Kare Bears’ Korner

Kare Bears Present Volunteer Appreciation Awards

Maureen Plate

Kare Bears held their annual Volunteer Appreciation Spring Fling on April 17 at Sunrise Park. This is the first year the event was held at an out-door venue and we were blessed with a beautiful day.

Sixty volunteers brought their own chairs and enjoyed a casual afternoon socializing under the shade of a lovely tree. Barro’s pizza, drinks, and cookies, were served and tickets for door prizes were drawn during the afternoon. Thanks to Lois Hanson, Cherrie Pierson, Ce-Ce Comstock, Jan Stash and their committee members for organizing this event.

President Tom Meek introduced the recipients of the 10 and 20 years of service awards. Carol Horan and Pat Kryzak received a 10-year pin and a PebbleCreek gift card. We were pleased to give five volunteers 20-year pins and PebbleCreek gift cards this year. Judy Ayers, Wally Campbell, Kathy Harris, Rayma Scalzo, and Jenny Schafer were those long-time volunteer recipients. Rayma Scalzo, the Kare Bears Founder, received a plant in appreciation for her dedication to the organization. Rayma and her husband, Joe, have moved to the Robson Reserve, but she will always be involved with Kare Bears.

Kare Bears Volunteer Spotlight—Fran Feld Wiley

Thomas Meek

Your Kare Bears of PebbleCreek has been providing many services since 1995 and will continue for many years to come. If you visit the Kare Bears website, karebears.org, you will see the many services.

Kare Bears has more than 200 active volunteers who keep these services going successfully. We use staff to field the many requests from equipment lending, drive requests, information to the community, medical presentations, and social gatherings. To complete these services we rely on people, perhaps your neighbor(s).

I wish to begin this article with one such dependable individual who has performed those services over the past 10 years. PebbleCreek residents make a call to Kare Bears House, 623-536-1200, and our office volunteer, Fran Feld Wiley, answers, saying, “Hello, this is Kare Bears!”

Fran Feld Wiley, our subject for this profile, began her life in the Bronx of New York City. Through the work years Fran achieved a successful position of executive director for a national trade association domiciled in Washington, D.C. She was well regarded by her national board as a leader and friend.

In the mid-1990s, Fran and husband, Harvey, considered moving to a warmer climate partially for Harvey’s health and since Fran’s board post could be performed over the internet anywhere, they started looking for that ideal place. At first, the couple considered Florida, but that was short lived.

Fran and Harvey then thought of the Phoenix area and there began discovery of various senior developments by the couple. The Felds decided that PebbleCreek was a community that offered them the best for both weather and resources.

Fran and Harvey began their golden years with Harvey moving into PebbleCreek in 1996 while Fran was still working in Washington, D.C. Since she could work from home she announced to her board her decision, and to her surprise, the entire board said, “take us with you, please” and she did in 1997.

Fran’s Harvey passed away in 2004 and Fran Feld met and married Charlie Wiley in 2007. Charlie began volunteering for Kare Bears in 2003-2005. Fran joined Kare Bears in 2013 and has been serving since as an office volunteer. Though Charlie passed away in 2022, Fran continues to serve Kare Bears.

During this interview, I asked Fran about Kare Bears: the services rendered, reactions by residents, and about Kare Bears as an organization. She experienced many complimentary responses from residents about medical equipment loans and especially about medical transportation trips.

Fran told me she loves helping people whether loaning equipment or arranging for non-emergency trips, some going many miles. Fran knows that Kare Bears fills a major need within PebbleCreek. She also pointed out that Kare Bears provides monthly presentations that are of great value to the community.

As to the organization, she believes Kare Bears is strong and will be there for the community for some time to come. Fran enjoys being a Kare Bears volunteer.

Learn more about Kare Bears at karebears.org.

New Pastor for PebbleCreek Community Church

PebbleCreek Community Church is excited to announce the calling of our new minister, Pastor Nate Watkins. He is a third generation pastor, following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father. Baptized at the age of 12, Pastor Nate began volunteering in ministry during his early college years. After college graduation, he immediately entered full-time local church leadership. As a follower of Jesus, he is deeply committed to equipping all believers to carry out the Great Commission as stated in Matthew 28:16-20.

Pastor Watkins later earned a PhD in Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary. His background includes extensive experience in pastoral leadership. He especially has a love for teaching Biblical studies and providing loving care to those seeking its truth. In addition to preaching, teaching, and caring for the children of God, music is a great passion for Pastor Nate and his wife, Rocio. They have been blessed with opportunities to lead worship in local, national, and international settings.

Rocio Watkins was born and raised by missionaries serving in Ecuador. She has a doctorate degree in educational leadership and will be leading a team of second grade teachers in Buckeye. Pastor Nate and Rocio have three sons, all of whom were raised to love God and love people. Jake (26) is a pilot in the Air Force stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base in Knob Noster, Mo. Noah (22) graduated from West Point Academy last month and is marrying his high school sweetheart this month. Carson (20) just completed his first year as a cadet in the Air Force Academy.

On July 2, we invite everyone to personally meet and greet Pastor Nate and Rocio as they commence their ministry to our community. PebbleCreek Community Church worships every Sunday in the Eagle’s Nest Ballroom at 9 a.m.

Spring in the Chianti Room!

Roxann Sykes

A spring dinner was held in Tuscany Falls Chianti Room for the members of the PebbleCreek Community Church on April 28. Those attending enjoyed a delicious array of appetizers while catching up with each other before some of our snowbirds flew home to their various states for the summer.

The dinner was then served with a variety of entrees followed by delicious dessert choices. The tables were beautifully decorated with pink and yellow carnations.

Music was provided by DJ Hank Tokarz, owner of Hankster’s Entertainment Service. Many danced into the night, grooving with familiar tunes.

Thank you to our Fellowship Committee for providing such wonderful events!

Come worship with us Sundays at 9 a.m. in the Eagle’s Nest Ballroom. We’d love to welcome you!

PebbleCreek Community Church Focuses on Missions

Edna DeFord

During April, the PebbleCreek Community Church was blessed to have three guest speakers reporting from two separate missions that our church supports regularly.

JOY! Brazil

The first speakers were Kathy and Edmur Ribeiro, a young couple who lead youth activities in Brazil as part of JOY! Brazil. They updated the congregation on their progress in reaching out to young teens with the Gospel message through sports activities, soccer games, camps, and Bible Study. Recently the local public school system in Brazil invited JOY! Brazil to implement similar programs that their schools cannot provide. In addition, the day before they left Brazil for the United States, a gentleman surprised Kathy and Edmur with a gift of six acres of his farmland that can be developed into a JOY! Brazil camp for young people.

In previous summers, they had to find and lease a camp in order to provide these teens with such an experience. At a camp, attendees get to spend several days away from home, enjoying nature, a swimming pool, a soccer field, comfortable beds, good food, and lessons about God’s love. Since this donated farmland is undeveloped, the dream of a designated JOY! Brazil camp will need monetary nourishment to build the required facilities and infrastructure. We are excited to partner with this growing ministry and will be praying for God’s people to provide the funding and manpower to make this dream a reality.

Samaritan’s Purse

Our second speaker was Merideth Rikli of Samaritan’s Purse and Regional Director for Donor Ministries. She shared a video depicting the various ways Samaritan’s Purse brings physical relief and the hope of the Gospel to hurting people around the world. Samaritan’s Purse is the world’s largest disaster relief organization for victims of wars, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine. Because of their well-established and reputable World Medical Missions and their own fleet of aircraft, they can get clearance to deliver emergency provisions to countries that may normally restrict commercial airlines. Merideth stated that the first 72 hours into any disaster are the most critical time frame to save lives, so their response teams strive to put a field hospital on the ground and make it operational in one day.

Samaritan’s Purse is a Christian organization mainly funded by donations and some grant assistance from other humanitarian organizations. For many years, PebbleCreek Community Church has been an active supporter of Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child. This program provides shoe boxes filled with toys, clothes, and school supplies to children around the world in 108 countries. We also help fund several other Samaritan’s Purse ministries such as Medical Mission Trips, Disaster Relief Funds, and the Wounded Patriot Camp in Alaska for veterans.

Through Merideth’s presentation, our congregation learned the details about recent rescue operations from the war in Ukraine and areas in the United States experiencing tornadoes and flooding. We were happy to hear how this organization has grown exponentially over the years into such a World Class Disaster Relief Organization under the leadership of Franklin Graham, CEO.

PebbleCreek Community Church is a nondenominational church that meets each Sunday (year round), in the Eagle’s Nest Ballroom at 9 a.m. You are invited to attend our services and enjoy wonderful music and solid Biblical preaching. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Share Bears Bingo Fun

Thomas Meek

Gosh, someone recently asked: “What is Share Bears Bingo?”

If you like or have heard of bingo, Share Bears conducts it each and every Friday except maybe Good Friday for what started as Super Seniors, older residents than most.

Well, Share Bears Bingo has brought out all age groups who find it fun, and it is inexpensive. So, if you love to socialize, please come to play every Friday from 11 a.m. to noon. You will enjoy it.

Share Bears Bingo is a special service sponsored by Kare Bears, and is organized and operated by a team of volunteers who provide a welcoming environment for senior residents who are unable to join other activities in PebbleCreek.

The team meets in the Eagle’s Nest Ballroom around 10 O’clock on Friday mornings to set up bingo. Bingo starts at 11 a.m. to noon. Players start arriving around 10:30 a.m. for both seating and choosing their special bingo cards.

Players pay 25 cents for two cards per game, and 10 games are played during the session. The tenth game is a cover all and $5 is added to the cover all as a bonus from Kare Bears. Total cost to play is $2.50 (quarters only). Share Bears has always kept the cost at 25 cents over the years to encourage seniors to play and socialize.

Water and snacks are served and provided by Kare Bears.