Southwest Valley nonprofits fill critical gaps for those in need

By Kelly O’Sullivan
Twitter: @AzNewsmedia

If there’s any advice Agua Fria Food and Clothing Bank Executive Director Leanne Leonard would give to other nonprofits participating in Arizona Gives Day on Tuesday, April 6, it would be “promote, promote, promote!”

This will be the fourth time since 2017 the Avondale-based food pantry that serves residents throughout the Southwest Valley has participated in the annual day of giving, Ms. Leonard said.

“We honestly do not put as much effort into promoting the day as we could or should,” she said, noting the organization raised $175 in 2017, $293 and $685 in 2020. Because of staffing changes, it did not participate in 2019.

Those wishing to donate to the food and clothing bank can visit azgives.org/AguaFriaFoodandClothingBank.

“The more you get it out there so that people know about it, the more participation you will have,” Ms. Leonard said. “Definitely utilizing social media platforms as well as your organization’s website is very advantageous. It is also very helpful if you can solicit some organizations in advance that would be willing to do some donor matching hours on the day of, which help to create some buzz around giving. People love knowing that their donations will be doubled.”

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While the food and clothing bank hasn’t heavily promoted its participation in Arizona Gives Day, it does promote, promote, promote its annual Strike Out Hunger telethon held at the end of April.

This year’s telethon, which has a fundraising goal of $70,000, is a virtual event scheduled 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, April 24.

For information or to participate in the telethon, visit affcb.org and click on StrikeOut Hunger. Updates also can be found on the organization’s Facebook page, @affoodbank, and at agua_fria_food_bank on Instagram.

Agua Fria Food and Clothing Bank is a faith-based nonprofit founded in 1981 through the Presbyterian Church to assist families in Avondale, Buckeye, Cashion, Goodyear, Litchfield Park and Tolleson who are hungry, in need or facing crisis. In 2009, it expanded services to include Tonopah.

Services include emergency food boxes and clothing, senior food boxes, and daily food and showers for the homeless. In addition, the food and clothing bank operates baby care, school uniform and holiday programs. Most services require photo identification and proof of current address.

During the past year, the food and clothing bank assisted 65,067 at mobile food pantries, provided emergency food assistance to 36,687 people, served 9,962 daily lunch sacks and provided clothing assistance to 4,602 people, according to the organization’s website. Volunteers donated 32,223 work hours.

For information, visit affcb.org.

While the Southwest Valley has few nonprofits listed on the Arizona Gives Day website, organizations like Meals of Joy and the Reveille Foundation are busy serving residents in various ways.

Meals of Joy

Meals of Joy is a Litchfield Park-based nonprofit that has been delivering fresh, low-cost lunches to West Valley seniors since 2014.

In 2020, the organization founded by Goodyear resident Larry Cervarich served nearly 20,000 meals, expanded its service area and added a second kitchen for meal preparation. It also added a weekender meal option delivered with Friday’s meals.

“No senior should have to make the choice between buying their medication and getting a good and satisfying meal,” Mr. Cevarich said. “At Meals of Joy, we’re on a mission to bring a freshly prepared meal to every senior in need across the West Valley.”

The program serves seniors in Avondale, Buckeye, south Glendale, Goodyear, Litchfield Park, Peoria (west of 83rd Avenue), Sun City, Surprise/Sun City Grand, Sun City West, Tolleson and Waddell.

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Each home-style meal is made fresh with senior nutrition needs in mind and delivered by volunteers to those living on tight budgets or whose ages or medical conditions make it difficult for them to prepare their own meals, Mr. Cevarich said.

Fountain of Life Lutheran Church in Sun City and First Baptist Church Garden Lakes in Avondale donate the use of their kitchens for meal preparation, he said.

Because of its expansion, Meals of Joy is looking for volunteers to deliver meals; it takes about 10 to 15 people per weekday to deliver meals to clients.

Volunteer schedules are flexible and each route usually only takes a volunteer about an hour, Mr. Cevarich said. For information about volunteering, including the application, visit mealsofjoy.org or call 623-594-9588.

Visitors to the website also can get more information on meal delivery, menus and pricing. Follow @mealsofjoyaz on Facebook for updates.

Reveille Foundation

Founded to support underserved populations with holistic case management that creates individual plans for success, Goodyear- and Phoenix-based Reveille Foundation assists transitioning military, veterans and families; those who were previously incarcerated and their families; and Native Americans.

The foundation works with community partners to support programs designed to assist individuals with housing, human services, therapy, education, employment, certifications, training and workforce development.

“Reveille has provided holistic support to veterans in Maricopa County with approximately a 40% success rate for employment,” according to Executive Director Steve Yamamori. 

In recent months, the nonprofit has partnered with local and national veterans’ organizations to bring much-needed support to military veterans in the Navajo Nation, including food, clothing, firewood blankets and water, and another trip is in the works, thanks to funding from the Bob Woodruff Foundation, he said.

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The organization also has formed a new partnership with the online learning platform, Coursera, which allows Reveille veteran clients to receive coursework at no cost. Veterans interested in participating in the online learning program should call the foundation at 623-207-7420.

One of the organization’s biggest challenges throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been conducting case management virtually without gaps in service, Mr. Yamamori said, noting, “one-on-one support of our transitioning military, veteran, Native American and recently incarcerated clients is a focal point of our success coach program.”

Through hard work, the organization has managed, with success coaches assessing every aspect of clients’ lives to develop individualized plans for success.

Other Reveille Foundation programs and partnerships include Operation Deep Dive, a four-year, national community-based suicide prevention study facilitated by America’s Warrior Partnership in collaboration with the University of Alabama, commercial drivers license training and electrician apprenticeship training.

For information on the foundation, it’s partners and programs, and how to get involved, visit reveillefoundation.org.

Kelly O’Sullivan can be reached at kosullivan@newszap.com or 760-963-1697.