VSUW Reflects on AZTV 7’s 2023 Stuff the Bus Campaign
Carla Vargas Jasa, President and CEO of Valley of the Sun United Way is here to discuss how AZTV 7 teamed up with Valley of the Sun United Way and Firefighter Angel Foundation, along with other amazing local business partners and charitable organizations across Metro Phoenix, Prescott and Northern Arizona (Maricopa and Yavapai counties) for Stuff the Bus 2023. Learn more at https://vsuw.org, and https://aztv.com/stuffthebus
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 Welcome back to the Arizona Daily Mix.
00:02 Sure, we tell you where to eat,
00:04 where to find a good cocktail,
00:05 where to play on the newest mini golf course,
00:07 but what we are most proud of around here,
00:10 helping kids and teachers in our state
00:13 start the year with new school supplies.
00:15 Carla Vargas Jasep from Valley of the Sun United Way
00:18 is here to talk about partnering
00:20 with our Stuff the Bus campaign.
00:22 Welcome, we're so thrilled
00:24 that you partnered with Stuff the Bus.
00:26 Why did you choose this campaign?
00:27 -Thanks for having me, Teresa.
00:30 Valley of the Sun United Way is so proud
00:32 to have partnered with AZTV for eight years now
00:34 on this project which is so critically important
00:36 to help not only students but families
00:39 as they're returning back to school.
00:40 Valley of the Sun United Way has long focused
00:43 on education for students,
00:44 ranging from early childhood education
00:46 now up to youth who may have been disconnected
00:48 from education, getting them reconnected.
00:50 This is so important, again,
00:52 not just for kids' educations
00:54 but for families who may be struggling
00:56 to make ends meet to be able to provide
00:59 the school supplies their kids need
01:01 so they can feel good going back to school,
01:02 feel ready to learn and not feel held back
01:06 by any issues as it relates to maybe not having
01:08 that notebook that they needed
01:10 or the standard pencil or ruler.
01:13 -Well, we're talking about notebooks, pencils, rulers.
01:15 I have two kids, elementary school and junior high.
01:18 Boy, does that add up!
01:20 And it's actually made news this year
01:22 because the back-to-school supplies
01:24 are costing so much per child.
01:27 -Yes. This is the highest cost on record
01:30 of back-to-school for students and families
01:33 throughout the country,
01:34 clocking in at almost $900, which is incredible.
01:38 And as you think about many families,
01:39 especially with inflation,
01:41 evictions are at an all-time high
01:43 in Maricopa County specifically
01:45 over this past month.
01:46 And just the choices that families are making
01:48 as it relates to buying that new T-shirt
01:51 that the child might want to go back to school,
01:53 a uniform, the school supplies,
01:56 putting gas in the car to help to get them to school,
01:59 and even their rent.
02:00 And so this is such a critically important need
02:03 at this point in time.
02:04 -And that's the right word.
02:05 It's critical because one in five families
02:07 in this country is facing food instability.
02:10 So if a family has to decide between dinner or a backpack,
02:14 this is a campaign to help those families.
02:16 Over 6,000 backpacks stuffed with pencils, pens, erasers.
02:21 And that just blew my mind,
02:22 because it's said that it's almost $900 per child.
02:25 If a family has two or three kids,
02:27 that is really prohibitive.
02:29 And then that student goes to school,
02:31 and they can't learn in the classroom.
02:33 They can't do homework
02:34 because they don't have a notebook and pencil.
02:36 So it really affects the entire community.
02:38 -Yeah, absolutely.
02:39 I mean, it is so interconnected.
02:41 And, you know, again, the choices that parents make
02:43 and that families make are really tough in this day and age.
02:47 And we want to help them not have to make those choices
02:49 that those that need a little bit of help.
02:52 And, again, it's a hand up to help those students
02:55 be prepared to learn better
02:56 and to be more successful in their futures
02:58 that then they can provide for their own children,
03:00 which is such a wonderful gift to be able to provide.
03:02 -And, you know, we were talking before
03:04 during the break about teachers.
03:06 I know you have friends who are teachers.
03:08 I've got an aunt and uncle, three cousins.
03:10 They go out of pocket to buy supplies for their own closets.
03:13 -Yeah, they do.
03:14 So in addition to those 6,000 backpacks
03:15 that we provided that were very specific
03:17 for elementary school needs and for middle school
03:19 and for high school needs, we also, thanks to AZTV
03:22 and our partners at Desert Financial and others,
03:24 were able to stock almost 50 teacher closets
03:29 to help to provide teachers with the supplies that they need.
03:32 And, yes, you shared, you have family members.
03:34 One of my best friends growing up
03:35 has been a third to fifth grade teacher
03:37 for over 25 years now.
03:39 And every year from the beginning,
03:41 she spends money out of pocket
03:42 to be able to get her classroom equipped,
03:44 get those extra supplies for their students.
03:46 And so, you know, teachers aren't making
03:48 the most money either, right?
03:49 I mean, a lot of them are just a step away
03:51 from living in poverty themselves.
03:53 And so that in itself is a travesty,
03:55 but to be able to equip them with what it is
03:57 that they need to be successful
03:58 and to support their students is, again,
04:00 another tremendous gift to our community
04:02 and, again, to our students.
04:03 -Well, thank you for helping the teachers,
04:05 the students, the families.
04:06 And that's why we wanted to have you in today
04:08 from all of us at the Arizona Daily Mix.
04:10 A huge thank you to the United Way.
04:12 It's meant so much to over 6,000 students
04:15 and, of course, teachers and families.
04:16 [BLANK_AUDIO]