- ANNUAL CHRISTMAS TOY DRIVE: Each year the YAF partners with the Sheriff’s Office to hold a Christmas toy drive. New toys are collected from all over Maricopa County from businesses and other interested parties. These toys are then distributed to needy families and groups whose children would otherwise have little or nothing at all.
- CAMP FUTURE FORCE: As part of the Sheriff’s Office S.T.A.R.S. Program, the YAF sponsors a summer camp named “Camp Future Force” at the Tonto Rim Camp. This one-week camp allows 120 to 150 students from the S.T.A.R.S. Program to participate in recreational and educational programs in a relaxing mountain atmosphere. In addition to receiving classes in crime prevention and drug resistance, the kids enjoy activities such as horseback riding, canoeing, hiking, high rope zip line, athletic competitions, and fireside social activities. Camp Future Force has been successful since its inception in 1993. The cost of this camp is approximately $50,000 per year and the largest annual expenditure for the YAF.
- EXPLORER PROGRAM: The Explorer Program offers exposure and involvement with law enforcement to young individuals aged 14 to 21. Sponsored by Boy Scouts of America, the Sheriff’s Explorers learn about law enforcement’s different aspects by working with various deputies in the field. Many of these Explorers go on to successful careers as employees with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
- PROJECT B.R.A.V.E.: Project B.R.A.V.E (Bringing Reality About Violence Education) is a violence prevention program created to decrease violence in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area through education and awareness. Provided at no cost to youth and adult participants, the program focuses on self-esteem, teaching resistance skills, and healthy alternatives to violent behavior. Ongoing prevention-education workshops address domestic and dating violence, substance abuse, and bullies and victims, among other critical issues confronting young people today. Project B.R.A.V.E is a grant-funded program by the City of Phoenix.
- S.M.A.R.T. TENTS: S.M.A.R.T. Tents (Shocking Mainstream Adolescents into Resisting Temptations) is a 24-hour trip designed to provide an anti-drug, anti-crime program intended to show youths the realities of jail life before they find out the hard way. It is a fully simulated jail facility that allows students to experience the jail environment the same way an incarcerated inmate would, exposing students to the horrors of lockup. The Sheriff’s objective is to stop crime, drug use, and alcohol use before it starts! S.M.A.R.T. Tents depends greatly on cash donations to assist in program costs, printed materials, and facility maintenance.
- S.T.A.R.S. PROGRAM: The S.T.A.R.S. Program (Sheriff’s Teaching Abuse Resistance to Students) is a 10-week educational program aimed at the 6th grade school level. Taught by deputy sheriffs in the classroom setting, the program’s goals are to empower the children of Maricopa County to resist drugs and alcohol, to improve themselves in conflict management, and to recognize positive and negative role models. S.T.A.R.S. was developed to transcend the D.A.R.E. Program (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) by offering greater flexibility in its curriculum and reducing the restrictiveness in the teaching certification process. Tailoring the program to the needs of the community enables the program to correspond to the specific problems encountered in the area in which it is taught.
- YOUTH BOXING TEAM: The YAF sponsors a non-profit boxing team that was started by long-time Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office volunteer, Walt Hoskins, in April 1987. The program was created to give boys ages 8 to 18 a positive alternative to gangs and drugs. The Youth Boxing Team’s main goals are to teach commitment, discipline, and teamwork. The program also serves as an important resource for building and maintaining self-esteem and confidence. The team relies on funding from the YAF for equipment as well as expenses associated with numerous tournaments attended each year. In conjunction with the YAF, the program has built a solid foundation and is growing rapidly each year.
Programs
