Letter to Arizonan

Letter

The economic recession significantly impacted our State resulting in budget reductions that have impacted programs serving vulnerable populations. In 2010, I established the ArizonaSERVES Task Force to serve as a statewide faith and community initiative to promote outreach and maximize resources to address the needs of the community which includes, but is not limited to, identifying strategies to:

Encourage foster care participation;
Facilitate the provision of free or reduced cost child care services through existing licensed facilities;
Provide supervised Child Protective Service visits;
Promote elder independence and assist grandparents raising grandchildren; and
Provide transportation for the underserved.

I am grateful to the members of the ArizonaSERVES Task Force who have committed substantial time to identify the impact of the budget reductions on these issues and continue to share their gifts as they begin to coordinate volunteer efforts to serve those in need. As the members take action to serve our most vulnerable, our success relies on your willingness to serve. Attached to this letter is a summary for each of the five service areas. Please review this information and consider how you might respond. More information, including your next steps to serve, may be found at www.ArizonaSERVES.org.

Arizona is blessed by vigorous and energetic people who show their commitment to faith and community. Your willingness to dedicate your time to answer the call to serve your neighbor is an important reminder that in these difficult economic times, we must come together as a community to strengthen our relationships with each other and create new partnerships to help Arizona families.

Thank you for dedicating your time and efforts to support our community. God bless you and God bless Arizona as we work together to assist those who need our comfort and our help.

Sincerely,

Janice K. Brewer
Governor

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