ENJOY AN EVENING OF ROBUST APPETIZERS, DESSERTS & COCKTAILS; LIVE AND SILENT AUCTIONS; WINE & CHAMPAGNE RAFFLES

UNIQUE FUND-A-NEED OPPORTUNITIES

We are excited to share our 2023 Community Initiatives, Programs and Projects with you. Your donation directly benefits the Desert Foothills Library and the Foothills Community.

The Power of Reading: DFL and Black Mountain Elementary School “Library Card for All Students” Initiative

The data and research are clear: children who have access to print reading materials have better literacy outcomes. Reading ignites creativity, sparks curiosity and stimulates the imagination of children. Matthew Owlsley, principal of local Black Mountain Elementary School, advocates at-home reading and using the Desert Foothills Library when he speaks to the parents of his students.

To encourage the use of the Library, Matt has teamed up with library staff to create a “Library Card for All Students” initiative. When parents register their children for school in the fall, all children will have the opportunity to receive their own library card.

Show your support of early literacy initiatives by supporting this project this evening!

FUND THIS NEED

Preserving Our Personal and Shared Histories: DFL and Cave Creek Museum's Living Library Project

Oral history helps us understand how individual and communities experienced the forces of history. In partnership with the Cave Creek Museum, this project will preserve the knowledge, memories and experiences of prominent local citizens.

We are currently digitizing cassette tape recorded interviews conducted decades ago as well as interviewing other prominent residents this spring such as former Spur Cross Dude Ranch owner Audrey Beaubien Woodward and renowned architect Gerry Jones. We will upload the recordings to the state library’s oral history website, The Arizona Memory Project, which can be listened to at home or on dedicated kiosks at the Library and Museum.

In the fall of 2023, we will launch a series of programs to educate our residents on how to either conduct interviews with loved ones or create their own oral histories so their personal legacies can be captured for future generations. Staff will transform a study room into a pop-up recording studio for our patrons who need assistance recording their stories. At the Living Library kickoff event, we will host ariZoni award willing playwright Andrea Markowitz’s original play that weaves the themes that run through the historic interviews and will highlight some of the real local characters who helped to shape Carefree and Cave Creek into what they are today.

Help us make this incredible oral history project a reality with a gift today!

FUND THIS NEED

The Joy of Cooking: Demonstration Kitchen Upgrades for Advanced Culinary Programs

The culinary arts have benefits beyond physical health; recent studies have revealed that a little creativity and creation in the kitchen makes people happier. It’s no surprise, then, that our culinary programs have been so successful that we’ve outgrown our demonstration kitchen space. This summer and fall, we have offered sold out classes on creating vinaigrettes, sauces, salsa, hummus, and even a gin cocktail.

With your donation, we can elevate our culinary program offerings by investing in a second demonstration mirror, a commercial dishwasher and portable cooktops so our burgeoning chefs can cook alongside our instructors.

FUND THIS NEED

One Book for Every Child: The 500 Books Project with the Foothills Food Bank

Recently, a two-decade long study found that the mere presence of a home library increases children’s academic success, vocabulary development, attention and job attainment.

Last year we received an Arizona State Library Grant for five-hundred youth books. We partnered with the Foothills Food Bank to distribute these books to families in need to help support home libraries. When a family visits the Food Bank to pick up their boxes, they were given a book. As well, through the Snack Pack Program, the Food Bank in partnership with local schools backpacks full of nutritious snacks for long weekends and holidays. Each student who receives a Snack Pack will also receive a book. Each book we distribute has a sticker inside the front cover encouraging families to visit the library to get a free card.

The families and children were so excited to receive a free book that we have committed to continuing this program next year.

Your support ensures we can continue to nourish the body and mind of our community’s students in need.

FUND THIS NEED

Celebrating Our Unique History, Culture and Environment: DFL's Southwest Collection

Did you know the Library boasts over 2,000 items in our Southwest Special Collection located in the adult computer lab? Here are just some of the topics that we will plan programming around so you can learn more about Arizona and the Southwest:

Arizona’s sanctuaries, retreats and sacred places
Collecting Hopi Kachinas
Remarkable Arizona women
The history, land and people for the desert Southwest
Notable Arizona politicians
The history of mining in Arizona
Military forts and campaigns of the Southwest
Arizona’s “little Hollywood”
Desert wildflowers and native Arizona plants
Birds, lizards, wild animals, cacti and grasses of the Southwest
Desert architecture
Navajo textiles
Archeology of Arizona
Poems of the Southwest
Notable Southwest figures like Wyatt Earp and Kit Carson

Your gift will help us plan dynamic and informative programs that celebrate the unique culture, history and natural wonders of the Southwest.

FUND THIS NEED

Support Local: Arizona Author Series

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there is so much writing talent in our great state. This fall we hosted our inaugural AZ Author Series with visits from eight authors. Library members enjoyed hearing about experiences as varied as a vivid journey through the Sonoran Desert in search of lost treasures and how one woman’s discovery of her father’s World War II letters enabled her learn about his life before he passed away when she was just six years old.

This winter we are excited to present ten writes whose work spans from thrillers, supernatural mysteries, travel, war to Bob Boze Bell’s most outrageous and timely book on the most notorious hellraisers of the West.

Reading local authors helps you learn new things about the place we call home. These authors have lived experiences in their communities and deeply understand the culture, challenges, joys and stories that make them unique. This extra insight means that authors can represent their communities with a healthy mix of respect and criticism, portraying characters with the complexity they deserve.

Help us continue to offer our local authors the opportunity to share their works with our patrons and our members the change to meet writers and see Arizona through a new lens.

FUND THIS NEED