By Cassaundra Brooks

Six years ago, Rachel Peterson lived through a nightmare. After fifteen days of bleeding heavily and a life-saving trip to the emergency room, Peterson found that she had mixed müllerian adenosarcoma, a rare form of uterine cancer that carries a survival rate from 10 to 50 percent.

Peterson had lost so much blood that she would have died had her friend not convinced her to have her husband drive her to the emergency room. She went through two surgeries, recovery, and emotional distress and upheaval, which hit harder than the pain.

“I kept thinking, that’s her, not me,” Peterson says. “This is happening to some other Rachel. This is all too surreal.”

Thanks to the support of her husband, sons, family and friends, Rachel Peterson remained strong through her hysterectomy, a second surgery to remove a mass from her ovary, and the long recovery periods. She began what she refers to as her “reading marathon” as family and friends generously provided ‘round-the-clock care.

Peterson is one of the fortunate ones—she can now call herself a survivor, despite the rare form of cancer and its discouraging survival rate. Now she celebrates by cherishing each day, taking up photography and engaging in outdoor activities with her family. But until 2007, Peterson hadn’t participated in any cancer-related volunteering, wishing only to move forward. A talk with her husband’s old classmate who worked for the American Cancer Society (ACS) introduced her to Relay for Life, and Peterson realized that she could best move forward by talking about her experience and embracing the opportunity to help others with their cancer battles.

“I started to think about the fact that there were people like me—just fighting the battle, wondering if they, too, could survive,” Peterson says.

Sadly, she didn’t have to look far to find such people. In 2004, Peterson had lost her father to lung cancer, just one year after losing a close friend to cancer. She researched the American Cancer Society and attended their first Relay for Life event in Sedona in 2007. The Petersons were hooked. They put together a team and raised $1,300 for their own Anthem race. This year, Peterson serves as chair for the Survivor Committee, and her husband works to educate the community on the efforts of the ACS.

Because of the impact her family and friends had on her battle with cancer, Peterson tells those fighting the disease to find support groups and to know that each day is precious. Live in the moment, she advises, instead of being preoccupied with the worries of life. And, it could be added, step out with her on that Relay for Life track to walk for yourself, your loved ones fighting their own battle, and those who can no longer run the race themselves.

This year, according to the ACS, nearly 1.5 million people in the United States will be diagnosed with cancer. The funds raised at RFL save lives by funding cutting-edge cancer research, early detection and prevention education, advocacy efforts, and life-affirming patient services. For more information, visit relayforlife.org. Anthem’s Relay For Life is Saturday, October 25. Visit ACS at cancer.org, and events.cancer.org/rflanthemaz to find out how you can get involved.

By Kevin Madness

“My mom has always told me that if you love what you do, you won’t work a day in your life,” Heather Hendon recalls. If that is true, then Hendon has indeed never toiled. From the cradle to the boardroom, she has been working alongside her family on a labor of love.

Hendon is the vice president of operations for Danny’s Family, a diverse Valley-based business conglomerate named for her father. Her parents started the company in 1984 with one car wash. Today, Danny’s Family owns thirteen full-service car washes, thirteen convenience stores, three truck washes, and two restaurants. Hendon attributes the success of the business to a dedicated work ethic shared by her family, particularly her father, who is the hardest worker that Hendon has ever known. Danny Hendon, she says, put his heart and soul in the business and acted as an early role model for his family.

“Since I was five years old, I have been around this business,” Hendon said. “I lived, breathed, and slept the car-care industry.”

Heather Hendon practically grew up at a car wash. As a teen, she worked selling chrome to truckers to outfit their rigs. It was no surprise to anyone when Hendon returned to the family business after graduating with honors from Arizona State University to work alongside her father.

Hendon says that it is crucial for her to be involved in every single aspect of the family business. This allows her to understand her operation and know that it is running properly. To expand her expertise, Hendon plans to begin working more with Barcelona, the family’s bar, steakhouse, and nightclub. “It’s very multifaceted,” she says. “It’s a field that I’m not that familiar with but am really enjoying getting to understand.”

One concept Heather certainly understands is generosity, a notion that was impressed upon her by her parents.

“From a very young age, my mother made it a priority to instill certain values within me,” she says. “She made it a point to always show me how fortunate we were to just have the basic necessities in life. She also wanted me to get out in the community and help others who weren’t as fortunate. There is no greater satisfaction in the world than knowing that you have helped someone else.” Hendon has logged many hours volunteering at local children’s hospitals, food banks, and animal shelters.

Her father, too, lives by a charitable maxim: The more you give, the more you get back—a theory the Hendons utilize in their business. With Heather Hendon’s help, Danny’s Family has given more than $750,000 to local charities and has raised over 10,000 pounds of canned food donations for St. Mary’s Food Bank.

The size of Hendon’s “family” continues to expand. With every community the company enters, every charitable cause they support, and every new person they employ.

“That is the most important thing, and we have created that here at Danny’s,” Heather says. “We are one big family.”

By Diana Bocco

Tim Crum, the new executive director of the Arizona Humane Society, describes himself as “your prototypical Pittsburgher.” He was one of four brothers in a blue-collar family in which Dad was a steelworker and Mom was a homemaker who eventually went back to school to become a registered nurse. Crum learned early the importance of sharing your home with others.

“We always had dogs growing up,” he says, and many of those dogs came from the Animal Rescue League in Pittsburgh, a connection that may have inspired his later involvement with the world of animal welfare. While his parents seemed to favor shih tzus, Crum says he always preferred playful breeds like labs and retrievers. In many ways, he says, these breeds embody what he sees as his characteristics: playful, energetic, easygoing, loyal, intelligent, and easy to train.

“Or at least my wife would hope so,” Crum quips.

After college, Crum was involved with several charities, including working as the director of development and public relations for the Animal Rescue League; the executive director of the Humane Society of Harford County, and the director of Animal Care and Control in Loudoun County. Most recently, he took over as director of marketing and development for PetSmart Charities. While there, he missed the work that goes on in an animal shelter, and wanted to get back to what he loves best.

Crum says that when the position as the Arizona Humane Society’s executive director position became available in January, he knew that this organization was one he could lead and infuse new energy into. “By that time, I had already been involved in the animal welfare world for a decade, and I knew I enjoyed being able to help those that cannot speak for themselves,” he says.

Crum’s passion for nature and animals is evident in every aspect of his life. The proud father of three-year old Olivia and owner of two dogs and one cat (Buddy, Daisy, and Two Socks) is also an avid hiker and a fan of photography, especially when it relates to the desert Southwest. One of his more interesting outdoor encounters was coming within three feet of what he thought was a diamondback rattlesnake, but later identified as a Mohave rattlesnake, whose venom is ten times stronger than that of the Western diamondback.

Whether out in the desert or immersed in paperwork within the confines of his city office, Crum is at his best when surrounded by people who share his love for animals. His ultimate goal for the Arizona Humane Society is to create an organization that is supportive of the staff and volunteers. “I know that with a happy and motivated staff, the care of the animals will be the best possible, and our happiness will show to the public and in turn give them confidence to adopt from us as well as support us,” he says.

For more information on the Arizona Humane Society, visit azhumane.org. To see some of Crum’s desert photography, visit southwesternhiker.com.

By Cassaundra Brooks

Before he was known as the legendary Muhammad Ali, Cassius Clay provided the punch that knocked out Sonny Liston in 1964, for which he pronounced himself “The Greatest” boxer of all time. Thirty years later, long-time Arizona resident and businessman Jimmy Walker created the popular charity event Celebrity Fight Night, providing punches that are helping to knock out other kinds of opponents, most particularly the disease that plagues the great champion himself—Parkinson’s Disease. In fact, the $45 million raised since the first Celebrity Fight Night held in 1994 has benefited many charities, including the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center at the Barrow Neurological institute.

Walker’s Celebrity Fight Night seems a logical fit for a man of his background and situation. A resident of Arizona since 1957, Walker attended Phoenix Central High School before beginning an education at Arizona State University on a basketball scholarship. This background in sports provided the basis for much of his career and charity work. As president of Walker Financial, LLC, an estate-planning and wealth-management firm, Walker meets many professional athletes who walk through his doors. And, as one of a group of investors that purchased the Denver Racquets in 1974 and brought the team to Phoenix, Walker had the opportunity to purchase controlling interest in the team they renamed the Phoenix Racquets. After signing the number-one tennis player in the world, Chris Evert, to the team in the fall of 1975, World Tennis Team named Walker its Executive of the Year.

Celebrity Fight Night is not Walker’s first charity endeavor, nor is it his first sports-related charity. In 1982, his family began one of Walker’s favorite charities, Bicycles for Kids, an organization that has blessed approximately 6,000 inner-city children with bicycles over the past twenty-five years. And serving on boards of various local facilities and organizations such as the Barrow Neurological Foundation and the Phoenix Boys and Girls Club has further placed him in the position to receive several honorable awards, including the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Man of the Year honor in 1995 and the 2005 Golden Karma Award for Outstanding Community Philanthropy in Metropolitan Phoenix.

On April 5, Jimmy Walker will brush elbows with some of the most successful people in music, film, business, sports, and government—Celine Dion, Robin Williams, Donald Trump, Josh Groban, and Tony Hawk, to name a few—but Walker himself is a celebrity to the people whose lives have been touched by his charities. And, with his wife, Nancy, three children, and seven grandchildren, the man of magnanimity has the best reward life can grant him.

Celebrity Fight Night will be held Saturday, April 5 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa. For reservations, call (602) 956-1121, or visit celebrityfightnight.org for more information.

By Dee Dees

Still boyish looking in his early fifties, Ed Phillips has the distinction of being the longest-serving media meteorologist in the Valley, having been on radio and TV continuously for over thirty years.

A book he read in fifth grade sparked his interest in weather, and when a teacher encouraged that interest, he knew what his life’s work would be. He began his meteorology career in 1977 with KOY radio after moving to Phoenix after graduating from Saint Louis University. Since that time, he has worked for KTAR radio, Channel 12, and Channel 15.

Phillips takes interest in the news as well as the weather, and enjoys talking politics and participating in them as well. He served two terms in the Arizona State Senate from 1991 to 1995, and said that his grandfather, a news junkie and political devotee, inspired his political tendencies. “I wish he could have been around to see me serve in the Senate,” Phillips says.

In 1980, when Phillips was with KOY, he began publishing his familiar Arizona Almanac, which is now published biannually and is filled with fun, weather-related facts and data. Phillips also has pilot licenses for both single-engine fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters; and he and Anne have two sons: Alex, a freshman at ASU Business School, and Stephen, a polite young man of 11.

Phillips undoubtedly has little time for sleep. To make sure that there’s always coffee at hand, he’s started his own unique café, Weather & Coffee, enjoyed by weather buffs and coffee aficionados. Phillips and his wife had been considering the idea of opening a business for some time. After giving some thought to what type of business they would enjoy running, a coffee shop seemed a good fit. “Once I got too gray for TV, the time seemed right to start the business,” Phillips says. Anne, a self-proclaimed recovering attorney, changed careers to become a barista.

Creating a weather-themed coffeehouse was natural for Phillips, and Weather & Coffee is an extension of his personality as well as a great place to sit, relax, and enjoy the atmospheric conditions. The shop embraces the weather-outlook theme. Sunny yellow walls brighten the building’s narrow interior; and in corners and on part of the side wall, patches of blue sky and white clouds are interfused with lightening bolts. On the back wall, there’s a display of old weather equipment, including the first Mark II Weather Station that Phillips acquired as a youth in the mid-1960s.

“I ordered it from the Lionel Train Company,” he said. “They didn’t make them for very long, so this is probably a collector’s item.”

Also on display are an old thermograph from the 1940s, a barograph, and a hygrothermograph; respectively, instruments that record measured temperature, humidity, and both conditions.

Ed Phillips takes pride and joy in whatever he does, and whatever he does, he does well; be it weather, politics, flying, or coffee making, he’s a fun and interesting man to be around.

Check weatherandcoffee.com for the latest caffeine forecast.

By Diana Bocco
Photos courtesy of the Franks family

In December 2003, the Franks girls undertook a venture that would change the lives of their family and those of many Scottsdale residents forever. As Christmas approached, Madeline and Makenzie Frank became part of the biggest toy drive ever in the area. The twist? The older Frank girl was barely 5 years old!

With the aid of their parents, Christy and John, the girls joined the Phoenix Suns Dancers to organize Kids 4 Kids Toy Drive. “The basic idea at the time was that kids would be giving gifts to other children,” says Christy Frank. ”We raised thousands of toys and dollars for Childhelp USA, but our Kids 4 Kids program also introduced us to other community needs, such as the need to upgrade facilities for certain children’s charity organizations.”

Since then, the organization has added one more Frank girl to the group (Abigail, now 4) and has grown into Magical Builders, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation dedicated to improving the lives of underprivileged children and their communities. While they still conduct an annual toy drive near the holidays, the Franks have expanded their good works into other programs as well. Magical Builders’ main focus is now the renovation and building of facilities for children’s charities.

In 2005, they renovated the Family Living Center at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, and are now building a youth baseball and softball field in an underserved area of Placentia, California, with the Angels Baseball Foundation.  Each July, the family travels to the city selected to host the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, and to renovate a Boys & Girls Club as part of MLB’s scheduled events.

While the Franks insist that the most rewarding part is to share the passion of helping others with their children, Christy emphasizes that there is always that one special kid that makes it all worth it. She tells of 10-year old Quinton, who intensely watched as his family, along with many other volunteers, worked hard on building a wood fence for the club to protect the children from the dangers of the surrounding neighborhood.

“Quinton was being a tough guy with an attitude, saying they really didn’t need a fence because that wasn’t going to stop them,” says Christie of Quinton’s feelings regarding the gang members in the area.

One of the volunteers eventually told Quinton to join them and help out. After a little more complaining, Quinton eventually jumped the fence as it was being built, threw his football to one of the volunteers, and walked over and started to work. His scowls soon turned into smiles as he played with the other kids and helped the volunteers build the fence. By the end of the afternoon, says Christy, Quinton had become a completely different child—laughing, having fun, and taking pride in being a part of the neighborhood.

In 2007, Magical Builders will organize the “Jamma Jingles” program to collect donated children’s pajamas throughout the Valley, and give them to foster homes and shelters for abused children. The official website offers many ideas on how to get involved, and what parents and kids can do to help change their community.

For those interested in becoming a part of Magical Builders, visit magicalbuilders.org.

By Leona June Christensen

Entrepreneurial Powerhouse "Passes It On"

Call it The Secret ’s secret: action. Phoenix entrepreneur Debbie Allen shares her blueprint for optimal success and abundance as one of the featured experts in the motivational documentary Pass It On , directed by Jon Dixon.

“You have to take action,” says Allen, who has authored five books on business success and personal development. “I have never waited until I have learned more or did more to do anything in my life. And thank goodness I didn’t, because I would not be as successful. I never put any limitations on myself. If you want to be more successful, hang out with like-minded people who will bring you more opportunities.”

Pass It On is a cross between Pay it Forward and The Secret . Allen joins a world-class lineup of inventors, authors, movie stars, athletes, investors, and inspirational giants who share proven methods to take action to live the life of your dreams.

“The people in this movie are people who have had high levels of success,” Allen says. “The motto for the movie is learn it, live it, share it, and pass it on.

Allen’s success is worthy of envy among Ivy League business school graduates, having achieved it without a college education or formal training. Her key to prosperity is simple: find the right mentors, learn fast, and implement all their ideas. Just do it, she says.

“I have been an entrepreneur my entire life,” Allen says. “I have never applied for a job. Never attended a day of college. Every business I have ever built and sold, I learned firsthand through mentors, people who have passed their information on to me. So, I believe in the concept of passing it on because that has happened my whole life through mentors or business alliances.”

Allen’s training began early. As a child, she would ride the school bus to her family’s rental car business instead of playing with friends. The family was among the first to open a ministorage facility in the Chicago area.

“There were numerous businesses after that—too many to count,” Allen recalls. “My dad was always thinking of new ideas.”

Following her nineteenth birthday, Allen informed her father that she wanted more than just a paycheck: she wanted to own a piece of the family business. From that day on, she reinvested part of her salary into the business. Later, without working even one day in retail, she purchased a retail store from her mother. With the help of mentors, she was able to build and sell three retail stores in fifteen years.

Allen bills herself as the Shameless Success Expert, a moniker she coined from her best-selling book, Confessions of Shameless Self-Promoters . In her books and keynote speeches, she teaches businesspeople how to stand out from the crowd and help others at the same time.

“I teach the business skill that most people don’t learn in school,” says Allen. “It’s a business skill that most people don’t learn in business—how to promote themselves effectively and how to use that to their advantage to build business alliances and create more opportunity. Because you want to help other people, you come from a heart place. You will get the money. It comes naturally.”

Allen’s best piece of advice is simple: never give up.

“Just keep going,” advises Allen. “Realize you are going to make mistakes. I have made every sales and marketing mistake in the book but I have lived to tell about it. The differences between people who are successful and unsuccessful are [that] unsuccessful people throw their hands in the air and say it’s not going to work, or believe the dream stealers. Mistakes are just lessons in disguise.”

For more information, log on to debbieallen.com or passitontoday.com.

By Shannon Willoby

Internationally known mezzo-soprano and Arizona native Gail Dubinbaum is set to take culture in Phoenix to a new level. Although Phoenix is an arts and entertainment melting pot abounding with museums, art galleries, fine restaurants, vibrant nightlife, and theaters, Dubinbaum felt there was something missing. Recognizing a strong need for performing arts in the Valley, Dubinbaum, along with her husband, John Massaro, created a not-for-profit opera, better known as the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera, in 2006.

Undertaking such a task would be daunting to many, but not for Dubinbaum. Her musical background began from the time she was born, and has taken her across the world and back several times. Her mother, Ruth Dubinbaum, was an opera singer, and cultivated her daughter’s talent by taking her to theater productions beginning at a very early age. As Dubinbaum got older, she was given leading roles with some of the world’s most prestigious opera companies, including the Metropolitan Opera, Vienna Staatsoper, Israel Opera, and L’Opera de Montreal. In addition to this, she has appeared with Opera Pacific, Detroit Opera, Portland Opera, and Arizona Opera.

Her impressive résumé doesn’t stop there. Dubinbaum has sung with the Los Angeles, Israel, New York, Boston, Cleveland, and San Francisco Orchestras, and performed alongside such renowned conductors as Zubin Mehta, James Levine, Michael Tilson Thomas, Gerald Schwarz, Carlo Maria Giulini, and Leonard Bernstein. Dubinbaum’s television credits include appearances on “In Performance at the White House” and “Live from the Met.” Her DVD recordings include Francesca de Rimini with the Metropolitan Opera, and the Met Centennial Gala.

Thanks to her expert guidance and innate talent, her private studio in Phoenix has continuously produced top-notch singers. Her students win national competitions and land leading roles with major opera companies for close to a decade.

However, it’s her role as artistic director and creative director of the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera that enables her to further Phoenix’s growth. By bringing the finest operatic performances to Arizona, she is hoping to reach new audiences and thrill those who previously had to travel to San Francisco or New York to see a production. The highly anticipated debut performance of the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera is set for December 21–23 at historic Orpheum Theatre.

PMO’s premiere production, La Bohème, is one of the most famous operas of all time and is perfect for both newcomers to opera and avid fans. Tickets go on sale in the fall and the production is sure to pack the house. As the first Phoenix-based opera company, PMO is already generating quite a buzz, and will be an uplifting and positive experience for all involved. If Dubinbaum’s goal is to renew interest in the performing arts throughout Arizona, she is sure to achieve her goal by opening night.

However, bringing the finest traditional opera performances to the Valley doesn’t come without a price. Without generous contributors, December’s upcoming opera debut wouldn’t be possible. Interested parties can contribute to PMO in a variety of ways, including memorial, honorary, and legacy gifts. Donations also help fund trips to senior centers, assisted-living facilities, and nursing homes to ensure opera reaches those who cannot travel to see live performances. The Schuld Family Fund just donated a generous gift of $100,000 to Phoenix Metropolitan Opera, which will be used to support the upcoming performing arts. Dubinbaum, along with educational director Wendy Umbrianna, is also planning an innovative educational program for elementary through secondary Arizona schools. This program will bring opera into our schools, but will also teach history, literature, language, dance, theater, musical instruments, and other essential subjects to cultivate young minds and increase their creativity.

Another aspect of PMO is their upcoming Young Artist Development Program. This one-year program will develop and nurture local talent, ages 20–34, who have demonstrated a possible future as professional operatic singers. Dubinbaum is astonished by and proud of the high degree of talent we have in the Valley, and this program will help introduce these gifted people to the world. Donations to fund this program are needed as well.

Ultimately, gifts provided by supporters of the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera will aid in the construction of a Phoenix opera house, securing the permanent status of opera in the Valley. Until then, Dubinbaum will continue to bring opera to life with traditional performances from popular works from the late 18^th through 20^th centuries. These performances will delight Valley residents and, thanks to Dubinbaum, transform Phoenix into a city that highlights some of the most famous operatic productions and the finest voices in the world.

For more information on how you can donate to the Phoenix Metropolitan Opera, or for details on their upcoming productions, visit phoenixmetropolitanopera.org