16 minute read
Neighbors
Rotary mag features Sun Lakes Rotarians
DR. HONORA NORTON
Guest Writer
Rotary International’s Rotary Magazine, with over 1.2 worldwide subscribers, recently featured the Rotary Clubs of Gilbert and Sun Lakes as champions of a Navajo Water Project.
In 2016, members of the Rotary Club of Gilbert attended a water conference in Phoenix and learned from a representative of DigDeep about its work in the Navajo Nation and how it was bringing water to the people living there.
DigDeep delivers a 1,200-gallon cistern, which is then buried outside the home. Technicians plumb a sink, water heater, filter and drain line; where families don’t have electricity hookup, a solar panel is installed with battery array and electrical hookup to provide electricity to power the pump and lights. A tanker truck arrives and fills the cistern with clean water through an above ground valve and the homeowner receives training to operate, maintain and repair the system, as well as a number to call should problems incur. All this enfolds over 24 hours.
The Gilbert Rotarians learned that each installation costs $4,500 and worked with Rotary International District 4185 in Mexico to co-sponsor a global grant to support the Navajo Water Project.
With the assistance of Jim Bissonett, RI Arizona District 5495 Rotary Foundation Chair and RI R-Club Southwest, a global grant was initiated. Bissonett said the real story is the Navajo Nation is in our backyard. He recalled the eagerness of Gary Whiting of the Rotary Club of Sun Lakes, a past RI District Governor, offering to undertake a similar project.
In May 2018, the Rotary Club of Gilbert and its international Partner in Mexico, the Rotary Club of San Andres Cholula, launched the first phase of Navajo Water Project. Backed by a $78,000 RI Global Grant, they provided home water systems for 18 families – the 64 individuals near Thoreau, New Mexico. The magazine said Curt ward, a member and past president of the Rotary Club of Gilbert, was a relative newcomer to the Southwest. “I moved here from Iowa in 2014, and water poverty was a new thing to me,” he told the magazine, which said that even before the pandemic, Ward had begun reading about the water problems in the Navajo Nation and he was shocked to learn that while the average American uses 80 to 100 gallons of water per day, the average Navajo uses only seven.
“And in some cases,” Ward says, “it’s less than that.”
In 2019, the Sun Lakes Rotary Club partnered with a sister club in Ontario, Canada, and completed the second phase. They provided home water systems to 33 families – that’s more than 100 individuals –with the support of a $144,000 global grant.
The final tally for the third global grant for the Navajo Nation totaled $395,000; its international partner was the Rotary Club of Merida-Itzaes, Mexico and its host club was the Rotary Club of Four Peaks in Fountain Hills.
Because of quarantine restrictions, DigDeep could no longer interact directly with residents of the Navajo Nation. During the first 18 months of the pandemic, DigDeep delivered more than a million gallons of water ad setup temporary water access tanks at almost 1,500 homes.
The Rotary Magazine article goes into detail about the Navajo Water Project and life within the Navajo Nation.
At a recent dinner meeting, Sun Lakes Rotarian John McKoy provided an overview of the Navajo Water Project and its significant impacts.
McKoy, Whiting and Sun Lakes Rotarians Peter Meade and Stan Kaufman participated in the Sun Lakes portion of the Navajo Project’s RI Global Grant.
McKoy and Meade presented the project at the 2018 RI International Conference in Toronto, which had over 25,000 attendees. Additionally, at the RCSL meeting, Mr. McKoy shared his childhood experiences as a member of the Oklahoma Chickasaw Nation and later in life his interactions with Sanders, Arizona, Navajo Nation schools.
Sun Lakes Rotarian John McKoy presented overview of Navajo Water Project featured in Rotary Magazine at a recent Rotary Club of Sun Lakes dinner meeting. (Courtesy of Sun Lakes Rotary)
EV women’s group helps never-kill animal shelter
BY LEANN LANDBERG AND SUSAN BARLOW
Guest Writers
When you look into the eyes of an animal you have rescued, you cannot help but fall in love.
Living this, experiencing this, seeing this, time and time again is how the volunteers at Saving One Life continue to find the motivation to work grueling hours and endure the heartache of realizing how many mistreated animals there are in our community.
Saving One Life is a never-kill rescue, not a no-kill shelter. Never kill means that the organization will go to extraordinary measures – beyond what no-kill shelters/rescues will do – to save an animal’s life.
Animals are not euthanized unless there are truly no other options and no chance at survival.
Saving One Life not only rescues animals and places them in loving homes, but they also help families with beloved pets financially and emotionally during times the families cannot afford their care.
The organization often says that once an animal is part of Saving One Life, it is always part of Saving One Life. They will always be there to help when needed.
In 2019 alone, the people serving this nonprofit saved over 1,400 animals and did so on less than $250,000.
They pinch every penny to ensure no animal will perish. They fight for every life that enters their door which is why their euthanasia rate is so astonishingly low even though they welcome animals that are often on death’s door.
Earlier this summer, 100+ Women Who Care Valley of the Sun presented Saving One Life with a donation of $5,600 on behalf of their East Valley members.
One of the chapter’s members, Melissa Clayton, is the volunteer director at Saving One Life. Melissa strongly encourages those interested in helping to consider adoption, fostering, volunteering, or donating. While it is hard work, the payback is significant.
No matter how close we are to another person, few human relationships are as free from strife, disagreement, and frustration as the relationship you have with your pet. 100+ Women Who Care Valley of the Sun is a group of like-minded, passionate women who want to connect to one another and to their communities.
The ladies are leveraging their resources so their quarterly gifts of $100 per member add up to a significant donation to a local charity.
Since the chapter’s inception in 2015, almost $1M has been given to local charities. This group of women has learned that giving back is better together. To learn more about 100+ Women Who Care Valley of the Sun or to register for their upcoming giving circle on Aug. 18, visit 100wwcvalleyofthesun.org
The 100+ Women Who Care Valley of the Sun members in the East Valley raised $5,600 for the Saving One Life never-kill shelter. At the presentation were, from left, Leann Landberg, Melissa Clayton, Crissy Haidos, Susan Barlow and Jacqueline Destremps. (Special to STSN)
Birthdays mark a miracle for Gilbert boy, 6
BY CECILIA CHAN
Managing Editor
After Gilbert mom Breann Vogt gave birth to her first child, a healthy 7-pound boy, she had no reason to doubt her second pregnancy would be just as uneventful.
But 23 weeks in, Vogt had an unexplained premature rupture of her amniotic sac, which protects the fetus. She was put on bed rest for five and a half weeks at Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa.
Doctors tried to prolong the pregnancy but nonetheless, Asher arrived at 29 weeks, weighing in at 2 pounds, 6 ounces on July 18, 2016. A normal gestation is 40 weeks.
“He was tiny, less than 15 inches,” Vogt recalled. “His head was only larger than a tennis ball.”
Because his lungs were undeveloped, Asher was hooked up to an oscillator machine to help him breathe.
Asher spent the next eight months in Banner Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and about three more months in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.
Vogt visited Asher every day during his nearly year-long stay except for the one time she was sick.
“Everything that could go wrong for preemies, he had a bit of that,” Vogt said. “Vision problems, a little bit of a twisted bowel, he had clots (and) he had undeveloped lungs.”
Asher also had a heart valve that wasn’t completely formed but luckily it developed, curtailing the need for surgery, according to Vogt, who lived in Chandler before moving to Gilbert in 2017.
Two weeks after the birth, Vogt was able to hold her son.
“I remembered one of the nurses there came and told me about another diagnosis,” Vogt said. “I was just sobbing and holding him for the first time and was overwhelmed.”
But another NICU nurse shared with Vogt about her son, also born at 29 weeks old with a similar weight as Asher.
“She came and talked me off the ledge,” she said; “an angel in the moment.”
Vogt said she doesn’t remember a lot of what happened in the NICU but that moment of having someone who knew what she was going through and helping her cope was a silver lining.
What also helped was that Asher received gifts while in NICU over the holidays and for different things from parents whose children graduated out of the unit.
“The parents would have little notes with pictures of their kiddos, where they are,” Vogt said. “I think it gives families hope when you’re in the midst of it.
“It’s very scary and traumatic, emotional and stressful but when you see a light at the end of the tunnel and how other kiddos have overcome and how resilient they are just gave us hope.
“It’s so powerful. It’s hard to see that when you get diagnosis after diagnosis and feel like you’re going two steps back.”
On April 17, 2017 Asher finally came home.
But Asher’s story doesn’t end there. Since he was treated at the hospital Asher and his family have given to date about 2,550 gifts to families with babies in the NICU and PICU, which included 1,000 books donated by Vogt’s employer Arizona Milk Producers.
Vogt, who sits on the NICU Parent Advisory Board at the hospital’s Mesa campus, receives the donated toys and books from people who see her social media posts promoting the opportunity to pay it forward.
The toys were delivered on the week of Asher’s birthday. The latest delivery of 200 gift items such as books, stuffed animals, blankets, onesies and baby items were delivered to Banner last week on July 19.
Asher celebrated his sixth birthday with friends and family, which included a pool party and a trip to Topgolf. Family members include dad Jesse and 7-year-old Colton.
Vogt said Asher is gaining comprehension where the gifts that arrive to the house are going to. “We tell him, we’re taking them to the hospital where he was a baby,” Vogt said. “It’s special for him. It’s the hospital where he was born so he’s Mr. Helper with it.”
Asher’s height for his age is average at 44 inches but he’s at 5th to 15th percentile for weight, according to his mom.
He wears a feeding tube because his oral motor skills are delayed and he has a chronic lung condition. His lungs have scar tissue and aren’t at full capacity yet, Vogt said.
Asher can run and play just like any other boy but if he has a cold, he needs to take albuterol to help with his breathing, she added.
He also began his first day of school as a kindergartner at Robert Rice Elementary School on July 20.
Asked how long the family plans on doing the gift drive for the hospital, Vogt said she was thinking about that herself.
“I hope Asher continues up to 18,” she said. “But as long as we are in Arizona and can do it.”
For those who want to follow along with Asher’s journey, go to facebook. com/AshersNICUAdventure/photos
Asher Vogt celebrated his sixth birthday July 18 and he and his Gilbert family celebrate it with deep gratitude, given the fact he was born prematurely and spent nearly a year in the hospital. (Facebook)
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Seton grad wins P.E.O. Sisterhood scholarship
BY KEN SAIN
Managing Editor
The Chandler chapter of the P.E.O. Sisterhood has been looking for just the right student to nominate for the international group’s scholarship program.
They found her in Seton Catholic Preparatory Class of 2022 member Rachael Martinez.
The United States-based Philanthropic Educational Organization is dedicated to opening educational opportunities for women around the world. Martinez was nominated by the Chandler chapter for the STAR Scholarship, which contributes $2,500 to her education at Colgate University.
“I belong to an organization that’s always looking for high school seniors that are outstanding,” said Chandler STAR Chapter Chair Maris Thomas.
The Chandler chapter had only nominated one other girl, Thomas said. They were contacted by members in Pinetop, Arizona, who had a girl they wanted to nominate. Martinez, who lives in South Chandler, was the first girl from the city they nominated.
Martinez ended up winning the scholarship, one of a handful the group awards each year.
“Rachael’s the only one from this area [we’ve nominated], so we’re really proud of her,” Thomas said.
Martinez was the student body president at Seton last year and founded the school’s National Honors Society. She became its first president. She also started the school’s Latino National Honors Society and a Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter.
In her free time, she is a serious volleyball player, having earned a partial athletic scholarship to Colgate. In addition to playing for school team, she also was part of a competitive club team that competes with many of the top players in the area.
Each of the 6,000 chapters can nominate one young woman for the STAR Scholarship. Martinez is the only winner.
She was looking forward to getting started at Colgate. In fact, she’s leaving early to begin workouts with her new volleyball teammates.
“It’s such a cliché, but just the combination of academics and athletics,” Martinez said of why she chose Colgate, in Hamilton, N.Y. “I’ve always wanted to go to the East Coast.
“I’ve loved the coaching staff, the culture of the team is great. And also it’s in this cute little town ... it’s just like a Hallmark movie when it snows. I’ve seen snow twice.”
Martinez has already secured one NIL (name, image, and likeness) deal, and hopes to get more. She made a deal with the gym where she works out, PITT Fitness.
“So it’s just posting advertising for them,” she said. “So that’s been super fun.”
Thomas said they’ve been impressed by Martinez every step of the process. When they first met her, they had to use Zoom Video because of the pandemic. At that point, she had not settled on her college course.
To get the scholarship, Martinez had to complete a lot of paperwork. Thomas said she was terrific and made every deadline. They were also impressed with her public speaking.
She has not settled on a major yet. She said she’s interested in possibly joining foreign service, international relations or working in psychology. She said she’d really enjoy working with Navy SEALS in that capacity.
Martinez said that’s because she’s a perfectionist and would love a chance to work with the very best. She said she wants to make a difference.
“I want to make a positive impact and leave a great legacy,” Martinez said. “With the volleyball program, that means leaving a better culture than where I found it.
“One of the most notable things about the honor society that I founded, is it’s going to be going on hundreds of different college applications for the kids that are leaving Seton after me.”
Chandler resident Rachael Martinez, who graduated this year form Seton Catholic Preparatory, is on her way to Colgate University in New York State.
– Rachael Martinez
For more information about the organization, call Maris Thomas at 480-239-6770.
Study looks at parents’ impact on kids’ mental health
SANTAN SUN NEWS STAFF
Three Chandler students recently completed a lengthy study on the impact of parents’ expectations on their children’s career choices and mental well-being and concluded that the pressure is more intense than in previous generations
“Overall, it is safe to say that parents’ expectations now are definitely higher than they were 30 years ago, and this has a great effect on children’s career choice (gravitating more to what the parents expect from their career), as well as a negative impact on their mental wellbeing,” concluded the study by Sripriya Srinivas, Suryatej Vakkalanka and Ruhika Nallani.
As the results find, over the last 30 years, parents raised their expectations/ specifications on what career field their children should go into, and this has caused problems with the children’s mental wellbeing as well as deviances from what their career choice would have originally been if they chose it based purely on what they are interested in/good at,” they found.
Those conclusions were based on a survey of about 121 teens and adults who volunteered for interviews.
The three students set out to analyze “the effects of parents’ expectations on children’s choice of career by discussing how parent support, career field, choice in extracurriculars for their children, and other factors affect children’s choice in career.”
While acknowledging that “parents can make a big impact on children, starting from a young age,” they wanted to quantify that impact in more scientific terms.
“The survey provided a deep understanding of the participants’ perceptions on the basis of their parents’ expectations,” the trio said.
They had divided the respondents into two groups – those above and below 18 years of age.
The trio concluded, “While the 18+ generation wasn’t influenced much by their parents, the below-18 generation is being influenced by parents’ expectations to go into a particular field.”
And they found a corresponding difference between the two groups in the state of their mental health.
“While the 18+ generation overwhelmingly had no negative mental health effects because of parents’ expectations, the below-18 generation has a higher ratio of teens feeling anxiety, pressured, and stressed out compared to the older generation,” they said. “This is an indication of parents’ expectations causing mental health issues for the younger generation.”
