It’s the 8th Annual Hometown Heroes Toy Drive! AZTV 7 and Desert Financial Credit Union have teamed up with Valley of the Sun United Way, along with local area businesses, to help bring the joy of the holidays to families throughout Arizona. For more information visit https://www.aztv.com/hometownheroes-2023
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - Okay, so now we have moved over
00:11 and I'm standing with Shelly
00:13 from Survivor Outreach Services, or SOS.
00:16 So Shelly, tell me a little bit about what you guys do.
00:19 - So Survivor Outreach Services is an Army-wide program
00:22 and it's dedicated to supporting survivors
00:25 who've lost their Army soldier.
00:27 And so, no matter if you're active duty,
00:30 National Guard or Reserves,
00:31 we help those families with counseling,
00:34 if they need financial services.
00:36 And sometimes we can do great events like Zoo Lights
00:39 with our partners here, like Helping Hands for Freedom
00:41 and you guys.
00:42 - Mommy!
00:43 - Well, this is so cool.
00:44 I was gonna say, you guys are a survivor family
00:46 and you're here with your beautiful daughter.
00:48 Do you mind sharing a little bit about your story?
00:50 - Yes, so my husband passed, sorry, starved,
00:56 in 2014, just before our daughter was born.
01:00 And this program has been such a great help to us.
01:03 - It's okay, Mama.
01:05 - Thanks.
01:06 When I had the opportunity to apply for this position
01:09 to help others in our community, I jumped on it.
01:11 - I love Mommy.
01:12 - I love doing this and helping out our families.
01:15 - You guys obviously have a beautiful connection
01:17 and such a beautiful family.
01:18 And what you're doing here tonight
01:20 is making a huge, huge difference
01:22 and it's really, really cool.
01:23 So, tell me a little bit more just about what you guys do
01:27 and how people get involved with you.
01:30 - So, sometimes we do special things,
01:33 like we can do Shop With A Cop,
01:35 where we shop with a military member
01:38 and we get $100 to spend from the cop.
01:41 So, yeah.
01:43 - We have another family that we're gonna talk to.
01:45 So, guys, we'll go ahead and have you guys come in as well.
01:49 So, remind me your name.
01:51 - Julie.
01:52 - Raiden.
01:53 - Vaughn.
01:54 - All right, and tell me a little bit
01:55 about you guys and your story.
01:56 - So, our dad was in the military in Army Rangers.
02:01 And in 2011, he got hit by a car on the freeway.
02:09 - Well, probably. - Someone, yeah.
02:12 - Wow, what an incredible man he sounds like.
02:15 And obviously, you guys are the embodiment of that
02:18 and what an awesome soldier he was.
02:21 And so, it's really special that you're here tonight.
02:23 Tell me a little bit about what this means
02:25 for you to be here tonight.
02:27 - We come every year and we look forward to this event.
02:30 And it's just where we can be with our family,
02:33 our survivor family.
02:35 And they know how it is to go through this
02:39 and they understand.
02:41 So, it's nice to be with our family.
02:44 - Having that community is so important,
02:46 especially this time of year.
02:49 And so, do you guys mind sharing with me
02:51 what it felt like to be here tonight
02:53 and to be able to go up and grab a gift?
02:57 - It was very nice.
02:59 - Yeah, what did you get?
03:01 - Hot wheels.
03:02 - What about you, did you grab anything?
03:05 - Oh, yeah.
03:06 I grabbed a football and a soccer ball.
03:10 - Oh, perfect.
03:11 We got hot wheels, we got football, softball.
03:13 Did you get a gift as well?
03:14 - Yeah, I got to pick up two
03:16 because they said that they had too many.
03:20 So, come on in and pick some more.
03:22 So, I got a purple and pink scooter.
03:25 And also, I got this really cool skateboard
03:28 with jelly beans on it.
03:29 - Well, you guys, thank you so much
03:32 for chatting with me, all of you.
03:34 This is such a special event.
03:35 We are so honored to be here with you guys
03:37 here from AZTV7.
03:38 And truly, I so appreciate you sharing your stories with me
03:41 because I know your stories are hard.
03:43 But like you were saying, having the community here
03:46 really coming together this time of year is so special.
03:49 - It makes me happy.
03:50 - It makes me happy too.
03:52 - I miss daddy.
03:53 Being with mommy and going to these special events
03:57 for our survivors is so much fun.
03:59 It makes me super happy.
04:00 (laughing)
04:01 - I love it.
04:02 Well, that's the whole point of tonight, right?
04:03 Is to bring happiness, joy, and community.
04:05 So, thank you all so much for talking with us.
04:08 All right, guys, stick around.
04:09 We got more coming up after this.
04:11 Thank you guys so much.
04:12 That was awesome.
04:13 (upbeat music)
04:16 (upbeat music)
04:19 (upbeat music)
04:21 (upbeat music)
04:24 (upbeat music)
04:26 [BLANK_AUDIO]