First Annual Holiday Giveaway

Two semi-truckloads of food and supplies were distributed to 800 families in need on Tuesday, December 6, at Catalina United Methodist Church on Speedway Blvd.  More than 80 volunteers from the community braved the chilly temperatures to help distribute the supplies from 9:00 a.m. to noon.

The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) chose United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona to be the lead agency in this holiday giveaway.

The families were pre-selected by United Way partner agencies:  Interfaith Community Services, Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, Tucson Urban League and Youth On Their Own.

Photo Front Row L-R:  Tony Penn, President & CEO, United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona; Jonathan Peck, President and CEO, Tucson Urban League; Teresa Baker, Executive Director,  Youth On Their Own; Steve Pollyea, Board Member, Interfaith Community Services and Teddi, the United Way Bear.

Back row L-R;  Fat Lever, former NBA player and current Director of Player Development of the Sacramento Kings; Bernard Thompson, former NBA player and a coach of the Apollo High School Boys Basketball Team in Glendale, AZ ; and  Bob Elliott, former NBA player and President and Chairman of the Board of NBRPA and President of The Elliott Accounting Group.

Each family receive d a 25-pound box of non-perishable food items, a 10-pound box of essentials and a box of Avon products.

“United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona is grateful to the National Basketball Retired Players Association for helping us make the holidays a little brighter for more than 800 families in need in our community,” said Tony Penn, President and CEO of the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona.  “Unfortunately, the reality of the situation is that one-fifth of all Arizonan’s are living in poverty.  That’s why supporting your United Way is so important.”

Member of the Pima Community College Aztecs Baseball team came out an unloaded all the boxes from the trucks!