FOUNDATION
Ethan Braunstein MD, Past Chair, Forest Highlands Foundation Board
Welcome to the 2023 season at Forest Highlands. Your Foundation has already been busy planning our programs for this year, and we have several exciting events to which we invite your participation. The annual Denise Martinez Golf Tournament will be held on Monday, June 19, earlier than in the last few years. T here are a few spots left for teams to compete, and sponsorships continue to be available. Please take advantage of this long-standing Forest Highlands tradition. Our donor thank you event will be on Saturday, July 8. There will be adult beverages, hors d’oeuvres, and most importantly the opportunity to meet and talk with the directors of some of the nonprofits that we support in the community. For those of you who have donated, there will be the occasion to see how your gifts have contributed to the welfare of all the citizens of Flagstaff. Because of the success of our art auction last year, we are going to have another art event at the Labor Day picnic in September. If you are a Forest Highlands artist and you wish to have your work displayed this will be an excellent venue. If you want to see how talented our local artists are or if you need that perfect artwork for your home this is a great opportunity. In this column it has been our custom to feature some of the groups in Flagstaff that we support. The month we would like to call your attention to Girls on the Run of Northern Arizona (GOTRNA), specifically their activities in Flagstaff. GOTRNA was established to inspire confidence, kindness and decision-making skills in young girls who may not have had the chance to do so in other situations. The national organization was founded in 1996 to this end, but the local Flagstaff group itself is under the administration of North Country Health Care.
The local program is sited at Cromer School, which on the Federal School Lunch Program and which serves a disadvantaged local population. Girls in grades 3-5 participate in the program. More than half the girls need financial aid to participate, and 30% are given free running shoes. The local director is Kelly Teeselink, who runs the entire program on a shoestring, as it were. With only an additional half-time person to help, she has crafted a vibrant program that benefits many young people in Flagstaff. She comes by this interest naturally, as she is an ultramarathoner herself. Kelly won’t be at our donor event this year, but you may have a chance to meet and speak with her in the future, especially if you would like to attend one of the GOTRNA 5K races. We welcome inquiries from all Forest Highlands residents. If you would like to volunteer to be on the board or on one of our committees, please let me or any of the board members know. Also, we will be making site visits this year to several of the groups we support. You are welcome on these visits to see exactly where your money is going to help make Flagstaff a better community. You can reach me at beigestein@gmail.com for more information.
Thank you and welcome back,
Ethan Braunstein MD Past Chair, Forest Highlands Foundation Board beigestein@gmail.com
VOICE IN THE PINES | JUNE 2023 8
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