Thank you to Umpqua Bank for Supporting Friends of the Children!

We are pleased to announce that we have received a grant from Umpqua Bank through the Umpqua Bank Charitable Foundation! These funds will support our work breaking cycles of generational trauma, violence, and poverty, thus strengthening our communities here in South Phoenix.

Of the 51 children we currently serve in Maricopa County, all live at or below 185% of the poverty threshold and qualify for the national school lunch program. All are highly mobile, and 100% identify as BIPOC. We pair highly trained, paid—not volunteer—mentors with each family and ensure they get the individualized attention they need by assigning each mentor to work 1:1 with 8 youth and their families for 3-4 hours each week, from kindergarten through their high school graduation.

This support from the Umpqua Bank Charitable Foundation will contribute to our enrollment expansion efforts in the fall of 2024 as we support the added enrollment of youth from our waiting list! We are proud to have Keith Hunter, VP, Business Banking Relationship Manager at Umpqua Bank, on our Friends of the Children – Phoenix board of directors.

“Umpqua Bank has been a proud and long-time partner with Friends of the Children in Oregon, Washington and California in support of their commitment to area youth, and we are thrilled to expand our partnership into our new Arizona communities,” said Randy Choy, Vice President of Philanthropy Programs and Managing Director of the Umpqua Bank Charitable Foundation. “We look forward to working alongside Friends of the Children – Phoenix to help ensure more youth have access to resources they need to achieve their dreams.”