4 NOVEMBER 2022 EDITOR’S NOTE November is one of those months that fills me with a sense of pride. Sure, we have the Fourth of July and Memorial Day in May – but there’s just something about Veterans Day that makes me proud of our country and the folks who risked their lives to ensure we can keep our freedom. While the commemorations can sometimes be somber, our area schools keep a positive outlook during their celebrations. Tavan Elementary’s fifth-grade teacher Shelly Rose started a Veterans Day project over ten years ago that has grown to include all third through fifth graders. Students gather addresses for all the veterans they know, from relatives to friends and neighbors. They then send a letter to each and every one – included in the envelope is a photo of the students posed in a heart shape and saluting to show their gratitude. Black Rifle Coffee just recently opened up on Indian School Road. The founders – two of whom are veterans – started the company to connect people who love our country and to give back to veterans with employment opportunities and philanthropic efforts. Coming up on November 5 and November 12 are the annual ACMNA Picnic and AONA Fall Festival, where neighbors can hang out and reconnect, grab something to eat, hear some live music and enjoy all of the beauty this time of year offers. Don’t forget to check out the Fall 2022 issue of Arcadia Home & Design, our seasonal, home-centric magazine. Featured are stories about Rancho Joaquina, Moon River Beef and some holiday fun folks can find around the Valley. Happy Veterans Day, Happy Thanksgiving – and thank you, as always, for reading Arcadia News and Arcadia Home & Design, – Mallory Gleich UPCOMING THEMES: No one has better coverage in the areas of Arcadia, Biltmore and the Camelback Corridor. Promote your business to 45,000 loyal Arcadia News readers. For more: 602-840-6379 or email roni@arcadianews.com . DECEMBER Season of Giving JANUARY Fitness FEBRUARY History “The turkey. The sweet potatoes. The stuffing. The pumpkin pie. Is there anything else we can agree so vehemently about? I don’t think so.” – Nora Ephron By Mallory Gleich Their mission is powerful, and for the past ten years, their cause has helped over 100,000 children and their families – 20,000 in the last year alone – in various school districts across Arizona. Feed Our Students USA aims “to bring community resources together to develop and implement a sustainable, nutritious food source for hungry families, one school district at a time.” The organization helps families struggling to put food on their tables. They work with Scottsdale, Creighton, Balsz and Wilson School Districts and have recently added a Charter Schools Career Success program. The nonprofit started when FOSA founder Joni Sucato-Navarro was a volunteer reader for a third-grade class in the Wilson School District. “This little boy kept putting the treats I handed out after storytime in his backpack. After speaking to the teacher, I found out that he was taking the treat to his little brother at home because his family was having trouble putting food on the table,” Joni said. “I didn’t know ten years ago there was such a huge problem with food insecurities here in Arizona and across the USA.” And the problem persists. Navarro enlisted the help of a friend, and together, they helped the boy’s family (and ten other families) with groceries. Thus, FOSA was created. Their main goal is to provide emergency food boxes to working families who are having difficulties providing food. “We work directly with school personnel to ensure no child is coming to school hungry. Since school has started, we have increased our food distribution by 40 percent,” Joni said. “We stock our food pantry every two weeks, and by the end of the two weeks, our pantry is empty, which has never happened in the ten years we’ve been operating.” FOSA holds a drive-through Thanksgiving event each year that includes turkeys and all the fixings. They provide 1,200 Thanksgiving meals to various school districts, and this year, they’re looking to up that number to 1,600. “Unfortunately, we are concerned about the price of turkeys and food. We have been quoted $3 a pound for each turkey from our wholesale vendor – that is almost triple what we paid last year,” Joni said. This year, they’re adding a fun twist for companies and businesses that want to participate in a turkey drive and donation. “We are making it a contest – the company or individual who collects the most turkeys/ fixings will be provided lunch and space on our website for bragging rights,” Joni said. On November 21, the organization will then invite the person or company to help distribute turkeys and meals to Scottsdale Unified families. “We have many in our community struggling with food insecurities. We are feeding more school families this year than we have in the last nine years,” Joni said. FOSA has also recently partnered with Door Dash to deliver food to families without transportation in the Scottsdale and Creighton School Districts. “Along with our amazing volunteers and donators, we’d like to thank Monte Vista Church, Christ Lutheran School, Boys Team Charity and Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts Arcadia Chapters for their help and support,” Joni said. feedingstudentsusa.org Local nonprofit needs help this Thanksgiving Board members Ashley Staples, Angela Woudenberg and Katherine Polachek. PHOTO COURTESY OF JONI SUCATONAVARRO HOW YOU CAN HELP: • Those wanting to hold food and turkey drives should do so from now until November 19. • Items needed: frozen turkeys, canned vegetables, canned pumpkin, cranberry sauce, boxed stuffing and boxed potatoes. • November 18 is the date FOSA will pick up food drive items and turkeys from businesses. Items can also be delivered to the pantry at 3313 N. 40th St. Phoenix (next to Monte Vista Church). Staff will be outside the pantry from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. to help unload. • Thanksgiving Box donations will be stored until distribution. FOSA will have bins outside the pantry door if anyone wants to leave goods, with staff checking every hour to ensure all food is safe and fresh. • FOSA will distribute frozen turkeys and Thanksgiving Boxes to school families on November 21. Contact Joni at jonisucato@gmail.com or 480-352-2370 for more. 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2022 TAVAN SCHOOL DISTRICT SALES RESULTS (1/01/2022-9/30/2022) Active Homes - 65 Homes Homes Sold - 138 Homes Average Sale Price - $1,237,000 Average Sold $ Per SF - $506 Average Days On Market - 35 days There is currently 3 months of home inventory. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 home sales have decreased 21% this year. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 home prices have increased 20%. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 $ Per Square Foot prices have increased 19%. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 Homes are taking 0% more time to sell. (based on 2021 sales results) Arcadia Real Estate Stats 2022 HOPI SCHOOL DISTRICT SALES RESULTS (1/01/2022-9/30/2022) Active Homes - 99 homes Homes Sold - 191 homes Average Sale Price - $2,519,000 Average Sold $ Per SF - $678 Average Days On Market - 39 days There is currently 3 months of home inventory. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 home sales have decreased 28% this year. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 home prices have increased 17%. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 $ Per Square Foot prices have increased 20%. (based on 2021 sales results) 2022 homes are taking 33% less time to sell. (based on 2021 sales results) TOMMY ATKINSON Walt Danley Realty 602.625.6020 5427 E Wonderview | $5,500,000 | 7 bedroom | 9 bath | 10,035 square feet CAMELBACK MOUNTAIN ESTATE 4650 E Palomino | $2,600,000 | 5 bedroom | 6 bath | 5,060 square feet CAMELBACK MOUNTAIN VIEW LOT Free MLS Access: visit TommyAtkinson.com tommyatkinsonaz PENDING!