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HolsumAZ.com > About Us > Holsum in the Community

Holsum Bakery re-commits its support for the Garcia Neighborhood Partnership.

During the immediate aftermath of the '93 riots in Los Angeles that were sparked by the Rodney King verdict, the leadership at Holsum Bakery met with the leadership at Phoenix Police Department and asked this question: what could a business like Holsum do in order to prevent a similar problem from igniting in the areas adjacent to its facilities?

At that time, Holsum's associates' cars were being stolen in broad daylight while they were working, graffiti was the norm in the area, alleys were clogged with trash, etc., etc., etc. The area was clearly headed in the wrong direction. Business people like those at Holsum needed help if a similar event was to be avoided.

Following those initial meetings with Phoenix PD, the leadership at Holsum met with the leadership at Murphy School District (in which Holsum's facility was located), for the purpose of discussing--with Phoenix PD in attendance--what the problems were in the neighboring area and what a business like Holsum might be able to do to help. Rather soon, it was decided to schedule a "Town Hall" at the school on a Saturday, in hopes of getting business-people and residents in the area to come and discuss their problems, hopes, and dreams.

As a result of that "Town Hall", the Garcia (named after the school in which the meeting had been held) Neighborhood Partnership was formed. The partnership was comprised of business people, residents, leadership of the Garcia School, Phoenix PD, representatives of Maricopa County, plus a number of state and county agencies. The purpose: to see what the group could do in order to clean-up the area, reduce juvenile crime, and to begin addressing those issues that the residents wanted and needed help on in an effort to make life better for them. A rather tall order.

Out of those initial meetings developed what grew to become a wonderful combination of people from all walks of life who wanted a better place to live and work. Buildings were demolished and the land was cleared for new housing, alleys and yards were cleaned-up, houses were renovated and painted, graffiti became a thing of history, street lighting was erected, a small "pocket park" became a reality, and the list goes on and on.

Among the more-significant programs that emanated out of this has been named the Garcia 'Adopt-A-Grade' program, wherein (in the beginning) Circle K adopted the 5th grade classes, Holsum Bakery adopted the 6th grades, Maricopa County Juvenile Detention adopted the 7th grades, and Fleming Foods adopted the 8th grades. Click here to learn more about Holsum's 'Adopt-A-Grade' program.

As stated in the beginning, the main reason for creating the Garcia Neighborhood Partnership was to reduce juvenile crime. Click here to get a progress report.

Associates at Holsum Bakery continue to work with the neighbors in the surrounding area, with the over-arching goal of helping to build a stronger community for and with the neighbors and children. If you would like more information about this wonderful program, please e-mail ______________.