26 FEBRUARY 2022 By Jennifer Marshall Community Celebrating Diversity (CCD) was established in 1993 to keep Dr. Martin Luther King’s virtues and values alive. While the CCD celebrates Martin Luther King Day (January 17) with great fanfare, they work tirelessly throughout the year to promote his mission and dreams. “CCD was founded after Arizona voters decided to reinstate MLK Day as an official statewide holiday the year before (1992),” CCD President Sarah Kearney said. “CCD is an incredible grassroots effort started by Sandra Rembrandt, a community representative, and Don Logan, City of Scottsdale Diversity and Dialogue Director.” Kearney said the partnership’s focus was to create a Scottsdale event where community members and visitors could assemble to recognize and celebrate MLK’s legacy. Beyond that, the CCD’s mission is to understand and promote diversity while acknowledging similarities and seeking hope, happiness and respect for all members of humanity. They created collaborative partnerships with organizations in the business and nonprofit community to fulfill their mission. While they welcome and support all, the CCD has increased their focus and efforts on the local youth. Kearney cites that “since 2007, CCD and our partners have awarded 50 local students a total of $121,500 in college scholarships.” “The annual MLK Celebration was conceived to mirror Dr. King’s dreams, but the community collaboration also was, in part, designed to mitigate the political and economic impact to Arizona following the repeal of the MLK holiday years prior,” Kearney said. “Though Arizona was once again recognizing MLK Day in 1993, Scottsdale community members, working through CCD, sought to do even more to celebrate this important man and day.” One significant way they accomplished this goal is through their annual Diversity Champions Award, which, according to Kearney, honors community members who embody Dr. King’s values of peace, unity and understanding. During the celebration held on January 12, three local leaders were honored as Diversity Champions: Chris Haines, Angela Hughey and Alan “AP” Powell. 2022 marks the 21st year for this award. Haines, who works in education, has devoted her career to helping students who come from marginalized and at-risk backgrounds to be able to achieve the same educational and athletic opportunities as their counterparts. Hughey has made her leadership mark in the LGBTQ+ community where, in 2008, she founded ONE Community to promote equality. Through her creation of the UNITY Pledge, she worked to bring equality to all aspects of life, including both home and work. Powell, an entrepreneur and veteran, has made it his mission to serve those who have served this country. He established the charity HeroZona Foundation to help students and veterans get the educational opportunities they want and need. ccdarizona.org Nonprofit honors Dr. Martin Luther King throughout the year Alan Powell Angela Hughey Chris Haines By Melissa Hirschl With help from a few Brophy swimmers, Xavier’s second annual Swim for the Light campaign raised $10,000 to change the conversation about mental illness and decrease its debilitating stigma. The virtual swim relay event was created in 2020 by Xavier graduate Kelly Scott. When a friend, suffering emotionally from lockdown, confided in her, Scott took action and spearheaded the campaign. This year, the co-captain of Xavier’s 2021 swim and dive team, Ashleigh Baros, took over and re-created the event. She encouraged swimmers of all ages to videotape themselves swimming. Using Brophy’s pool, the participants executed three relays, with four on a team. They each swam 100 minutes or four 25-meters. The 100 yards they swam raised funds to match donations earmarked for Valleywise Health Foundation, Arizona’s public teaching health system. Word of mouth quickly spread through friends, family, social media and promotion from Valleywise. The only caveat Baros insisted upon was that the money raised had to go toward teens and younger people’s mental health programs. Like Scott, Baros empathized with her fellow students and others she knew who were adversely affected. “Teens I knew were becoming depressed, feeling anxious, and experiencing alienation,” she said. “That’s when I decided to keep Swim for the Light going. It meant a lot to me since I was watching my friends struggle. I feel this is a very important topic since we need good mental health for good physical health. The whole purpose is about changing the conversation.” The fundraiser also injected a healthy dose of fun into the event. Participants could swim in tandem, with one person holding on to another, for a 50-meter relay. They could do a 25-meter corkscrew, freestyle or backstroke. “Ashleigh did an excellent job and rallied the swim team’s participation,” said Sister Lynn Winsor BVM, CMAA, vice principal for activities and athletic director. “We are really proud of her for keeping what is now a two-year tradition and helping Valleywise Health to provide mental health services to teens and young adults. Hopefully, it will continue in the future.” Ashleigh recently received an academic and athletic scholarship that she can use at the University of Missouri in St. Louis, where she plans to major in nursing. She also plans to continue swimming. valleywisefoundation.org Making a splash for mental health Grace Hull, Ashleigh Baros and Jack Sorenson at the 2021 event. PHOTO COURTESY OF LISA ZUBA Christ Lutheran School Preschool - Grade 8 • www.clsphx.org LC-MS 3901 E. 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27 FEBRUARY 2022 By Sabrina Proffitt To describe Kate Blair as a powerhouse might be an understatement. The Xavier senior took her sister’s life-changing diagnosis and created a new outlook on life – which in turn, helped her raise money, start a podcast and even write a children’s book. In 2011, at seven years old, Kate’s then 5-year-old sister Elizabeth was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Both Non-Hodgkin and Hodgkin Lymphoma are the third most common cancers in children. What happens with this cancer is that early white blood cells, called lymphoblasts, grow out of control and fail to mature. These cells, which make up the lymphoma, increase in number, causing swelling or enlargement of the glands or other body areas where they are usually found. Kate was determined to do anything to help her sister and others who experience similar diagnoses. She set out to raise money for the cause by selling candy bars and rainbow manicures on her family’s front lawn. Years later, Kate would go on to win Miss Arizona’s Outstanding Teen 2021 and Miss America’s Teens in Action 2022 with her initiative to “Raise A Voice” for childhood cancer. Through this initiative, she has helped raise over $150,000 for the EBB Foundation [named and created for Elizabeth by her family] and various other charities. She’s even addressed members of Congress in Washington, D.C. on the topic. Kate started a podcast called “Raise A Voice,” which was named one of the top 15 podcasts for childhood cancer for 2021. “I knew this cause had impacted my family and changed our lives forever,” Kate said. “I saw my sister start experiencing side effects of chemotherapy – from losing her hair to not being able to walk or run around – not getting to be like a normal kid. I knew from that moment that I wanted to do something and that I needed to make a change and impact the lives of people who were affected by this cause.” Kate’s next step in her advocacy journey was to co-author a children’s book called Princess Pippa and the Crown of Kindness . Written by Kate, Heidi (Kate’s mom) and Elizabeth, the book uses real conversations from their lives. One conversation in particular stuck with the family – when Heidi asked her daughters what made them beautiful. Elizabeth answered, “lipstick.” Kate laughed and explained that true beauty comes from the heart, and she hopes it will help young children deal with chemotherapy’s side effects. This is the focus of the book. “My sister and I were completely confused by what was going on. A few weeks later, Elizabeth would be diagnosed with cancer,” Kate said. “She’d be losing her hair. She’d be going through an identity crisis because she didn’t look the same, and her life was different. That moment, in a way, was a God- given moment because even though we didn’t know it was coming, it prepared us. I use that story in my book to spread the message of beauty through kindness.” Today, Elizabeth is cancer free. Kate was recently selected as a semifinalist out of over 68,000 applicants to The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, which recognizes and awards a $20,000 scholarship to 150 students nationally who impact the community. Kate will graduate from Xavier this year and plans to major in biology in college. Devastating diagnosis propels Xavier student to ‘Raise a Voice’ Kate and Elizabeth at a Christmas volunteer project. Kate at home recording her podcast. PHOTOS COURTESY OF KATE BLAIR By Cliff Summerhill Xavier students could trade their skirts for sweats this past fall – but only if they helped out with the 2021 canned food drive. The school exceeded expectations and collected a whopping 501,863 cans of food to benefit St. Vincent de Paul, a local nonprofit whose mission is to help those in need, including those experiencing homelessness. Senior Catherine Alaimo spearheaded this year’s drive as an officer in the school’s National Honor Society. “Before organizing the canned food drive, I didn’t fully comprehend the magnitude of the poverty in which 1 in 8 Arizonans live,” Alaimo said. “After learning this, I was eager to plan and work on the canned food drive.” In preparation, Alaimo shared that she and her fellow officers “wrote announcements every morning, came up with incentives for the participants and consistently arrived at school early to collect cans that were brought to school by others.” The drive originated in Xavier’s early days – the 1940s! – but has exclusively benefitted St. Vincent de Paul from the early 1990s. The campaign starts in the late fall and lasts about 30 days. “I was humbled by how the community participated in and donated to the drive, so much so that we exceeded our first goal of 300,000 cans and raised it to 500,000 cans,” Alaimo said. “We were so happy with the results of the community’s efforts, and I feel rewarded to have contributed to ending local hunger.” St. Vincent de Paul was established in Phoenix in 1946 and serves Arizonans in various capacities, including daily meals, clothing, housing assistance, and other vital resources. With over six million pounds of donated food, the local Catholic organization serves up to 1.2 million meals per year in their dining rooms. It provides an additional 400,000 meal boxes to families across Arizona. Xavier plans to continue their canned food drive next year and hopes to exceed the number of cans collected. “Each year, the drive grows as interest and awareness of people with significant needs inspires students to act,” Lisa Zuba, Director of Marketing and Staff Development, said. “It’s also a natural effect of Xavier students putting faith into practice as they give back more than 30,000 hours each year to community service and volunteer activities.” According to Zuba, the students at Xavier are the masterminds behind most of the school’s community and charitable work. The canned food drive is just one of many activities students lead to give back to others throughout the year. stvincentdepaul.net St. Vincent receives donation in the form of 500K cans The Xavier Food Drive began benefiting St. Vincent de Paul exclusively back in the 90s. Sister Lynn Winsor, a Xavier alumna and the current athletic director, helping out at a St. Vincent food drive. PHOTOS COURTESY OF LISA ZUBA