According to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale metro area’s inflation rate of 13% is the highest rate in the country (September, 2022). The cost of living in Arizona is also 18% higher than the national average, leading to a growing crisis for families – even working families. In the East Valley, unsheltered homelessness increased by 109% (2022 Homeless Point-in-Time Homeless Count). More families are making the unimaginable choice between paying the rent or putting food on the table.

We are so grateful for the opportunity to partner with United Food Bank and Midwest Food Bank. If you’d like to help families in our programs with shelf-stable foods or household essentials, any donation can make an impact. You may drop off donations at Save the Family’s headquarters in Mesa (125 E University Drive, Mesa, AZ 85201) on weekdays between 8 am and 5 pm. Contact us at volunteer@savethefamily.org to learn more about what’s needed or to coordinate a donation drive.

Thanks to the generosity of our community, families were treated to food and drinks, games, prizes, balloon animals, and a petting zoo. Halloween costumes were generously provided by members of the First United Methodist Church of Mesa. Sonoran dogs and elotes, sponsored by Greenscape AZ LLC, were available free of charge for families. With candy donated by a Redemption Gateway Bible Study Group, children at the event enjoyed all the best of the season. Project Smile AZ brought activity kits and art supplies for children to take home, too. Niagara Cares and United Food Bank provided all of the water and beverages for the event, while Midwest Food Bank provided snacks.

In a new offering this year, Bell Bank parked their Empowerment Bus at the event, where parents were invited to check their credit, learn ways to improve their credit rating and savings, and receive additional information on money management. Bell Bank’s crew was an enormous help to the Save the Family team throughout the night, jumping in to help at various activity stations.

What an incredible showing of community support! We are grateful for the many organizations, churches, businesses and others who came together to ensure its success. To get your church group or business involved at Save the Family, please reach out today! We have a number of holiday programs, including family sponsorships for Christmas, toy drives and special events we’d love to connect you with for the benefit of families in need. Contact us at volunteer@savethefamily.org to learn more.

We want to give a special thank you to the women of the Mahnah Club of the East Valley, who tirelessly sorted backpacks and supplies in advance of the Bash. Also, a big thanks to Dominium, who sent a crew of volunteers to assist the day of the Bash with distribution of backpacks, supplies and clothing for students attending the event.

Thanks to the Carol Royse Real Estate Team, ESI Ergonomic Solutions, Lavidge Co., the Leisure World community, the Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia, PacSci EMC, Silicon Valley Bank, State Farm – the Misty Virgil Team, Taylor Street, and several other individual donors, our students are ready to start the new school year well-supplied and eager to learn. Because of the incredible generosity of our community, we had enough backpacks and supplies to offer our families and share with Title I schools* across Mesa.

Save the Family served 1,197 children last year, providing stable housing, afterschool and summertime programming, and a host of resources designed to help children and their families get back on their feet after experiencing homelessness. Housing instability is a major impediment to academic success for children, with 9 out of 10 children who experience homelessness dropping out before earning their high school diploma. Programs like Save the Family and its Back to School Bash offer a lifeline to families in need and vastly improve a child’s chance at success – both in school and far into the future.

If you’d like to get your office, church or family involved at Save the Family and start making a difference for families in need, please contact Save the Family’s Director of Marketing and Outreach, Jamie Podratz at (480) 466-7706 or jamie.podratz@savethefamily.org.

*Title I Schools are schools with a student population where 40% or more come from low-income families.

“We are proud to welcome Robyn Julien to advance the mission of Save the Family in its next era,” said Cindi Harper, Save the Family Board Chair. “Robyn’s extensive community connections and career accomplishments, which include experience with top-level fundraising and creative programming, will bring Save the Family and ARM of Save the Family to the next level.”

“I am excited to join Save the Family’s team as their CEO,” said Robyn Julien. “The staff, board of directors, and volunteers of Save the Family are devoted to working with families through case management, career development, and financial literacy education to find permanent housing solutions. I believe that working together we can continue to provide a positive impact for the families that need Save the Family’s services, now more than ever before.”

Julien is a Certified Public Accountant, working in public accounting early in her career. She has worked in nonprofit development for many years, including serving as the CEO of the Arizona Burn Foundation and most recently as President and CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale. 

Save the Family Foundation of Arizona conducted a regional search to find their next leader after Jacki Taylor, CEO of Save the Family and ARM of Save the Family for the past 12 years, announced she would be retiring at the end of 2022.

Julien’s first day with Save the Family and ARM of Save the Family is scheduled for August 1.

Save the Family Foundation of Arizona has been providing housing, case management, and supportive services for families experiencing homelessness since 1988. Based in Mesa and serving across the Valley, Save the Family is the East Valley’s leading provider of housing and support services for our community’s most vulnerable residents. To learn more about Save the Family and its programs, visit Save the Family’s website at www.savethefamily.org.

The Step Up program follows a 24-month timeline during which parents work closely with a case manager to identify and address goals focused on stabilization, increasing savings and building financial independence. Families in Save the Family’s Step Up program pay a low, flat rate for housing and are provided with access to all of Save the Family’s support services, including career development services, financial literacy, parenting and other life-skills classes, mental health and substance abuse support, and children’s services. Save the Family returns all fees that are collected from families during their time in Step Up – along with any additional savings accumulated – upon successful program exit. Families can tap this savings for housing or educational costs upon program exit.

The Career Center at our main campus provides computers; an ongoing job postings board; interview and career coaching; job-readiness workshops; 1:1 financial coaching; clothing/shoes; tools; and transportation assistance. We also know that the high cost of childcare can impede a family’s efforts to achieve economic mobility. To this end, we help families connect with community resources offering free or low-cost childcare and afterschool and summer programs for school-aged children. Additionally, we know that homeownership is a key pathway to economic mobility, so the program helps families focus on savings and building financial independence, linking families with organizations offering Individual Development Accounts (IDA), which they can use for education or homeownership.

One Step Up mom, Kesha, and her two daughters, are well on their way to self-sufficiency. They had been living “tripled up” with two other families before applying to the Step Up program.

Today they’re doing great, with daughter Da’Jana beginning her sophomore year this fall at Northern Arizona University, and mom well on her way to homeownership with a hefty down payment saved.

Another Step Up mom, Cristina, has seen her son open up and make big improvements at school as he participates in Save the Family’s Youth Enrichment and Achievement (YEA) program.

Cristina shared that her son has done so well that he has “graduated out” of his school program for children with severe behavior issues and will be attending mainstream school this fall. The Step Up program has offered both of these families – and other hardworking families across Mesa – the chance to stabilize and create a better path forward.

To date, eleven families have exited the program with 82% reducing debt, 37% increasing savings, and, 82% increasing wages. All of our exiting families have grown their savings over $2,000, and several families have been able to improve their credit scores by more than 200 points.

We are grateful for our partnership with Mesa Public Schools and the ability to help working families get back on their feet. To learn more about Step Up to Independence^TM and to support programs helping homeless families rebuild their lives, please consider donating today at www.savethefamily.org/donate.

Save the Family is a leading nonprofit organization based in Mesa that provides housing and supportive services to families experiencing homelessness. This year, Save the Family is on track to serve more than 650 families, including more than 1,200 children. With donation drives and volunteer efforts undertaken by church groups, businesses, and others across the Valley, Save the Family will provide a positive start to the next school year for hundreds of children who have faced homelessness and poverty in our community.

Children who have experienced homelessness are twice as likely to have a learning disability, repeat a grade, get expelled, or drop out of high school. According to the National Center on Family Homelessness, fewer than 25% of children experiencing homelessness graduate from high school. By equipping students with new backpacks and school supplies in addition to stable housing and support programs for the whole family, Save the Family is able to help families overcome some of the biggest barriers to success.

Among children at Save the Family, more than 70% maintained regular attendance at school last year, with 70% showing improvements in behavior and mental health. Our housing programs – and outreach events like the Back to School Bash – provide the stability, tools and resources that families need to foster academic and social-emotional development.

This year’s Back to School Bash efforts will outfit more than 300 children with the basic essentials every child needs to start school. To learn how you can get involved by hosting a donation drive, email us at volunteer@savethefamily.org. For a full listing of what’s needed by grade level, visit us online.

Save the Family Foundation of Arizona has been providing housing, case management, and supportive services for families experiencing homelessness since 1988. Based in Mesa and serving across the Valley, Save the Family is the East Valley’s leading provider of housing and support services for our community’s most vulnerable residents. To learn more about Save the Family and its programs, contact Greg Boone, Chief Development Officer, at (480) 466-7705 or greg.boone@savethefamily.org.

Our deepest appreciation for our generous sponsors:

In addition to generous sponsorships, our community provided an amazing assortment of live and silent auction items that generated record-breaking revenue to support our programs. We want to thank the following donors for their generous contributions:

Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s Welcome Home Gala. To see photos of the incredible evening, visit our online photo gallery.

We hope you can join us next year. Save the date for next year’s event, planned for Saturday, February 18^th, 2023, once again at the Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia. Details to come this fall!

This $50,000 grant is just the latest in The Boeing Company’s support of the children and families at Save the Family.  Since 2009, The Boeing Company has supported Save the Family through volunteer projects, donation drives and grant funding that has made a difference for hundreds of families across our community.

“Partnering with organizations like Save the Family, which provide real solutions to families overcoming homelessness, allows us to drive positive change in the communities we call home,” said Leann Shaffer, Boeing Global Engagement Community Investor. “Our Boeing teammates feel a strong connection to Save the Family’s mission and frequently volunteer and support their back to school and holiday drives.”

The Boeing Company’s support this year will provide a lifeline for at least 200 homeless families in need. Jacki Taylor, Save the Family’s CEO, says of the grant, “Boeing’s support will provide hundreds of parents and children with case management, career services, life skills classes, and youth programs designed to help children and teens get the academic and social-emotional support they need to thrive. Thank you to The Boeing Company for sharing our vision of stable homes, safe children and strong families.”

Providing hope and home to homeless families since 1988, Save the Family is on track to serve more than 800 families this year. To learn more about Save the Family’s work to equip families to address poverty, overcome homelessness and achieve self-sufficiency, visit our website at www.savethefamily.org.

After 12 amazing years, I am leaving at a time I believe the organizations are strong and well-equipped to continue our critical work.  What we’ve accomplished together over the past 12 years:

Save the Family Now 

• Serving nearly 700 households annually
• Dedicated staff of 55 – many with more than 10 years with the organization
• Large volunteer base of nearly 7,000 individuals, congregations, and corporate groups supporting our programs for families and children
• More than 150 partner agencies working alongside us to support the needs of our families
• Relocated the agency headquarters to a new campus in the heart of Mesa
• Constructed a Community Conference Center for local non-profits and expanded programming
• Began supportive services for homeless and impoverished veteran families at Valor on Eighth
• Developed an innovative homeless intervention program – Step up to Independence
• Launched in-house substance abuse and mental health counseling
• Reduced our reliance on government funding to 21% as of last fiscal year
• Established agency reserves to help sustain the organization and develop new programming for the future

ARM Now

• 150 Units of Scattered Site Affordable units throughout the East Valley
• Developed 3 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit projects in partnership with Gorman & Company, which resulted in Escobedo at Verde Vista in Mesa (132 affordable units); Save the Family’s new campus in Mesa; Helen’s Hope Chest; and, Valor on Eighth in Tempe (45 affordable units)

I am thankful every day for what we’ve accomplished together, and I am extremely grateful to all of you with whom I have had the honor to work with. And while we’ve accomplished much, there is so much more to be done.  Looking to the future of STF and ARM, there are exciting plans in play for program expansion that will afford us the opportunity to serve even more families.  Toward this end, our Boards of Directors will be retaining the services of a search firm to conduct the search for my successor.  We look forward to keeping you informed of their selection as the process unfolds.

I am deeply grateful for the support you have shown our organizations and me over the years and fervently hope your support and love for these two amazing organizations continues with my successor and especially the families that will come through our doors in the decades ahead. 

In partnership, always . . . and with my heartfelt thanks . . .

Jacki Taylor, MC

Chief Executive Officer

Join us – enjoy gourmet food and cocktails, moving guest speakers, a live and silent auction, “casino night” entertainment, and dancing to live music from Arizona’s favorite cover band Rock Lobster. Tickets and tables are going fast, with online purchasing available HERE.

This year’s Welcome Home Gala is presented by Premier Sponsors Mercy Care and The Carol Royse Team. We want to thank all of our amazing sponsors, including Isaac Jewelers, Delta Dental of Arizona, Jaburg Wilk, Nationwide Foundation, Salt River Project, Sono Bello, Udall Shumway, Denise Lowell-Britt, Dustin Cammack & Family, AccountabilIT, CopperSmith & Brockelman, Dignity Health, Gorman & Company, INSURICA Southwest Insurance Services/Osland Financial Group, Intel Corporation, Lovitt & Touché, Mario E Diaz and Associates, MidFirst Bank, National Bank of Arizona, Turnbow Foundation and Americopy.

Register online today!

To learn more about Save the Family’s work to equip families to address poverty, overcome homelessness and achieve self-sufficiency, visit Save the Family’s website at www.savethefamily.org. Providing hope and home to homeless families since 1988, Save the Family is on track to serve more than 700 families this year.

For additional information on the Welcome Home Gala, Gala sponsorships, and/or other ways to get connected to Save the Family’s transformative work throughout the Valley, contact Greg Boone, Chief Development Officer at (480) 466-7705 or greg.boone@savethefamily.org.