Download Summit Up, FLight 33's newsletter. Joey's Night June 1, 2008 Joey Gonzales graduated from Compadre High School on May 22, 2008. It was a windy evening, threatening rain, which was very unusual for late May in Tempe, Arizona. Balloons flew every which way, while excited friends and family tried their best to keep from losing them. The wind could have easily been a symbol for the stormy times that many Compadre graduates had weathered during their high school years. It was a night to celebrate, though, and Joey’s whole family, including grandparents and cousins were all there. Joey spent much of his high school career at Marcos de Niza High, but finished needed credits at Compadre. He overcame some obstacles and never gave up. His parents were always encouraging him and he presented them with a rose that night to say, “Thanks.” Joey took part in Flight 33 for seven years, working on homework and projects. He knew he had to work to graduate. It was his desire that made this night come to pass. If Joey had a chance to give advice to others in his shoes, he would say, “Never give up. There are schools that will help you. You can do it. Push yourself and believe in yourself.” In the future, Joey wants to be an automobile mechanic. He sees so many people in his community needing cars repaired. Many are not able to get to work or to the doctor. Joey wants to help the people in his town to get needed repairs. All of us in Flight 33 salute Joey Gonzales for his success and for his care for others. Peace Is the Goal Comes to Guadalupe May 24, 2008 Peace Is the Goal held a soccer clinic for Flight 33 kids on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at the fields at Frank School in Guadalupe, Arizona. A goodwill initiative that provides soccer equipment to children around the world, Peace Is the Goal was founded by Mitchell Arnold, a 15-year-old soccer player and certified referee from Fort Atkinson High School in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. He and his dad, Paul, a long-time U14/U12 coach for traveling soccer teams in Fort Atkinson, ran the clinic. It was 100% free. This mini-camp taught Flight 33 kids some of the important skills to playing soccer, including dribbling, passing, shooting, throw-ins, goalkeeping and defense. A scrimmage took place at the end of the mini-camp. This camp was a great opportunity for kids that had never played soccer. It was all around good fun for the participants, including the Flight 33 volunteers. Leo, one of the young players said, “I could stay here all week!” Richie, new to the game, was so encouraged by his new ability, that he wants to play school sports, something he had never thought possible. Peace Is the Goal aims to make the world a better place to live by spreading the message of peace and giving through “the world’s game,” soccer. Since October 2006, Mitch has shipped nearly $4,000 worth of soccer gear, including more that 200 new soccer balls to kids in countries such as Haiti, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Ecuador, Jamaica, Afghanistan, Senegal, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mexico, Vietnam and the United States. Flight 33 was very fortunate, not only to be the recipient of soccer balls, equipment, and instructional materials from Mitch, but to have Mitch and his Dad give their time and expertise to help the youth of Flight 33. Mitch proved that at a young age of 15, he could make a difference in the lives of others. He certainly made a difference to all of us in Guadalupe! Companionship is Win-Win May 24, 2008 Three of the youth from Flight 33 - Chon, Gina and Eulalia - have been regular visitors to Village Oaks Special Care Unit in Chandler, Arizona. Residents in this unit have progressive dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Many have difficulty communicating, but become engaged when the youth give them attention and speak to them directly. It took a few visits for the three to get to know a little bit about the residents and how things operate. But once they learned, they began looking forward to the visits, which are about twice a month. Each visit is a little different. For example during one visit, Chon played Checkers with Charlie. Eulalia and Gina drew each residents name on a piece of white construction paper for them to hang in their rooms. The girls did a beautiful job decorating each name and the residents’ eyes lit up when they saw their name. We closed the visit with JINGO, a form of BINGO that uses full words. The kids quickly learned the personalities of the residents and after each visit would talk about their different experiences in the car. They really got a kick out of some of the comments that they heard. The people have a great sense of humor and the kids enjoy that each time. We’re stepping this up, because we know that many of the people at Village Oaks love taking part in activities. Most evident is that people of all ages simply love companionship. September Walk: Gettin’ Snappy for School September 2, 2007 The kids were all smiles this past August while getting ready for the new school year to start with all new clothes, shoes, and school supplies. Flight 33 organized and ran our regular big school-shopping spree at the local Walmart, where we took 30 kids to get outfitted in brand-new school-season must-haves, such as uniforms and backpacks. Additional supplies to help over 70 more children within the Guadalupe area were provided by Flight 33. Donations from private individuals and Holy Spirit Catholic Church also played a big role in making possible a proud, well-equipped student for the first day of classes. The youth were incredibly excited to show off their new shoes and school folders at local schools Frank Elementary, Fees Middle School, and Marcos De Niza High School. Flight 33’s school supply shopping days are part of our main program called September Walk. Providing for basic needs and attending to all factors contributing to the success of a child in school are fundamental to our mission. This component also goes hand in hand with our tri-weekly tutoring which is held at the Guadalupe Branch Library, where we focus on each child’s learning needs and teach literacy and math skills. Although we meet with the kids to read and learn throughout the summertime, our crucial time of the year starts with school around September—where we really Walk with the kids the whole year!! Flight 33 Helps out at Packages from Home August 30, 2007 Earlier this year youth got together for a very special service project—helping out our troops overseas. About a dozen of us from Flight 33 lent a hand for a few hours one Saturday at the Phoenix-based Packages from Home collection site, where we sorted and organized care packages for troops on foreign soil. This was a great way to show support for those who bravely fight for our country—and it turned out to be a pretty fun time, too! The hours flew by as we worked side by side with the caring wives, mothers, and friends who run the well-known organization. The youth were all smiles as we packed up each Ziploc with various personal care items and unique letters and drawings collected from local elementary schools. What a great way to show our appreciation for our troops! Youth Learn through Volunteering August 30, 2007 Over summer break, six of our youth volunteered Friday mornings at Project Cure in Tempe, Arizona. Introduced to Flight 33 by one of its own board members and a dedicated Project Cure volunteer, Agnes Umuligirwa, we had the privilege of taking part in a wonderful cause. Project Cure is an organization that sorts, packs and ships donated medical supplies to clinics and hospitals located in poor countries. It was an amazing opportunity to participate in a noble service, as well as familiarize the kids with a wide variety of items used within the medical field. Also working with our Flight 33 youth were two of Phoenix’s Brophy College Prep students, Justin and Brian, who helped along side the kids while fulfilling service hours for a social sciences class. The first day at Project Cure was difficult since all the medical supplies were so foreign to the kids. But each Friday experience, sorting through all the different materials, led to a greater understanding of common pieces of medical equipment such as catheters, infusion pumps, and centrifuge tubes. Next stop, medical school! Our Good Samaritans July 13, 2007 They didn’t know who he was or how he got there. They were scared to stop to help, because it was dark out and this man was a stranger. But they did stop and they did help. This past winter, Miguel, 21, Vanessa, 20, Joey, 17, Eulalia,13, and Angelina, 10, were on their way home after having a burger with the other youth of Flight 33. Miguel was driving down Priest Road in Guadalupe, Arizona, when Joey saw someone lying by the side of the road. Miguel had already passed by, but he turned around and went back. The five youth rushed out of the car and saw that the man had somehow fallen off his bicycle and was barely breathing. Joey ran to a hotel nearby and asked security to call 911. In the meantime, the other youth tried to speak to the man to let him know that help was coming. They noticed that he had his cell phone open, but was unable to complete his call for help. These youth are Yaqui Indian. The man was Anglo. Vanessa, almost 9 months pregnant, said that although many people passed by, even walked by, no one stopped to help. When the young people told me this story, I told them that they were living the Gospel. They are the answer to the question, “Who is our neighbor?” They are the Good Samaritans. Grab Your Paintbrushes...And Celery Sticks! June 28, 2007 Flight 33 held its 4th Annual Art Show in conjunction with the Maricopa County Guadalupe Branch Library on June 28. Talented young artists Genaro Flores, Ralph Martinez and Marcella Espuma proudly displayed their paintings. More than 60 youth from Flight 33 and the Boys and Girls Club of Guadalupe attended the show and enjoyed being little artist themselves, in the edible art projects provided by librarians Virginia Salas and Betty Flores. Also in attendance was professional artist Gabe Richesson, who paints extraordinary portraits of sports figures, and has worked in the field of graphic arts for many years. Gabe is an inspiration to our aspiring artists and has given time to provide guidance to these talented young people. Those in attendance--young and old alike--greatly enjoyed talking to the artists and seeing the artwork. And of course, everyone had a good time creating art that they could eat! It was an event that, once again, showcased the remarkable talent in the community and provided a special opportunity for the youth to see that the sky’s the limit! Diamondbacks Give Flight 33 a Home Run! May 3, 2007 Flight 33 kicked off their summer in a great All-American way, with some peanuts and Cracker Jacks—as well as a generous monetary contribution-—at the ball game! About 30 youth and Flight volunteers took in an exciting baseball game, compliments of our beloved Arizona Diamondbacks. Our smiles couldn’t have gotten much bigger as Flight’s Founder/Director, Chris Puzauskas was given a caring donation made by the team’s community grants program on the field pre-game. It was such an honor to be recognized by the Diamondbacks—who are very involved in the community—as one of Phoenix’s many organizations who positively impact others who are in need. The relationship Flight 33 has with its donors and fellow non-profit organizations is greatly valued, and we will continue to carry out mission long into the future . . . as well as try to catch those fly balls without dropping the foot-long hotdog! Bikes from Around the World March 22, 2007 Two men, Faramarz Arad and Amir Panah, spent a typical Sunday afternoon in December watching football on TV. But these are not typical men and that afternoon was anything but typical. Faramarz and Amir are refugees from Iran. They were far from their families and knew that it was not going to be possible for them to see children smiling on Christmas Day. It was something that they desperately wanted to see. Amir hatched a plan that they knew would make children smile. He decided to buy eight brand new, shiny children’s bicycles. The next step was to find children in need that would not normally get anything for Christmas. This, they knew, would bring smiles. Faramarz and Amir spent the major part of a day driving around Phoenix and Guadalupe looking for children who might want a bicycle. Of course, in this day of frightening happenings, children ran into their homes when the men tried to speak to them. Very disappointed, but not defeated, Faramarz and Amir called a close friend, Damien, a doctoral student at ASU, to ask if he knew of any children who could use the bikes. Damien gave them the name of a refugee woman from Rwanda, Agnes, who volunteers with Flight 33. She asked Chris, the director, if she knew of any children who could use the new bikes. Chris did know children and agreed to pick up the bikes, now in a garage where Agnes stays. Chris was able to get another volunteer, Shari, help deliver the bikes, along with Chris’ two daughters. Chris took photos of the children receiving the bikes. They were so happy, some could not speak, but they all smiled! Chris sent the photos to Agnes, who gave them to Faramarz and Amir. The men were overjoyed that their mission was accomplished. This story is a remarkable example of how people have the need to connect with others. Flight 33 is a program that helps youth through the educational system, but in the long run it is the connections that these youth make with others that will make the difference in the world. The four boys and four girls know that these bikes came from two men from Iran that cared about them and that is what counts.
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