One of the reasons I love writing blog posts is because I get to share my experiences, my growing knowledge and any tools, resources and solutions that can help you – my community of friends and family.
This blog also gives me the opportunity to highlight the things that matter the most to me – one of those things is getting involved in my Tucson community and giving back … not just monetarily, but giving back of my time and my passion.
In fact, the projects I value the most are the ones that bring large impact in a short amount of time…
And this massive impact is often done by small, humble groups of people right in our own backyard!
What do I mean?
Well this year, Zanes Law is lending a hand to a new pilot program called “No Hungry Kids Tucson” launched by Nadia LaTurco, founder of Wings for Women, an organization that empowers homeless and impoverished women to overcome despair through various resources, programs and guidance.
Why?
Because for some kids, when school ends and summer begins, that marks the first day of little to no food … in other words, with school ending, so do school-supplied meals for low income families and their children.
When I heard this, my heart hurt … all I kept thinking was that no child should go without food, especially not our children here in Tucson.
What Are We Doing?
Zanes is helping provide meals for the summer to Roskruge Bilingual Magnet Middle School – the school chosen for this pilot program. This year a total of 200 kids (50 families) will participate in this meal program from now until the end of July.
As a part of our contribution, Zanes will also open two of our offices to the public as drop-off locations for donations through July 26:
- 3501 E. Speedway Blvd., Suite 101
- 1185 W. Irvington Road, Suite 155
Now, remember at the beginning of this post, I mentioned that this massive impact was happening in our own backyards, well… LITERALLY, IT IS!
Nadia and her small team of volunteers stores the food that gets donated in a small guest house in central Tucson … And that is where the magic happens!
Every Sunday, the crew gets together (including some amazing kids in the program) to make food bags and deliver them to participating families!
….BUT…. Here’s the catch of this incredible program….
WE CAN’T DO IT ALONE!
The community can participate in so many ways!
HERE’S HOW:
- You can donate non-perishable food items to one of the Zanes Law locations I mentioned above… Check out the food list below:
- Cereal
- Granola/cereal bars
- Peanut butter & jelly
- Macaroni & cheese
- Instant oatmeal
- Ramen noodle soups
- Other canned goods
- Rice/beans
- Baby food/formula
- ***You are definitely not limited to this list!
- You can help bag food for the families on Sundays, and here’s how: Contact Nadia LaTurco at wingsofhopetucson@yahoo.com more information.
- You can provide Zanes or Nadia with coupons to get a great rate on lots of food. REMEMBER: Check the expiration date before mailing them or dropping them off!
- You can make a monetary donation to No Hungry Kids Tucson by mailing a check to Wings for Women, P.O. Box 23369, Tucson, AZ 85734, OR go to wingsforwomentucson.org and click on the PayPal link.
As I write this post, I am reminded of Margaret Mead’s famous quote:
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
I believe in this so much because I see it happen in Tucson every day, not just with Zanes Law, but with other community leaders, organizations and businesses.
Tucson may be a small city but we have immense power and passion to bring about immediate change for our communities.
Today I am reaching out to you to join me in that change by participating, in any way you can, to help this pilot program succeed and transform into something bigger than us.
