1st FOR PROJECT

TO BENEFIT CASS (Central Arizona Shelter Services)

Vista Colina Emergency Family Shelter

FOR was created because friends had been helping raise money whenever I called upon them. In 1999, they helped me raise over $30,000 in auction items, cash donations and ticket sales for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. In 2001, they helped me raise over $20,000 similarly for Cystic Fibrosis. Then I thought, what if I could donate something tangible, where we could see the results of our efforts. So I contacted CASS (Central Arizona Shelter Services). And I filed non-profit articles of incorporation for FOR.
I think we’ve all had tough times. I had two close calls with not having a place to stay. I moved out in the January of my junior year of high school for my own reasons. I had just turned 17 and worked not a half a mile from this shelter we’ll hopefully be working on together (see below) at Pedro’s Mexican Restaurant. Then I got evicted from an apartment nearby. I had nowhere to go. I even called my parents to move back in. They slept on it and decided against it. Luckily, I ended up on a sofa rooming with 3 other girls and paying $50 a month. Kids in high school thought I had it so lucky because I could go out whenever I wanted. That is true. I did partake. However, I remember telling them how lucky they were to have free rent, free food, free clothes, plus they didn’t have to work.
By the way, my father is now 87 and lives two miles from me in the same house I lived in when I went to Sunnyslope High School. We’re very close and he often surprises me and tells me he loves me. That sounds weird in print to tell something like that to you. But it means a lot to me. Since my Mom died (non-Hodgkins lymphoma), I’ve had a chance to really get to know him. He’s funny as heck. He walks about 45 minutes every morning. Reads the daily paper and sometimes tells ME the news! And he watches soap operas all day from his chaise lounge and tells me what’s happening on Guiding Light. I try to tell him I don’t watch it. He still tells me anyway.

I contacted CASS in June 2002 and asked if they needed any help with their shelter. I toured the downtown facility which houses individuals for overnight stays. I was told the building was scheduled to be torn down and thus improvements would be unnecessary. Plus, they didn’t need to make the facility too nice. It might encourage their overnight residents to get comfortable and less motivated to seek employment. They referred me to Billie Paulson, the wonderful Director of Family Services at their family shelter in Sunnyslope. I asked her to come up with a wish list of what they’d really want done and I’d ask my friends for help. And that’s how this home improvement project for the Emergency Family Shelter was born.
Thirty homeless families at a time are given an apartment, food, job assistance, pre-school, childcare and after school programs, clothing, medical assistance and more for 2-3 months while they are required to save 80% of their income so they can move out into regular housing. Families have at least one child and often three or four. They are mostly young parents with young children. The shelter is non-stop in continually enabling families to move off of the streets and into housing when they leave the shelter.

I think you’ll be surprised when you see what we’ve actually done at the shelter. Hundreds and hundreds of man-hours have been donated making repairs, painting, installing fixtures, tearing out carpeting, installing carpeting, cleaning roofs, repairing air conditioners, trimming trees, educating the children on dental hygiene and self-esteem, providing new appliances and much, much more . Lots of photos were taken. I hope you enjoy seeing how much effort really has gone into this by so many people with big hearts.

   

FOR PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT
CASS VISTA COLINA EMERGENCY FAMILY SHELTER
Update by Roseann Higgins as of February 27th, 2003
All of you who have volunteered and made donations...you are now responsible
for making this project valued at close to $100,000!!! in donated services, household appliances,
furniture, fixtures, materials, toys and clothing since November 9th. THANK YOU to each person who's made this possible. You are the best friends anyone could hope for.
This project began with friends and volunteers from Sunstate Mechanical coming out November 9th and shoveling tons (okay, dozens of bags) of pigeon doodoo from all five roofs, power washing them and cleaning out all 30+ A/C units and replacing all AC filters. If you'd like to know what's been done since then, read on.
Many thanks to the following generous people! If you get a chance to do business with them, please tell them you heard what they did for the shelter and what a great job they did.

Please do not contact them for donations.

PDCA (Painting & Decorators Contractors Association) came in November 23rd and painted all 30 one and two bedroom apartments, the offices, the pre-school, child care center and the pantry! They donated all the paint and dry wall and brought 55 guys from: Adams Painting, Verbraken and Sons Painting, Smith Painting, Dunn-Edwards Paints, Buffalo Painting, Robertson Interior Exterior Painting, Metro Valley Painting, Opt Co, Steve Alexander Special Coatings Etc. and Sharp Drywall Inc.
Adams Painting: 747 W Watkins St # 3, Phoenix   (602) 254-5191
Verbraken and Sons Painting: 615 South Country Club, Mesa   (480) 926-2663
Smith Painting: (480) 948-3841   http://www.azsmithpainting.com/
Dunn-Edwards Paints: (800) 488-5722   http://www.dunnedwards.com/SszAr.html
Buffalo Painting: 2532 W Madero, Mesa
Metro Valley Painting: 659 E. Main St. Mesa   (480) 461-8181 http://www.metrovalley.com/
Opt Co: 1350 W Harwell Rd. Ste. 101, Gilbert
Sharp Drywall: 445 N Austin Dr. Chandler

 

 

Click HERE for more Painting photos
ICI Paints is donating all the paint for the exteriors, the parking lot striping, the acid wash and paint for the downstairs of 26 apartments and the doors and doorways! Volunteers ripped out the ragged, filthy carpeting on all carpeted downstairs floors acid washed and two-part epoxy painted the floors! The floors are now much cleaner, brighter and will be easier to maintain with the high turnover of new residents.

Click HERE for more Flooring pictures
15 brand new microwaves donated by Tom Bart
30 new alarm clock radios donated by Sunstate Mechanical/Bill Bart (Scottsdale  480-998-9620)
40 new exterior designer light fixtures donated by Sunstate Mechanical/Bill
Bart, (Scottsdale  480-998-9620) installed by volunteers

Many of the lights outside each apartment didn't work or were just bare light bulbs with no fixtures. We removed all the old fixtures and replaced them with really nice light fixtures that used to be at a nice hotel. Sunstate Mechanical donated and installed the parking lot lights after removing the old lights.
 Click HERE for more Exterior Lighting photos
5 new electric ranges donated and installed by Arizona Wholesale Supply (Scottsdale  480-948-7220)
90+ interior light fixtures donated by Roger Quinn and James Hill, DDS
 

Many of the interior lights had naked bulbs with no fixture at all. We tore down old chandeliers and fixtures and put up new lights purchased with cash donations upstairs, downstairs and in the hallways of every apartment.
 Click HERE for
more Interior Lighting
Photos
 
New wall packs (parking lot roof mounted lights) were donated, Sunstate
Mechanical (Scottsdale 480-998-9620)  installed 30 new full length and 8 new above sink mirrors donated and installed by Venus Manufacturing
L&B Closets installed a new closet valued at $2,000 to house the children's clothing bank for current and future residents.
Mural Artist Sandra Davis (http://www.tuscanyandrome.com/your_guides.htm) who used to paint Disney sets painted two really, really cool murals with undersea animals at the NAEYC accredited pre-school
Dr. Gary Johnson dressed up as Molar Man (in costume a la Superman) and gave a dental hygiene presentation to all the kids and gave them each a coloring book, a Molar Man sticker and a see-through plastic kit with a toothbrush and toothpaste plus toothpaste and brushes for adults. He will be doing quarterly presentations to new residents!
Eyewear by ROI and Aspen Optical (1050 West Main Street, Suite 102 Mesa, 480-894-8770 / 800-926-5367) are donating 50 custom pair of prescription glasses
La Polla Industries
donated rollers and high grade
elastomeric roof sealant
for 15,000 square feet
and volunteers rolled it on
all five buildings last Saturday!
 
Sunstate Mechanical (Scottsdale   480-998-9620) had 20 guys out three Saturdays cleaning out all the A/C units, cleaning all the roofs with brooms, shovels, dozens of garbage bagfuls of pigeon doodoo and power washing the roofs and helping with the roof sealant and this Saturday's painting of the floors and new light fixture installation. Bill Bart made also made the initial contact resulting in PDCA's donation!
 

Click HERE for more Roofing pictures
RPM Tree Service took their crane over to put the 55 pound roof sealant containers (52 of them) up on all five roofs!
Sprinkler Solutions Incorporated (13610 N. Scottsdale Rd. #188 Scottsdale   602-993-7700) installed an outside timer, fixed nozzles and pipes and installed new pipes where needed -sofas, coffee tables, end tables, dressers, beds, dishes, baby items, clothing and many household items and clothing donated by many friends - Thank you for looking through your houses and making the donations and the trip down to the shelter.
Carpet installation completed
for 28 apartments by TDC Interiors!
(8321 E Gelding Dr, Scottsdale   602-948-9567) 
TDC Interiors is donating all the labor
to install carpeting previously
donated by Sky Harbor Airport!

Click HERE for more pictures
of the Volunteers
 
Transition strips for the ledges between kitchen and bathroom tiles and the newly painted concrete living room floors donated by Squaw Peak Floor Covering  (10656 N 32nd St  Phoenix   602-404-2580) installation donated by Reza's Floor Cover Solutions
Volunteers installed closet dowels for us to hang new curtains in closet doorways
Cylex  (http://www.cylexsigns.com) well known for their stone-etched golf course signs and even the new signs at the Westin Kierland is custom making new signs with the words Vista Colina and each apartment number! Plus, new signs with kids silhouettes for the preschool, the office, the laundry room and the apartment complex.
Mr. Bill McClure, the wood shop teacher from my high school, Sunnyslope, is making a new and better sign for Vista Colina Apts! (to replace the very warped, dilapidated current sign)
Lou Durso, Russ Achee, Nathan Trump, Anthony Salas, Greg Dallmann, Roger Quinn, Gary Kudela, Bill Heck, Justin Freeman and Roseann Higgins volunteered time and muscles to make over 30 trips to homes from Avondale to Cave Creek to Queen Creek to pick up furniture and household items (and Bill, Lou, Anthony and Roger pitched in their own trucks!)
 

Click HERE for more Donation pictures
Convenient Housewares
 (http://www.theriver.com/convenienthouseware/)
donated:
   44 toasters
      23 electric canopeners,
      21 blankets
         and more!
Marcus Sipolt of TB Consulting donated a Xerox 5034 model megacopier that collates, staples, reduces & enlarges!
Tammy Hetrick donated a 54" big screen TV that is now being used in the men's unit at the downtown CASS shelter
50 new floor mats donated by Mayfair Floor Coverings
Two squadrons at Luke Air Force Base (56 MSS/DPMD) (ACC/TRSS Det1/CCQ)
held toy drives and donated them to the shelter for the holidays
Many volunteers from Luke Air Force Base have come out from 56 LRS/LRGVM, 56 EMS/AMMO, 301 FS, 56 MOS, 56 MDSS, 56 COM, 756 AMXS/MXACS.
Janet Adams, Russ Achee and Greg Dallman came out two and three days to volunteer! Many brought their own power tools, including Bo Wilmoth and Janet Adams. Thank you so much. We hope we see you folks and more of your compadres at Luke soon at the shelter!
Another Luke AFB Squadron did a bake sale and bought 10 blow dryers, hair brushes and toiletries
Time to create this section of the website donated by Brian Dina (www.briandina.com)
  Cash donations will go far for the renovation and are still welcome!
We've received $2,000 from John Bebbling, $500 from Roger Quinn, $300 from James Hill, DDS, $200 from Robert Hill, $100 from Bill Blades, $100 from Bob Estrabrook, $50 from Janet Post, $100 from Margaret Wear and $25 from Olando & Ebru Watt

HOW YOU CAN HELP NOW!

WE NEED VOLUNTEERS & DONATIONS!

Anything you can do, whether it’s come out and volunteer for a day or even a couple hours or pick up the phone and call someone who can help us complete one of the items below, is very much appreciated.
The things I still want to provide before this FOR project is declared finished are:

  1. Do you know someone who can donate parts and repair a Xerox 5034 copier that's been donated?

  2. Do you know how to install front DOORS and doorlocks? Or know someone
    with a company who can donate installing 34 doors and locks?

  3. Does anyone have a doctors office style FRONT DESK with a check-in area and cubby holes for administrative tasks? Or can anyone just resurface the old wood on the current front desk?

  4. Do you know someone who can donate parts and repair a big screen TV? It only needs a color rod.

  5. Curtains and curtain rods for 31 apartments

  6. Curtains for 57 closets

  7. Pick up and planting of six mesquite trees

  8. Paint wood exteriors with paint donated by ICI Paints

  9. Refrigerators

  10. Durable table lamps

  11. Hang stone-etched apartment numbers donated by Cylex

  12. Install new wood apartment complex sign made by Mr. Bill McClure, Sunnyslope High School Woodshop

  13. Make minor plumbing repairs to toilets, sinks and showers

Send me an email and I’ll let you know the next time we’re out at the Shelter or when we’re starting a new project so you can come help out and have fun. If you have donations, please deliver them to Vista Colina at 1050 W. Mountain View in Sunnyslope/north Phoenix.

Directions: It's between Dunlap and Peoria roads.
Take 19th Ave. or 7th Ave. to Hatcher.
Go to 11th Ave. Go north 4 blocks to Mountain View.
Vista Colina is on the NE corner of 11th Ave. & Mountain View.
Info: All volunteers will receive a letter of appreciation at the end of the project.
CASS is a 501(c)(3).  All donations are tax deductible.
Donations can be delivered anytime, seven days a week.
CASS: (602) 944-0960, dial 0.
If you can, please fax a copy of your donation form to Roseann Higgins.
      FAX: (602) 200-9363
      or mail it to 5825 N. 12th St. #14, Phoenix, AZ 85014.

Click HERE for more pictures of the Volunteers

FUTURE FOR PROJECTS
and how you can get involved!

This exceeds my expectations. I'm keeping my fingers crossed we'll make some additional major contributions to the shelter before we're through. Even though this is the first project I've undertaken as a part of my new nonprofit, FOR, I really don't think I'll be tackling projects of this magnitude again. Not until I pick myself up and dust myself off and have a drink. Future projects you might be interested in may include reading books on tape for the blind, a project at the Grand Canyon, something with local parks, an animal no-kill shelter and who knows what else.

 

FOR
 5825 N. 12th St. #14
Phoenix, AZ 85014-2072