^{Allison Rapping}

Organization: Arouet

Leadership: Alison Rapping – CEO | Dana Campbell Saylor – Board Chair

Annual Budget: $1.1 million

Origin

Arouet was founded in 2011 to prepare women for success after they leave prison by providing them with education, employment and life skills. Its CEO, Alison Rapping, came to the organization after helping her brother launch Gideon’s Promise, a national nonprofit that trains, supports and advocates for public defenders throughout the U.S. Through that process, Rapping gained insight and empathy for people caught in the criminal justice system, and she wanted to do something to invest in them. “I saw the opportunity to lead Arouet as a remarkable chance to create a program that empowers women with education, employment and mentoring,” she said. “I saw the opportunity to help them rebuild their lives, reconnect with their families, and contribute to their communities.”

Mission

Arouet empowers and transforms the lives of formerly incarcerated women and their families through its holistic pre- and post-release programs, which cover financial coaching, career development, job placement, mentoring, healthcare navigation and community integration. Arouet also champions fair-chance hiring practices, which create more inclusive and diverse workplaces for people with criminal records.

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization

Arouet has had astounding success in reducing participant recidivism. “When we started, we aimed to lower the recidivism rate by at least half, but we have far exceeded our expectations,” Rapping said. Since its founding, Arouet’s participants have returned to prison at a fraction of Arizona’s average of 39 percent — consistently lower than 7 percent and under 3 percent for the last four years. 

“It is a testament to the power and impact of our programs and services, which empower and transform the lives of formerly incarcerated women and their families. And it is really a testament to what is possible when surrounded by people who care deeply about you and your growth, coupled with a solid road map for success,” Rapping said.

Tami, an Arouet client, agreed. “It was more than just a place to get help,” she said. “This was a group of people who had been through what I had and understood the challenges I was facing. They embraced me and helped me get a job that can support me and my fur baby!”

Program Highlight

The CASE Academy provides comprehensive training in the Grow with Google certificate program and prepares women to be workforce-ready in STEM fields. The academy has an intensive curriculum that includes workshops, training, guest speakers, hands-on projects, and professional mentoring and guidance. “We augment this training with comprehensive life skills and wraparound services that address our participants and their families’ multiple needs and challenges,” Rapping said. These services include mentorship, professional development training, financial and employment coaching, and access to healthcare resources, housing, transportation and other community resources.

“Arouet has made such a difference in my life. They encouraged me when things were going rough and celebrated all my wins,” said Christine, an Arouet client. “With Arouet, I know I matter.”

Recent Challenges

Arouet has faced challenges in the past few years due to the pandemic and labor shortage. Despite the difficulties, it adapted to the changing circumstances.

“We provided additional support and resources to our participants, who showed remarkable resilience and determination in pursuing their goals,” Rapping said. Morever, Arouet enhanced its services to meet the specific needs of the many women released during the pandemic, who faced incredible challenges adjusting to the new reality.

Future

Arouet is looking forward to launching its Workforce Partnership program, a new initiative that supports businesses interested in fair-chance employment by providing them with resources, tools and guidance on recruiting, training and retaining justice-impacted talent. The program will also create a network of fair-chance employers, who can share best practices and learn from each other.

“We are thrilled to be able to reach more women who are preparing for their transition to the community and provide them with the support and preparation they need to succeed,” Rapping said. “We’re proud of the work we do at Arouet.”

To learn more, visit arouetempowers.org. 

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Leadership: Jordan Allen – executive director | Joe Genovese – Phoenix chapter president

Origin

In 2012, Luke Mickelson built a bed for a family in need in his hometown of Twin Falls, Idaho. What started as an act of kindness exposed something very few think about — children having no bed of their own to sleep in comfortably. Using his daughter’s bunk bed as a template, Mickelson started buying wood and supplies to build beds with his own money, recruiting friends and family to help during the holidays. 

The work became such a passion that Mickelson eventually quit his successful career and created Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a nonprofit that builds and delivers beds to children in need. The Phoenix chapter was created five years ago.  

Mission

“No kid sleeps on the floor in our town!” is Sleep in Heavenly Peace’s motto. With more than 65 chapters across the U.S., the organization has delivered over 100,000 free beds to kids across the country. In the process, the organization has built a tremendous sense of community as all of the beds are built from scratch by volunteers, with donations from local companies, generous individuals, churches, clubs like Kiwanis and Rotary, and funds from grants and foundations.

Annual Budget

The Phoenix chapter plans to build and deliver beds (or bunk beds) to approximately 1,500 children in 2024. At a cost of $250 per bed — which includes lumber, hardware, brand-new mattress, pillow, blanket and sheet set — that makes a revenue goal of $375,000.

“All of our volunteers in Phoenix are unpaid — happily,” said Joe Genovese, chapter president of Sleep in Heavenly Peace. “We do, however, have an amazing home office team of dedicated, paid individuals at our chapter support center in Idaho. Ten percent of our local revenue goes toward their efforts in supporting us, but most of those funds come right back to us in the form of insurance coverage, digital systems, marketing, social media and so much more.”

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization

The sheer need for it. “I am shocked at the number of children who go to sleep each night in something other than a bed,” Genovese said. “Our current waiting list is up to 3,000 children, and this is just from the families who have discovered us.”

Fortunately, another surprising thing is helping the nonprofit meet this need: “The amazing number of good-hearted, like-minded citizens who have come by our side and volunteered their time and passion for kids and their families,” Genovese said.

Program Highlight

In its first year, Sleep in Heavenly Peace had a local plan to build 100 beds. It built 500 that year.

“We never imagined the success we would have in attracting volunteers and in attracting donations. It’s truly a blessing,” Genovese said.

The Phoenix chapter now builds and delivers a bed to about 150 children each month.

Recent Challenges

For its first five years, the organization’s operational strategy was to bring Sleep in Heavenly Peace to the companies, clubs and churches that sponsored the building of beds. “We literally packed up all of our equipment one Saturday each month and did a mobile build,” Genovese said.

As demand rose, they worked to find ways to be more efficient while raising money to build a permanent site where volunteers could come from all over the Valley. “We wanted to be like St. Mary’s Food Bank or Feed My Starving Children and find ways to serve more kids, but with less moving, loading and unloading,” Genovese said.

They recently accomplished that goal with a location near Sky Harbor Airport. “Our challenge now is having to pay rent. However, we are absolutely confident we can raise the needed funds and serve more kids,” Genovese said.

Future

Sleep in Heavenly Peace wants to reduce the number of children on its waiting list and be more efficient in building and delivering beds. The organization invites anyone interested in building or delivering beds to contact them.

To learn more, visit shpbeds.org/chapter/az-phoenix. 

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Leadership: President & co-founder of Ezras Cholim and the Arizona Kosher Pantry — Yecheskel Friedman

Origin:

Chai Arizona is the umbrella organization for Ezras Cholim, Tomchei Shabbat and the Arizona Kosher Pantry. The organization prides itself on strong relationships within the Jewish, Muslim, Christian and secular communities and serves everyone, regardless of religion or affiliation.  

Mission:

Chai Arizona is committed to inclusivity, partnerships and Kosher law as it works to support the lives of thousands of Arizonans facing hunger, illness and hardship.

Annual Budget: Approximately $300,000

Fun Fact About the Organization:

A recent community event was a home run for Chai Arizona. “We were very excited to be a part of Jewish Community Day, when the Diamondbacks played at Chase Field,” said Yecheskel Friedman, president of the board of directors. “We were proud to serve Kosher food from our food truck. All of the monies raised were turned back to the pantry to support our programs.”

Program Highlights:

Ezras Cholim serves precooked meals to community members in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes or private residences. It also loans durable medical equipment at no charge.

Tomchei Shabbat distributes Kosher food baskets so the sick and needy can celebrate the Sabbath with dignity.

The Arizona Kosher Pantry is the only certified Kosher food pantry in Arizona. Open five days a week, it distributes over 150,000 pounds of food to the general public each year to combat food insecurity. Individuals and families can access the pantry once a week for fresh food and non-perishables. 

Recent Challenges:

Ezras Cholim, Tomchei Shabbat and the Arizona Kosher Pantry have grown as the needs of the community demanded. And as gas, rent and food prices have increased in the last few years, so has the number of community members needing services. Fortunately, with thoughtful stewardship, Chai Arizona has successfully anticipated needs and continued providing services to the underserved.

Future:

The Arizona Kosher Pantry supports a food truck that goes to local parks to provide cooked meals to the unsheltered and undernourished. They hope to continue to deliver those programs, as well as additional services. “We look forward to getting back to the parks and serving breakfast or lunch to the unsheltered. Now that the weather has cooled down, look for us at a park near you,” Friedman said.

To learn more, visit chaiarizona.org.

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Organization: The Nash

Leadership:

Managing director — Steve Maun

Executive director — Joel Goldenthal

Origin:

The Nash is part of Jazz in Arizona, Inc., a nonprofit founded in 1977 to celebrate and build the Valley’s jazz community. Attorney Herb Ely and jazz pianist Joel Goldenthal dreamed of creating a jazz performance venue and education center. After conducting focus groups with student musicians and seasoned instructors, they came up with the concept for The Nash, including naming it after Lewis Nash, a Phoenix native and iconic jazz drummer. When The Nash opened in downtown Phoenix in 2012, the first note played in the venue was played by trumpet great Wynton Marsalis.

Mission:

The Nash celebrates the rich tradition and ongoing innovation of jazz. It is known for its commitment to introducing students to jazz and providing top-quality jazz education from professional musicians to students interested in playing America’s original art form. The Nash also offers almost 300 quality live performances a year with local musicians as well as national and international touring jazz artists.  

Annual Budget: $1.35 million

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization:

“Its history,” said managing director Steve Maun. Jazz in Arizona, Inc. has existed for nearly 45 years and has always worked to build a vibrant jazz community in Phoenix and beyond. “I think the fact that we present nearly 300 shows a year at The Nash is also surprising. That is a lot of shows for such a small staff,” Maun said.

Program Highlight:

As a result of The Nash’s participation in the ATLAS program offered by Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust, The Nash has been able to hire its first full-time director of education and a director of fund development and communications. “These two recent hires greatly enhance The Nash’s capacity and sustainability as a successful nonprofit,” Maun said. “Our director of education, Dr. Clark Gibson, organized and held our first Nash Jazz Summer Camp this past June with 83 students participating in the weeklong camp.” The camp culminated with a Friday night faculty concert and 11 student ensemble shows on Saturday at The Nash.

Recent Challenges:

The pandemic forced The Nash to close for approximately 16 months, a period that was challenging financially and programmatically. To maintain a connection with students, patrons and donors, The Nash offered virtual shows and education opportunities and held a series of outdoor performances at Venue 122.

“The challenge continued when we reopened in July 2021 because, after such a long closure, it was not as simple as turning on the lights and opening the door,” Maun said. “We made several modifications to our operations and, in some ways, learned how to operate all over again. We had to reengage with our constituents and bring them back to The Nash.”

Future:

The team at The Nash is looking forward to the continued growth of its education and outreach programs. In the past year, they added three new ensembles and held the first Nash Jazz Summer Camp. “We served four times more students than in the past,” Maun said. “I believe we will continue to expand participation based on our current momentum.”

To learn more, visit thenash.org.

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Organization: Defenders of Children

Leadership:

Founder — Donnalee Sarda

CEO — Johanna Fierstein, MSW

Origin:

Defenders of Children was founded in 2007 by Donnalee Sarda as an Arizona offshoot of the national organization, Justice for Children. Defenders of Children was borne of a desire to do better for child abuse victims in our community. It is a grassroots effort to explore systemic inadequacies and fill gaps in helping families protect children. Located in Central Phoenix, Defenders of Children is a fierce, interdisciplinary team of domestic violence and child abuse experts from the legal, clinical mental health and survivor services-focused social work professions, collaborating under one roof to provide comprehensive services to families.

CEO Johanna Fierstein came to the organization after a decade working in private law firms as a paralegal for attorneys focused on family and juvenile law. She had witnessed many failings within the systems designed to protect children, including children and abuse survivors being revictimized through unjust custody orders and antiquated ideas about domestic violence. After years of volunteering with domestic violence and sexual assault victims, Fierstein wanted to help bridge gaps at the intersections of family law, clinical mental health, victims’ rights and child welfare. She worked under the agency’s founder, Donnalee Sarda, who was and is a true warrior for abused and neglected children.

Mission:

Defenders of Children’s mission is to protect children and families from violence, fight for their access to justice, facilitate healing and end the intergenerational cycle of abuse. With a focus on helping survivors of child abuse, domestic, interpersonal (dating) and sexual violence, as well as human trafficking, Defenders of Children works with low-income clients and their families, community partner organizations, domestic violence shelters, schools and city/county victim advocacy offices to promote its vision of healthier, violence-free families. The agency is known for taking a holistic, full-service approach to creating change for clients; both empowering survivors (of all ages) through legal systems and helping them walk the path down their emotional healing journey with the assistance of their counseling department. Defenders of Children is the only nonprofit agency in Arizona providing both of these services, with litigating attorneys who argue the most complex cases next to survivors in courtrooms, and independently licensed trauma clinicians, under one roof and always free. (Clients are never charged one penny.) Defenders of Children is known for providing unparalleled trauma-informed litigation services and expert therapists that practice the most up-to-date techniques and modalities for treating the complexities of trauma after acute and/or long-term abuse and violence. The agency has a truly transformative impact on clients’ lives.

Annual Budget: $750,000

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization:

In addition to their work with clients, Defenders of Children engages in extensive community outreach. For example, the agency holds an annual event at the Children’s Museum of Phoenix, which is free to all their clients and community partners’ clients, and any families currently in family violence shelters. In 2022, they hosted 400 parents and children for a day of fun, confidence-building, learning, free food trucks and tons of free raffle prizes. In addition, they hold an annual Family and Juvenile Law Conference to advocate for families by training lawyers, judges, mental health clinicians and child welfare advocates about how we can and should come together to do better for Arizona’s most vulnerable children.   

Program Highlight:

Defenders of Children provided $1.7 million in free legal services to children and families in 2022. Their legal department’s programs were essential in protecting children and training advocates across the state. Their clinical department provided weekly, life-altering psychoeducational classes for sex trafficking survivors.

Recent Challenges:

The team at Defenders of Children has observed that many abusers misuse the court system to maintain control over their former or current partners. Abusers file frivolous lawsuits to keep their victims coming back to court to face them, as courts are often the only tool left for abusers seeking to maintain a hold over their victims’ lives. This process retraumatizes victims, draining them of their finances, forcing them to miss work and face a terrifying, overwhelming legal system. Litigation involving child custody cases (which are often appallingly contentious) is one of the most common ways domestic violence perpetrators prolong contact with victims. The team at Defenders of Children gets hundreds of calls per month from desperate parents and guardians asking for help. The agency’s biggest challenge, by far, is inadequate funding and the need for more lawyers to litigate these cases in courtrooms.

Future:

There is a dire need within the child abuse and family violence communities not just for legal services, but for attorney-based litigation services so survivors of child abuse and family violence get access to justice in family and civil courts. Defenders of Children is motivated to continue their work over the summer, when children are out of school and reports of child abuse tend to surge.

To learn more, visit defendersofchildren.org.

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Leadership: 

Founder: Vivienne Gellert

CEO: Eric Barr

Annual Budget: $330,000

Origin:

Elaine is the brainchild of Vivienne Gellert, who created the organization when she was a pre-med student at Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions. She noticed emergency rooms were filled with people who didn’t know how to access timely and appropriate care, so she created Elaine as Arizona’s first health navigation and transportation system for those experiencing homelessness. The organization is named after Elaine Herzberg, a woman experiencing homelessness who was struck and killed by a self-driving vehicle in Tempe.

Mission:

Elaine provides access to social determinants of health locations through free, dependable and compassionate transportation for homeless and other underserved communities (elderly, low-income, uninsured, etc.). By providing rides to resources and services critical to a person’s health and well-being — including medical appointments, food banks, job and housing interviews and other necessary errands — Elaine is creating safer and healthier communities.

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization:

When Eric Barr read about Elaine, he knew he wanted to get involved. He met with Gellert, and she contacted him a little over a year later to tell him the leadership role at Elaine was available. “Vivienne and the board ended up taking a chance on me, and for that, I will be forever grateful,” he said.

According to Barr, a good portion of the team at Elaine lacked specific career experience in transportation, working with the homeless population, business management or some combination. “I guess that’s maybe to say that some major elements of this job were new to us,” he said. “But we’re all passionate about this work and will do whatever it takes to create a wonderful experience for each of our clients and continue to build our program so that some day we reach our goal of providing our services nationwide.”

Program Highlight:

While Elaine will continue to provide transportation around all social determinants of health locations, Barr said they are particularly excited to increase their presence within the healthcare community. A current pilot program aims at decreasing hospital readmission rates and no-shows to medical appointments by providing access to healthcare locations for vulnerable populations. “As we continue to fine-tune that program, we look to eventually replicate that with other healthcare providers around the Valley,” Barr said.

Recent Challenges:

Demand for Elaine’s services has risen significantly in the past year. Although the organization has recently added two vehicles and drivers to its fleet, the ability to accommodate ride requests remains the biggest challenge for the team. “We are confident that the transportation system we are building is strong. We will just continue to need the funding and support to allow us to grow to meet the community where the needs are,” Barr said.

Future:

Conversations are in the works about how Elaine can expand its programming to focus on unique community needs. “Our program offers a natural flexibility that could allow us to have certain vehicles with specific focuses in addressing food insecurity by providing grocery store or food bank rides or deliveries, getting people to and from work regularly so they don’t have to worry about losing their main source of income, or redefining what access to healthcare can mean and the impact it can have,” Barr said.

For now, they are seeing where the road leads. To learn more, visit elaineaz.org. 

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Leadership:

Founder — Larry Fitzgerald Jr.

Executive director — Danielle Frost

Origin:

Former NFL wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald Jr. founded The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation in 2005 in honor of his mother, Carol Fitzgerald, who died of breast cancer in 2003. Since then, the foundation has worked to provide youth with the educational tools they need to thrive and to support women, men and families affected by breast cancer.

Mission:

The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation has two missions: to support youth education and breast cancer awareness. 

To serve youth, the foundation promotes reading proficiency and provides access to after-school programs, sports camps and technology for kids in grades K-12. This includes bridging the digital gap to ensure that under-resourced communities have the tools and skills needed to advance in the ever-growing world of technology.

The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation also provides resources, education and support to individuals and families impacted by breast cancer. Recognizing breast cancer’s repercussions on underserved communities and the lack of available resources has created an ongoing need the foundation feels obligated to fulfill.

Annual Budget:

The foundation has a giving goal of $700,000 per year to organizations doing effective work in the community. Fitzgerald also looks for ways to inspire giving on the part of his corporate partners to create additional pathways of contribution.

Program Highlight: 

Something that sets The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation apart is its commitment to face time. “We really prioritize human interaction,” said Frost, the foundation’s executive director. 

Frost worked with Fitzgerald for over a decade, helping to produce his charity events before making the transition to the foundation. Now, she and Fitzgerald are on the ground year-round, engaging with community members, grantees and partners through community events. “This provides us first-hand information about the critical needs in the community, and then allows us to effectively address those needs,” Frost said.

Newly Launched:

The Breast Believe campaign, led by The Larry Fitzgerald Foundation, aims to educate communities about early detection, prevention, symptoms, treatments, resources and access surrounding a breast cancer diagnosis. 

The foundation believes that having a chance to connect with a community that understands and can help navigate the journey after diagnosis is critical to a patient’s mental and physical well-being, as well as their survival. 

Most Surprising Thing About the Organization:

As a breast cancer survivor herself, Frost understands the importance of having support and resources. She is honored to use her experience to advocate and improve the lives of others through her work with the foundation. “My journey has truly inspired me to want to continue to find ways to help others,” Frost said.

Biggest Wins:

While Fitzgerald holds many records with the Arizona Cardinals and the NFL, his proudest accomplishments have happened off the field. He was named the 2016 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award — the NFL’s highest honor recognizing charitable work — and his philanthropic work goes on.

To learn more, visit thelarryfitzgeraldfoundation.org.

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Organization:

The Kyah Rayne Foundation

Leadership:

Founder: Lisa Cohen

Origin:

Lisa Cohen launched the Kyah Rayne Foundation (KRF) in August 2019 to honor her daughter, Kyah Rayne, who died of anaphylactic shock at the age of 21 after mistakenly eating peanut sauce during a family vacation in Mexico. Cohen considers it her life’s work to revamp education and initiate policy change to honor the memory of her daughter.

Known for:

Someone experiencing anaphylaxis needs care right away. They also need a shot of epinephrine; otherwise, they might not make it to the hospital. KRF believes that by increasing the availability of epinephrine auto-injectors and educating more people on how to use them, they can save more lives of those with food allergies.KRF has produced free online food allergy training programs that empower students, teachers and families to recognize the signs and symptoms of food allergies and anaphylaxis. KRF is also working to increase the availability of epinephrine auto-injectors and lower their cost. Their goal is to decrease and eliminate deaths due to food allergies with a long-term goal of nofood allergy fatalities.

Most surprising thing about the organization:

Before KRF was established, no organization promoted food allergy-awareness education and epinephrine access in schools and other public entities, which Arizona State law allows. Before 2020, only 2 percent of schools had implemented the School Surveillance and Medication Program (SSMP). In just two years, KRF helped increase participation to 20 percent and is continuing to expand the number of participating schools. Without KRF, it is unlikely that broad adoption of the program would have happened.

Organization Highlight:

KRF is revamping and modernizing food allergy training with Kyah’s EPICourse for Schools, an e-learning course that trains people to use auto-injectors safely, and Kyah’s EPICourse for Food Service. KRF is also advancing the implementation of Arizona law governing emergency anaphylaxistraining.

The Future:

The Kyah Rayne Foundation has big plans for the year ahead, including expanding implementation of the SSMP statewide and nationally, changing the SSMP language in Arizona’s statute to a mandate requiring auto-injectors in all schools, and promoting the new, free Kyah’s EPICourse for Food Service to all restaurant personnel.  

To learn more, visit kyahraynefoundation.org

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Greasepaint Youtheatre

Leadership:

Executive and Artistic Director: Maureen Dias-Watson

Board President: Lance Ross

Origin:

In 1965, Scottsdale Community Players built the theater Greasepaint calls home with private funds on land that the City of Scottsdale owns. Greasepaint became the sole tenant of the Stagebrush Theatre after the theater company was founded in 1984.

By 2006, Greasepaint had become the driving organization of SCP/Greasepaint, changing its focus from an ordinary community theater company to one of the country’s premier youth theaters.

Known For:

Greasepaint trains, teaches and mentors kids from five all the way through their college years. “We have students studying for bachelor’s and master’s degrees in performing arts in schools throughout Europe and in all of the best schools in the U.S. And all of these kids call Greasepaint their first theater home,” said Maureen Dias-Watson, Greasepaint’s executive and artistic director.

This fall alone, Greasepaint boasts three alumni taking lead roles on Broadway stages, four releasing major motion pictures, and six who will appear in upcoming Netflix and Apple TV+ projects. “Many of our alums have gone on to work professionally in the arts,” Dias-Watson said. “Many more are doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers and moms and dads themselves now.”

An integral part of Scottsdale’s Old Town and Arts District, Greasepaint frequently welcomes the children of alumni to the same stage that their own parents played and grew up on.

Most Surprising Thing  About the Organization:

While most theater companies employ between six and 20 full-time staff, Greasepaint has always operated with just one or two full-time employees. Instead of a large team, Greasepaint relies on the dedicated volunteers on its board, in its parent community and among the kids and alumni themselves. “We also hire more than 50 local professionals each year as artistic staff on contract basis — directors, choreographers, musical directors, musicians and costume, set, sound and lighting designers. Our kids perform working with the best the Valley has to offer!” Dias-Watson said.

Fun Fact:

Greasepaint’s board president is Lance Ross of Ross Property Advisors. His mother was the B-movie actress known as Aquanetta, or “The Venezuelan Volcano.”

She was one of the Scottsdale leaders instrumental in forming the Scottsdale Community Players and building the Stagebrush Theatre.

Organization Highlight:

According to Dias-Watson, Arizona is a wonderful place to be a theater kid, but it’s a tough place to earn a living as an artist. To help, Greasepaint commits to hiring alumni when and if they return home to Arizona.

The Future: 

The Stagebrush Theatre, which was designed by architect Joe Wong, has hosted more than 1,000 plays since its construction. It will soon be renovated as part of Scottsdale’s Museum Square Project. “We expect the opportunity for growth to be remarkable, and we are ready and poised for that renewal,” Dias-Watson said. “It’s a dream come true for those of us who work and play here and the thousands of Valley residents who come to be entertained.”

To learn more, visit greasepaint.org

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Organization
Agape Adoption Agency of Arizona

Leadership
Co-Founders — Leslie and Douglas Reprogle
CEO — Leslie Reprogle
Board chair — Dr. Janel White Taylor

Origin
“Agape was founded as an act of faith,” said Leslie Reprogle.

When Leslie and her husband Douglas Reprogle were unable to conceive, Leslie decided that if she couldn’t have children, she would serve them. She started going on mission trips organized by the couple’s church, River of Life Tabernacle. Returning from a trip to Haiti, Leslie heard God’s voice speaking clearly to her heart, telling her she would open an adoption agency.

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