Thunderbirds Charities Donates $2.5 Million to Valley Charities During Spring Funding Cycle
Thunderbirds Charities, the charitable giving arm of The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – awarded more than $2.5 million in grants to 58 Valley charities during its 2021 spring funding cycle. Thunderbirds Charities awarded grants of $150,000 or more to four Valley Charities that included $250,000 to Phoenix Public Library Foundation, $200,000 to Teen Lifeline, $200,000 to Human Services Campus, and $150,000 to Homeward Bound.
With the spring funding cycle in the books, Thunderbirds Charities has now opened its 2021 fall funding cycle. Information about the fall funding cycle can be found at www.ThunderbirdsCharities.org.
“Many charities and nonprofit organizations are still reeling from the effects of the pandemic,” said Scott Jenkins, President of Thunderbirds Charities. “Obviously, we take tremendous pride in providing these grants to deserving organizations who help so many in our communities – especially during times of great difficulty and incredible challenges. Supporting our charity partners is, without a doubt, the most gratifying part of being a Thunderbird, and together, we look forward to a strong rebound which will help us get back to giving back.”
The $250,000 grant from Thunderbirds Charities will support Phoenix Public Library Foundation’s Children’s Place at the Burton Barr Central Library – a 10,000 square-foot, children-oriented learning space located on the first floor of Phoenix’s downtown central library.
With the grant of $200,000, Human Services Campus will be able to support their critical client services which helps remove barriers for individuals experiencing homelessness and lead to permanent housing.
Thunderbirds Charities’ grant of $200,000 will support Teen Lifeline’s Teen Crisis Hotline/Textline which trains teens to talk to other teens about their problems, giving teens in crisis a free and safe place to connect with someone they can relate to.
Another grant of $150,000 will go to Homeward Bound to create pathways out of poverty for homeless families in the Valley, keeping families together and creating communities where every family has a home.
Additional grants awarded from the spring 2021 cycle:
| All Sports Foundation DBA Prostate On-Site Project | $12,000 | Prostate On-Site Project |
| Arizona Association for Foster and Adoptive Parents | $10,000 | Strengthening Foster, Kinship, Adoptive Families |
| Arizona Cancer Foundation for Children | $50,000 | Improving Lives Impacted by Pediatric Cancer |
| Arizona Friends of Foster Children Foundation | $25,000 | Fostering Success for Children in Foster Care |
| Arizona Recreation Center For The Handicapped | $15,000 | ARCHKids Year Round Services |
| ARIZONA SCIENCE CENTER | $25,000 | CREATE on Wheels, Maker Kits and Virtual Programs |
| Arizona Strut Students Recycling Used Technology | $25,000 | Techie Empowerment Upgrade Camps |
| Arouet Foundation | $25,000 | Arouet Opportunity Center |
| Assistance League of East Valley | $20,000 | Operation School Bell |
| Aster Aging | $25,000 | Neighbors Program |
| Be A Leader Foundation | $50,000 | Pipeline of College Access & Postsecondary Success |
| Benevilla | $25,000 | Benefitness Adaptive Gym |
| Billy’s Place | $10,000 | Billy’s Place School Enhancement for Grieving Kids |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale | $50,000 | Supporting our Community Youth During COVID-19 |
| Brighter Way Institute | $75,000 | Oral Health Services for Homeless Individuals |
| Camp Catanese Foundation | $75,000 | Camp Catanese Summer 2021 |
| Childrens Museum Of Phoenix | $35,000 | Children’s Garden & KIDchen |
| Cloud Covered Streets | $10,000 | Showering Our Streets With Love |
| College Success Arizona | $25,000 | Mentoring Resilient Students |
| Desert Voices | $25,000 | Building Equity with Access to Sound |
| Detour Company Theatre | $10,000 | Virtual Academy and Summer Skills Intensive |
| Duet: Partners In Health & Aging | $37,000 | Support for Non-English Speaking Kinship Families |
| Elevate Phoenix | $25,000 | Youth and Family Enrichment Program |
| Furnishing Dignity | $25,000 | Surviving to Thriving by Transforming A Home! |
| Gabriel’s Angels | $20,000 | Pet Therapy Program |
| Girl Scouts-Arizona Cactus-Pine Council | $50,000 | Girl Scout Social Impact Programs |
| Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona | $100,000 | Construction In Training (CIT) |
| Healthy LifeStars | $20,000 | The LifeStars Challenge Maricopa Co Expansion |
| Homeless ID Project, Inc | $75,000 | ID Empowers Our Community |
| Homeless Youth Connection | $50,000 | Empowering Youth For The Future |
| Homeward Bound | $150,000 | Empowering Homeless Families |
| HonorHealth Desert Mission | $50,000 | School-Based Food Pantry Program |
| Hope Women’s Center | $20,000 | Hope Heals |
| Human Services Campus, Inc. | $200,000 | Critical Client Services |
| ICAN: Positive Programs for Youth | $50,000 | ICAN’s Positive Youth Development Program |
| Junior Achievement of Arizona | $50,000 | Providing Real-World Skills to Low-Income Kids |
| Kids in Focus | $10,000 | After-School Photography Mentoring & Grads Program |
| Kids Need to Read | $25,000 | The Page Coach |
| Lions Camp Tatiyee | $25,000 | Emotional Support Crisis Intervention Project |
| Live & Learn | $10,000 | Women Thriving |
| Maggie’s Place, Inc. | $40,000 | Family Success Center for Homeless Pregnant Women |
| Meals of Joy | $5,000 | Meals of Joy |
| Mitchell Swaback Charities, Inc. | $30,000 | Harvest Compassion Center West Phoenix |
| Open Table, Inc. | $25,000 | Community Convening™ for Social Reconciliation |
| Phoenix Indian Center | $25,000 | Phoenix Indian Center Emergency Rental Assistance |
| Phoenix Public Library Foundation | $250,000 | Children’s Place at Burton Barr Central Library |
| ResilientMe, Inc | $10,000 | R’s of ResilientMe |
| Saving Amy, Inc. | $20,000 | Rise Up Program |
| Smiles and Beyond | $5,000 | Changing Smiles Changing Lives |
| Soldier’s Best Friend | $10,000 | Service/Therapeutic Companion Dog Training Program |
| Southwest Human Development | $61,000 | Children’s Developmental Center |
| Special Olympics Arizona, Inc. | $120,000 | SOAZ 2021 Programs and Competitions |
| Teen Lifeline | $200,000 | Teen Crisis Hotline/Texline |
| The MVP Foundation | $50,000 | The MVP Leadership Academy |
| Treasure House | $20,000 | Job Training Program for Individuals with IDD |
| Treasures 4 Teachers | $45,000 | T4T on Wheels |
| United Service Organizations, Incorporated (USO Arizona) | $50,000 | Support for Military Service Members and Families |
| WHAM Art Association | $5,000 | Teen Art Club |
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ABOUT THE THUNDERBIRDS/THUNDERBIRDS CHARITIES
Thunderbirds Charities is a non-profit organization formed in 1986 to distribute monies raised through the Waste Management Phoenix Open golf tournament. The Thunderbirds Charities Board consists of 15 board members from varying professional backgrounds. The mission of Thunderbirds Charities is to assist children and families, help people in need and improve the quality of life in the Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area. The organization’s giving is directed toward organizations based or with a significant presence in Arizona. The Thunderbirds were founded in 1937 with the mission of promoting the Valley of the Sun through sports. The Thunderbirds consist of 55 “active” members and more than 280 “life” members. For more information on The Thunderbirds or Thunderbirds Charities, visit www.thunderbirdscharities.org.
ABOUT THE WASTE MANAGEMENT PHOENIX OPEN
The 2022 WM Phoenix Open will take place Feb. 7-13 at TPC Scottsdale. “The People’s Open” has been named the Tournament of the Year by the PGA TOUR four times in the past seven years (2014, 2015, 2018, 2019) to acknowledge the tournament’s legendary status as one the most unique events in golf. The 2022 edition will mark the 87th playing of the event (one of the five oldest events on the PGA TOUR) and the 13th with Waste Management as title sponsor. For more information visit www.wmphoenixopen.com.