Registration Now Open for 24th Annual SBCO Walk for Kids!
Participants in previous walks have enjoyed supporting SBCO’s programs while exercising with friends.
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Plan now to register for the SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Walk for Kids (formerly known as the Walkathon). The walk will begin with a warm-up session at 7:40 a.m., followed by the walk at 8 a.m., on Saturday, Oct. 29. This signature SBCO event helps support our food, clothing, and education programs benefiting youngsters along a 100-mile corridor from Catalina to the San Carlos Indian Reservation and the Miami school system. SBCO now also offers scholarships to students in Globe. Annually, SBCO touches the lives of approximately 4,000 students through new clothes, backpacks filled with school supplies, college scholarships, contributions to Tri-Community Food Bank, and financial support for a wide range of educational enrichment activities.
In honor of SBCO’s 25th anniversary, walkers will receive a special commemorative T-shirt, bites and drinks at a “Snack Shack,” and listen to live music. Participants also will be able to visit booths featuring information about SBCO’s programs and some of its leading business supporters. We’re working to make this a bang-up celebration of SBCO’s 25-year history of making a difference in local communities.
Online registration for the 2022 Walk for Kids begins on Monday, Aug. 1 at community-outreach.org. The registration fee of $30 per adult and $10 per child (ages 6 through 18) covers the cost of the t-shirt, snacks, and entertainment.
If you choose not to register online using a credit card, in-person registration using only cash or check begins on Tuesday, Sept. 6 and runs through Oct. 28, every Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the SBCO office at Suite L in the Minit-Market Plaza. Registrations (online or in person) received after Sept. 28 are not guaranteed a T-shirt (or a shirt in the desired size).
T-shirts will be available for pickup at the SBCO office between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 24 through Friday, Oct. 28.
Be sure to register by Sept. 28 and talk to your friends and neighbors about walking together. It’s a great way to spend a Saturday morning!
Finding Joy in Helping Others
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Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Bente Fongemie and her husband moved to SaddleBrooke in July 1996 from Fremont, Calif., in the San Francisco Bay area. Within a year of her arrival, she was recruited by Harriett Schultz, one of the founders of SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO), then known as SaddleBrooke Women’s Outreach, to help with the group’s program for clothing school children in Oracle.
Tasked with managing clothing inventory, Bente recruited Huguette Baad to serve as her assistant. Back in 1998, the group’s clothing program was a fledgling enterprise compared to today’s Kids’ Closet that annually distributes about 3,000 wardrobes to local students. Twenty-four years ago, all of the merchandise was delivered to a garage in one of the model homes in HOA TWO. Since sorting and counting the clothing was a hot job (especially during the summer months), Bente recounts how she and Huguette would take advantage of times when no one was visiting the model. They’d close the garage door, open the door to the house, and enjoy moments of cool air wafting into the garage. Ahhh.
Eventually, Bente turned over inventory management to Pat Staufer and took on the job of scheduling school visits to Kids’ Closet as well as volunteering at the Closet helping students select shoes and clothing. Since her husband died in 2015, she has worked as a substitute SBCO office staff volunteer.
While many would think supporting SBCO for 24 years would be a major achievement—and enough volunteerism to fill anyone’s days—Bente would disagree. She has also been a volunteer at the SaddleBrooke One Library for 22 years, worked with Care and Share until it was dissolved, and has been a Senior Village volunteer for the past five years. She also served as a volunteer with Odyssey Hospice from 2000 to 2010.
As someone who has dedicated the past two decades of her life to helping others, Bente recalls how working with kids has put a smile on her face. Seeing a child jump up and down with joy over a new pair of shoes is a precious moment. Little girls wearing new clothing and giggling at their reflections in the mirror are adorable. She also has valued her time helping elderly and very ill people. Those experiences have made her count her blessings.
Bente would be the first to say, “Volunteer! The smiles of children and a elderly person’s tears of gratitude offer huge emotional benefits to those who help. You can make a difference in the lives of others and meet people you otherwise would never have known. When you volunteer your time, you receive far more than you give away. Writing a donation check is good, but volunteering is more satisfying. If you can—do both!”
SBCO Fall Meeting to Feature the Golden Goose “Cheap Chic” Fashion Show
Volunteer Annette Holleman modeled this Middle Eastern embroidered vest hand-picked from the Golden Goose’s inventory in last year’s fashion show.
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
The SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) fall kick-off general meeting, which features the popular “Golden Goose Fashion Show,” will be held at 3 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 17 in the MountainView ballroom. It’s a great chance to learn about SBCO’s programs to provide food, clothing, and educational opportunities for local children—and see some great clothing at affordable prices.
Throughout the year, Betsy Lowry culls through Golden Goose Thrift Shop clothing donations to find runway-worthy items for this fashion show. Clothing and coordinating accessories, from casual to formal wear, are selected for quality and style in order to display some of the best items available to the store’s shoppers. Betsy also recruits volunteers who are willing to serve as models, many of whom contribute their own fashion savvy to the occasion.
Plan now to attend this very popular annual event!
Education—A Gift that Lasts
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
Since 2001 SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) has annually granted two- and four-year college scholarships to deserving students in the “Copper Corridor,” an area that stretches more than 100 miles from Catalina to Globe, Ariz. Each year the Education Committee receives applications from local high school seniors. Committee members review each student’s financial situation, high school transcript, activities, an essay about personal and professional goals, and letters of recommendation. Then committee members conduct a personal interview to select the scholarship recipients.
Students attending two-year colleges receive a $1,500 per year scholarship while those attending four-year institutions receive $3,000 per year. These scholarships help change lives. Most of these students are the first in their families to attend college. They come from small towns with few economic opportunities and obtaining an advanced degree allows them to become gainfully employed. Research shows that post-high school education leads to financial stability, stronger families, better health, lower chances of committing a crime or going to jail, and stronger feelings of empowerment, all of which contribute to overall happiness. And these graduates then pass along these benefits to their children and grandchildren.
If you would like to make a donation to the SaddleBrooke Community Outreach Scholarship Endowment Fund, we’d welcome your support. All contributions must be made payable to the Community Foundation of Southern Arizona (CFSA) and designated for SBCO Endowment (CFSA’s Tax ID is 94-2681765).
A minimum contribution of $5,000 is required. (Consult your tax advisor for potential benefits.)
* Mail a personal check directly to CFSA—made payable to CFSA and including the SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund in the memo line.
* Arrange for a distribution from your IRA to CFSA for the SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund.
* Include CFSA and the SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund as a beneficiary in your trust or estate plan.
To donate in-kind contributions (e.g., stocks, securities, real estate, autos) please email [email protected] for assistance.
Donations must be sent to:
The SBCO Scholarship Endowment Fund
Community Foundation for Southern Arizona
5049 E. Broadway, Suite 201
Tucson, AZ 85711