Kevin's Ward 3 News and Updates

News and Updates
Ward 3 Neighborhood Association/Coalition Meetings
Ward 3 Events
City Wide Events
Did You Know?

Marty Birdman Center’s Back to School Event A Success!
Last week I helped hand out backpacks to students who went on to load them up with free school supplies at other tables which filled the community room. Free popcorn, snow cones, and hot dogs topped off the back-to-school event.

Marty Birdman Center is a Tucson recreation center located in Balboa Heights Park, 2526 N. Castro. It primarily serves youth. More info at www.tucsonaz.gov/parks/MartyBirdmanCenter. 

The annual give-away is supported by the Friends of Marty Birdman Center, Tucson Parks & Recreation, Pima Constable Bennett Bernal, and our Ward 3 office.

An extra special shout out to Cathie Hackman for all her work in making the event such a success.

August is back to school month, so please be especially careful driving in school zones. Also, please consider supporting one of the many groups collecting much-needed school supplies for students and teachers.

Salvation Army is collecting school supplies at bins located in every Fry’s Supermarket through July 31. For a list of locations: www.SalvationArmyTucson.org.

Youth On Their Own 2021 Back to School Challenge
When: Ongoing through Aug. 31

Cash contributions toward the school supplies drive for homeless and unaccompanied middle school and high school students can be made online at yoto.org/back-to-school-challenge/; donations up to $15,000 will be matched. The nonprofit is also accepting in-kind donations of school supplies, canned foods, toiletries and household items (dish soap, paper towels, cleaners) for the YOTO Mini Mall. Donations can be dropped off from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at Youth On Their Own, 1660 N. Alvernon Way. For more information, call 293-1136.

Annual Tucson Supplies Teachers Campaign
When: Ongoing through Sept. 30

Tucson Values Teachers has streamlined traditional school supply donations with Tucson Supplies Teachers. Donors can contribute to the online supply drive at tucsonvaluesteachers.org to help purchase $50 gift certificates to Jonathan’s Educational Resources for local teachers of pre-kindergarten through Grade 12 in public, private and charter schools. For more information, or to make an online donation, visit tucsonvaluesteachers.org or call 327-7619.

Beginning July 12, teachers at local schools can register for a chance to receive a gift certificate through the Tucson Values Teachers website through Sept. 30.

Donations can also be mailed to: Tucson Values Teachers, 3497 N. Campbell Ave., Suite 703, Tucson, AZ 85719

- Kevin

Mansfield Poolooza by Katie Bolger
On Wednesday afternoon and early evening, the City’s Parks and Recreation department, along with the Ward 3 office partnered with the Sugarhill Community Land Trust to throw a pool party (Poolooza!) at Mansfield pool. It was a smashing success. There was a DJ with music provided by 97.5 The Vibe, the Pima County Bookmobile, free bike repairs from BICAS, free popcorn, snow cones and 2 local food trucks preparing yummy (free)meals for everyone who attended.

Mansfield pool was originally slated to stay closed this summer due to lifeguard shortages and supply chain delays impacting the delivery of of pool filters. Seeing the line of excited kids in their bathing suits waiting to get into the pool Wednesday made the extra effort all worth it. It was a celebratory mood at the park even when a little rain showed up. We look forward to more festivities in our public parks and pools and a special shout out to Lara Hamwey and all the parks employees who put in additional time to make the event happen.

Woods Library by Marlene Avelino
Woods Memorial Public Library has been serving the community since 1968 and is the second busiest library in Pima County. The ward 3 office enjoyed a tour of Woods Library, located at 3455 N. First Avenue in the Amphi neighborhood. We met Heather Severson - Tween Services Librarian, Matt Landon - Young Adult Services Librarian, and Meg Beer - Children’s Services Librarian and they informed us of the many community resources they provide.

They of course have books! From the youngest book fans with board books to the wide spectrum of non-fiction, if they don’t have what you’d like to read, you can request it and they’ll have it delivered. They have a beautiful display of Spanish language books in an area designated for non-English speakers and acknowledge that there is a large population of refugees and recent immigrants in the surrounding neighborhoods that they keep in mind when bringing books in.

Woods Library also has a Job Center with dedicated computers separate from the public computer room. The Job Center has a binder with current job openings, staff will assist with resumes, online applications, and training opportunities. The computer room has 12 computers available, and staff is always on hand to help students of all ages. There are separate study rooms that can be reserved ahead of time or day-of if available.

The library provides a variety of material and nutritional benefits to the community upon request. In partnership with the Pima Health Department, they have Covid Self Care kits which include a Covid test, thermometer, gloves, a mask, hand sanitizer, and tylenol. They also have cooling mini-kits that include a reusable water bottle that they can fill and refill on site and sunscreen, also provided by the health department. The Community Food Bank is another partner helping the library provide a snack program offering a small carton of milk and a rotating snack - sometimes granola bars, cereal, fruit bars, etc. The snack program is designed for 1-18 years but no one is denied. They also provide hygiene kits which can include menstrual products, toothpaste/brush, socks, underwear, nail clippers, and other odd items. These kits are funded and assembled by library staff of their own donations. They are an official ballot drop off location for the county recorder and you can drop off used reading/site glasses for the Lions Club recycling program. And lastly, naloxone is available, no questions asked.

Additional things to visit the library for include their Seed library (https://www.library.pima.gov/seedlibrary/). You can ‘check out’ seeds, grab a planting guide, successfully grow your flower/vegetable/fruit, harvest the seeds. Don’t sweat it if you are nervous about getting through that whole process, there are no one late fees if you don’t return a seed. You can pick up your Culture Pass, two free tickets to a participating arts or cultural institution including, Sonoran Desert Museum, Reid Park, Tohono Chul, and many others. You can ‘check out’ two free tickets every 30 days! You can also request a free 30 minute consultation with the Pima County Library Writer in Residence, Lori Alexander. Feel free to bring material to workshop or just discuss ideas or next steps for your project. This is a wonderful resource for people of all ages to speak with a published author.

I asked Librarian Heather Severson what her favorite thing is and she said, “What's great about the Woods Library is the ability to be deeply embedded in the neighborhood; in the schools, with the neighborhood partners, and Thrive in the 05. It allows us to see everyday how people can come together to help each other.”

Click here for More information