Fitzgerald Honored, $2.5M Raised for Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley

Michael Bidwill, Honoree Larry Fitzgerald & 2020 Youth of the Year Samia Ruiz

The Event: Today’s Kids, Tomorrow’s Stars benefiting Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley

Honoree: Larry Fitzgerald

Arizona State Youth of the Year: Vakentae Cooks from the I.G. Homes Branch

Youth of the Year: Vakentae Cooks from the I.G. Homes Branch (also Arizona State Youth of the Year!) // Dylan Heninger – Superstition Mountain Branch // Jahari Herring – The Bob & Renee Parsons Branch // Amaya Jones – Louis & Elizabeth Sands Branch // Hunter Lowry – Spencer D. & Mary Jane Stewart Branch // Ricardo Martinez – Jerry & Helen Wisotsky Branch // Gabriel Mata – Ed Robson Family Branch // David Richardson – Bob Bove Branch, A Thornwood Legacy

Event Chairs: Jody Sarchett & Basil Zaidi

Stars Sponsors: Arizona Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Banner Health, The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation, CIT, Crescent Crown Distributing, Insight, Leslie’s, Steve & Mary Ortega, Sands Chevrolet Glendale, Universal Technical Institute & Wells Fargo.

On Stage: Music by JTM3, Program Hosted by Lisa Charisse Mathews (Arizona Cardinals reporter) & Mark Curtis (Channel 12)

Event Date: May 1, 2021

Venue: State Farm Stadium

Dollars Raised: $2.5M+

Notable Moments: The gala event held on the floor of State Farm Stadium included a wild live auction and both Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Bidwill contributing $100,000 each to Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley. The big surprise of the evening happened when Youth of the Year Ricardo Martinez was awarded a full scholarship to Universal Technical Institute to pursue his dream of becoming an auto mechanic. 

To watch the recorded broadcast, please click here

Photos courtesy of Mark Skalny

The 2021 Youth of the Year: Vakentae Cooks, David Richardson, Dylan Heninger, Amaya Jones, Jahari Herring, Gabriel Mata, Hunter Lowry & Ricardo Martinez
Rebecca Pierson & Fred Pakis with their guests
Larry Fitzgerald & John Ames
Austin & Bree Pahnke, Malissa Fairbrother & Jay Brown
Marcia Mintz, President & CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley
Lisa Charisse Matthews, Mark Curtis interview Mikayla Lowry, a past scholarship recipient
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