Fundraising Events

The Desert Doves raise funds to support current PCPP projects through a variety of fundraising and volunteer events. The details of our three largest events are below. Please consider supporting the work of current Peace Corps volunteers through a time or financial donation.

For more information on how these funds are spent, please refer to our Projects Funded page.


2021 Peace Corps Calendar


The annual Peace Corps Calendar fundraiser has begun!! Information on how to purchase this year can be found here, https://docs.google.com/document/d/101qyFYrdfBkBwMwuBlaIznYyGchesWBVla0pkNoyHuQ/edit



Winter Street Fair

About the Street Fair


The Desert Doves are looking for community-minded volunteers to help at the Fourth Avenue Street Fair supported by the 4th Avenue Merchants Association each spring and winter, which are our biggest fundraisers throughout the year. Volunteers will staff the vendor courtesy carts distributing snacks and water to the artists and vendors; this work raises funds which will be used toward development projects in Peace Corps countries.

With the help of volunteers like you, we were able to raise more than six thousand dollars last year to support community health promotion in Ecuador, clean water projects in Kenya and Mali, environmental education in Guatemala, and sustainable sanitation infrastructure in Burkina Faso!

We are looking for volunteers to fill morning and afternoon shifts on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10:30AM- 1:30PM and 1:30-4:30PM. Volunteering is a great way to experience the Street Fair, interact with the artists, meet people who have worked in countries all over the world, and generate funds for development projects being carried out by Peace Corps Volunteers in the field right now! There are three people per cart so please feel free to ask friends and family to come along to help.

If you are part of a service organization, we are more than happy to write a letter documenting your volunteer service to the Tucson community and Peace Corps Partnership.

Please follow the steps below to sign-up for a shift.

If you have any questions, you may email us at rpcvtucson@gmail.com.

Thank you for your interest - we hope to see you on Fourth Ave!


Sign-up to Volunteer


1) Open the Volunteer Roster:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r7JVmp4iKSOCqftOArri0-RwpPP6PjFtC2PSYnz8l_g/edit?usp=sharing

(Please use Google Chrome Browser to edit the document. You do not need to 'sign in'. Simply click on the document and edit as per the following steps.)

(2) The roster will open in a new browser window. When it does, scroll through the document to find your preferred shift.

(3) When you have found your preferred shift time, find a position slot.

One row = one slot in a 3-person cart team for one shift.

(4) For your chosen row, enter your Name, Mobile Telephone (cell, no land-lines please) #, Email address.

(5) Your change will save automatically. Wait until you see 'saved' in light gray font appear in the top left corner of the document.

Please do not delete or delete anyone's information besides your own.

This is a communal, shared document.

(6) Sign up for as many shifts as you can! Thank you!


2021 Funding Guidelines

Background:

Peace Corps is currently evacuated and there are no Peace Corps Partnership Projects to fund. In light of this and the urgent need of many in our community related to the covid-19 pandemic, the Desert Doves membership voted to provide financial support to other organizations that fulfill immediate needs for vulnerable populations and/or promote world peace and friendship.


The Desert Doves Board invited the general membership to submit information about local, national and international organizations that they would like us to support. The Board then sent a poll to the Desert Doves members to determine which organizations they would like to support.


Below is a list of organizations submitted for funding consideration along with a brief description of their activities and a link to their website:


  • Literacy Connects (local) : provides literacy and creative programming for youth, adults and English language learners c

  • Owl and Panther (local): provides refugee children and their families with healing art experiences and a welcoming community: https://www.owlandpanther.org/

  • ACOPERI (international, RPCV led): provides Roma and immigrant minorities living in Moldova with services such as humanitarian aid, scholarships, and youth development. https://www.acoperi.org

  • Doctors without Borders (international): provides medical and humanitarian services worldwide: https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/

  • Family Housing Resources (local): provides emergency rental assistance, housing counseling & debt recovery to low income individuals and families. https://www.fhrtucson.org/

  • Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) (national): leading national organization advocating for the rights of unaccompanied migrant and refugee children, https://supportkind.org/who-we-are/

  • Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona (local): provides emergency food assistance, supportive programming and community partnerships to end hunger, https://www.communityfoodbank.org/Our-Work

  • Kiva International (international): provides financial assistance to underserved communities, https://kiva.global/

  • Flowers and Bullets (local): collective of artists, farmers, and organizers in Barrio Centro in Tucson. We reclaim our cultural roots and amplify them through sustainability, art, and rebellion to heal and empower our neighborhood. https://givebutter.com/flowersandbullets?fbclid=IwAR0xI06pCCjJfSs2WvMtk-BBxJ3X1dQbUOQbLHEhighXRYcF25hH9pKyRDk

  • TCP Global (international, RPCV-led): supports community and economic development through zero-overhead sustainable micro-loan programs. https://tcpglobal.peacecorpsconnect.org/cpages/home


The results of the funding poll are below:

During the general meeting in Novmber 2020, the Board presented this information and recommended that $2000 be divided among 4 organizations. The membership discussed the organizations and votes, but did not feel that they had enough information to make an informed decision. The members voted to charge the Board with finding more information and presenting a more specific funding proposal based on the discussion in previous meetings.


Funding Criteria

As a 501(c)-3 organization, we are not permitted to spend money to support political campaigns (https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/the-restriction-of-political-campaign-intervention-by-section-501c3-tax-exempt-organizations).


You can read our full funding guidelines here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1E5_8g5a4cqmnCEiJS8FTQ5vK1qgoNA-ynOwJSgPQKJE/edit?usp=sharing


Here are the most important guidelines:


1. Directly support one of the three PC goals.

2. A system for accountability and reporting to Desert Doves needs to be assured.

3. The funding should benefit a community rather than a single individual.

4. Sustainability of the project or its impact is promising.

5. The Desert Doves have the ability to add or modify criteria with a majority vote.


Proposal

The Desert Dove Board convened to finalize a funding proposal based on the polls and discussion in the general meeting.


We propose to spend a total of $2500, with $500 each spent on the following organizations:

  • Flowers and Bullets

  • Owl and Panther

  • Family Housing Resources

  • Literacy Connects

  • Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona.


This recommendation is based on the Board’s interpretation of the lively discussion during the November general meeting. During that meeting, it was clear that the Desert Doves membership valued impact, connection and sustainability. We propose that the Desert Doves support local organizations because of increased need in the Tucson community due to the covid-19 pandemic, and the robust involvement of many Tucson RPCVs in these organizations. We also felt that the poll results justify the inclusion of these 5 organizations as well as our focus on local organizations. These organizations are providing essential services to vulnerable communities in Tucson in areas most affected by the covid-19 pandemic, and our contribution will support a healthy and vibrant community.



Spring Street Fair

For those that signed-up to volunteer this year, thank you. We will post updates on here as they become available. Thank you for your flexibility and understanding. Stay healthy Doves!


About the Street Fair


The Desert Doves are looking for community-minded volunteers to help at the Fourth Avenue Street Fair supported by the 4th Avenue Merchants Association each spring and winter, which are our biggest fundraisers throughout the year. Volunteers will staff the vendor courtesy carts distributing snacks and water to the artists and vendors; this work raises funds which will be used toward development projects in Peace Corps countries.

With the help of volunteers like you, we were able to raise more than six thousand dollars last year to support community health promotion in Ecuador, clean water projects in Kenya and Mali, environmental education in Guatemala, and sustainable sanitation infrastructure in Burkina Faso!

We are looking for volunteers to fill morning and afternoon shifts on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10:30AM- 1:30PM and 1:30-4:30PM. Volunteering is a great way to experience the Street Fair, interact with the artists, meet people who have worked in countries all over the world, and generate funds for development projects being carried out by Peace Corps Volunteers in the field right now! There are three people per cart so please feel free to ask friends and family to come along to help.

If you are part of a service organization, we are more than happy to write a letter documenting your volunteer service to the Tucson community and Peace Corps Partnership.

Please follow the steps below to sign-up for a shift.

If you have any questions, you may email us at rpcvtucson@gmail.com.

Thank you for your interest - we hope to see you on Fourth Ave!


Sign-up to Volunteer


1) Open the Volunteer Roster:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1r7JVmp4iKSOCqftOArri0-RwpPP6PjFtC2PSYnz8l_g/edit?usp=sharing

(Please use Google Chrome Browser to edit the document. You do not need to 'sign in'. Simply click on the document and edit as per the following steps.)

(2) The roster will open in a new browser window. When it does, scroll through the document to find your preferred shift.

(3) When you have found your preferred shift time, find a position slot.

One row = one slot in a 3-person cart team for one shift.

(4) For your chosen row, enter your Name, Mobile Telephone (cell, no land-lines please) #, Email address.

(5) Your change will save automatically. Wait until you see 'saved' in light gray font appear in the top left corner of the document.

Please do not delete or delete anyone's information besides your own.

This is a communal, shared document.

(6) Sign up for as many shifts as you can! Thank you!