My family’s foundation to help the needy of Rocky Point, with clothing and food, was a huge success this year. Each year, it gets bigger and better and this year was no exception. It could not have been remotely successful without the myriads of people who helped out with donations, food, money, shoes, personal items, beds, household items and even a sit and spin…it was truly amazing! One awesome thing I learned along the way in this year’s drive for donations was that the collection, shopping, organization, storage and transportation of the items actually brought my family closer together. Thank you Jessica, Zack, Olivia and Paulie for your efforts! We had a common goal and shared in the duties which brought joy to the families living along the railroad tracks.
Another great lesson that I learned was that my family extends beyond my immediate family and does indeed include many families including my work family.  So many offices at Amerifirst Financial, Inc. chipped in and organized collections of clothing, food and cash. Many of the employees took it upon themselves to feel empowered to make a difference in our world and really reached out and helped to promote the cause to ease the desperate living conditions of the needy of Rocky Point. Hats off to AMERIFIRST FINANCIAL!  My BELLA SIRENA family was just as fabulous as ever with their support. The homeowners of Bella Sirena brought many clothing items to SWIM, the restaurant at Bella Sirena, and dropped them off to the staff. Gracias Eddie, for helping to organize the donations and gracias to the whole staff, you all are the best! Unbeknownst to me, Cathy and Scott Poturalski organized a benefit at SWIM to raise money for our foundation and it turned out to be a huge success. The most amazing part of this was that Cathy delivered the $400 in donations in person to me by coming all the way to Scottsdale to deliver it herself. WOW, Cath, WOW! Muchas gracias to all of my Bella Sirena family.
Other incredible families are my SWIM NEPTUNE family of Arizona and my ARIZONA SWIMMING family. They allowed us to advertise at no expense and place boxes by the concessions at a large swim tournament in Chandler to collect warm clothing to bring to Mexico. The outpouring of support and love was superb. You all are so blessed to be a part of such amazing organizations and you should be so proud of yourselves. THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!  Over the years, my close friends have become family to me. Several of them really stepped up this year and literally went the extra miles to help out. Nate Herd, Janet Certo and Dahlen Schneider’s efforts were awesome, and so very much appreciated! Extra special kudos goes out to Izzy Garcia who helped to transport the donations to Rocky Point and was instrumental in delivering the items to the thrilled families. MUCHAS GRACIAS, IZ!!!
Alas, I have come to realize that I have many families…my immediate family, my work family, my Bella family, my swim family and my friendship family. The reality of it is that we are all ONE FAMILY, and working together toward a common good is what life is all about. As we start a new year, let’s start some new beginnings. Empower yourself to reach out and help someone. Open your eyes to the needy and less fortunate. Stop, listen and care and commit yourself to make a difference in the lives of others this year. We are all super busy with our lives, but you can make time to make a difference. There is nothing more rewarding than to place the clothing on the back of someone without a shirt or to feed the person who does not even own a spoon. 2012 is all about new beginnings and a new you. If anyone would like to help at ANYTIME of the year, please email me at mpaliscak@amerifirst.us. You also have the power to start your own foundation amongst your “families”. Dream it and achieve it, it’s your life…make it a GREAT LIFE! ADIOS AMIGOS…SEE YOU AT THE BEACH!