 to create an international day of charitable giving immediately following Thanksgiving and the Black Friday sale shopping weekend.

To see a full list of Boeing’s grant partners, .

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A Gilbert Walmart store hosted this holiday season’s annual Operation Santa Claus Charity Drive, in which community members donate toys and other gifts in exchange for a chance to win a new car.

is a nonprofit charity that collects donations for many Valley charities, including St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance, Special Olympics Arizona, Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center (), Military Assistance Mission and Chicanos Por La Causa.

The 19th annual drive took place at the Walmart Supercenter at SanTan Village Marketplace in Gilbert on Saturday, Nov. 23. The event was called “Operation Santa Claus – Stuff the Sleigh” and sponsored by , Sanderson Ford and Sanderson Lincoln.

A large cutout of Santa’s sleigh was outside the Walmart for photos, and children could take photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus as well as a large Coca-Cola polar bear mascot.

Walmart employees were joined by representatives from KNIX 102.5, the local country music radio station; ABC15; Chicanos Por La Causa; SARRC; and , a local nonprofit focused on inspiring positive change by investing in health and human services, especially for the Valley’s Hispanic community.

The Walmart was busy that Saturday morning, and customers leaving the store frequently approached the Operation Santa Claus bins with just-purchased toys, games, books and food — all to go directly to community charities.

“What we do is, at SARRC, we help the needy families in the Valley with disabilities,” said Addie Mocca, a volunteer coordinator for SARRC for almost 16 years. “A lot of those families can afford services for disabilities, but they can’t afford Christmas.”

SARRC has helped 300 families a year through Operation Santa Claus for the 14 years it has been involved with the cause, Mocca said — more than 4,000 families.

“We collect toys, food, clothes, and then we give them to these families in need just before Christmas so they can have a Christmas,” she said. “Very generous — Valley of the Sun — very generous people.”

As an incentive to donate, Sanderson Ford and Sanderson Lincoln each donated a vehicle — a 2019 Ford F-150 SuperCrew truck and a 2019 Lincoln MKZ luxury sedan, respectively, each valued at more than $40,000 — to go to two lucky winning donors.

The contest asks participants to bring non-perishable foods, new toys, child-sized clothing and money as donations.

“For every donation you make, you get to fill out a slip for a drawing, and then we draw out 50 finalists; each finalist gets a $100 Visa card and a one-in-50 chance of winning a new Ford F-150 SuperCrew or a Lincoln MKZ,” said Max Sirstins, the director of advertising for Sanderson Ford and Sanderson Lincoln for almost 19 years.

Sirstins has been dubbed the “father” of Operation Santa Claus — he has helped organize the drive in various parts of the country since 1986, more than 30 years.

“I’ve done it in California, in Salt Lake City; a couple places in Arizona,” he said. But when I got to Sanderson and took it there, it made a big difference.”

Sirstins said the drive has received broad support from local radio and television stations such as ABC15, 98KUPD, KNIX 102.5, as well as national and international brands like radio station owner Bonneville International; the free broadcast, podcast and radio platform iHeartRadio; and St. Paul, Minn.-based Hubbard Broadcasting.

“It’s the biggest charity drive in the state,” Sirstins said. “The last two years, we’ve raised over $1 million with the value of the toys, clothes, money donations and food.”

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Cox Charities, Cox’s philanthropic arm, is dedicated to providing new opportunities for people and organizations in the Southwest. In Arizona, the foundation has truly hit its mark.

In late September, Cox Charities announced its selection of 108 local nonprofit organizations that would receive nearly $570,000 in grants. Since 1996, the organization has contributed more than $8 million to Arizona nonprofits.

“Cox employees are deeply embedded in the communities we serve in Arizona and are committed to supporting and volunteering to make a difference,” said John Wolfe, senior vice president and southwest region manager for Cox Communications, in a statement. “We are proud to stand behind so many nonprofit partners that are working hard to educate children and support families throughout Arizona.”

One of the recipients is , which will receive grant funding for its program “T4T on Wheels.” The service brings free school supplies from the Tempe location directly to teachers across the Valley.

Another grant recipient is  for their “Discover Your Future” program, an extracurricular mentorship opportunity for K-8 children who have been exposed to unhealthy or problematic situations. The mentors create and provide curriculum to teach youth in academics, athletics and ethics.

“The Cox funds will fund a variety of programs implemented by a vast variety of nonprofit organizations in Arizona,” said Andrea Pappas, public relations director at Cox. “We typically focus our giving on programs focused on youth and education, as this has been a focus of our company as handed down by our founder, [former Ohio Gov. James M. Cox]. In fact, Gov. Cox had language in his final wishes that requests that the company always aim to impact the communities where Cox does business.”

The organization also recently awarded Serve Tucson volunteer Mike Birrer with $10,000 for his conservation efforts in Southern Arizona. Birrer has cleaned, planted and painted roughly 50 Tucson neighborhoods and has even expanded his efforts to employ local homeless people in his restoration efforts.

Birrer is one of  for the Cox Conserves Heroes Award; he will now compete with the other finalists for a grand prize of $50,000. Through the award program, the James M. Cox Foundation has honored more than 200 volunteers and donated almost $1 million to environmental nonprofits.

“We believe we have narrowed down the finalists to a great group of volunteers who are making a positive impact in their community,” Pappas continued. “Of course, we are super excited about the work Mike Birrer and Serve Tucson are doing in our state. As you probably saw in , he started with a wish to clean up schools in the Tucson area and continues to draw more and more people into his mission, and has branched out to partner with homeless [people] in the area to put their talents to work.”

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