'Tis the season for many holiday traditions and celebrations. No matter which holidays you celebrate, there is definitely a festive (though cautious) vibe in the air. Our festivities may be small this year, but I'm hopeful that the spirit of community, family, and generosity will prevail. We will miss doing our usual holiday cookie decorating event with teens and adult volunteers, but we will deliver some cheer where we can.  

December is my time to wrap things up (pun intended). I check off projects accomplished during the year, scramble to complete those still in the works, throw away old documents and archive items for future need, at home and work. This year that task is more important as we prepare to merge forces with the Boys & Girls Clubs and blend our staff and cultures to provide in-depth services to more teens in our Valley. We are grateful to have our supporters along on this journey and are working hard to ensure that all our teen programs are sustainable and healthy. That's why we need your contributions to our annual appeal. All the wonderful programs Teen Services provides need funding to go along with them. Your donations to Teen Services will forever remain dedicated to teen programming, even after we finalize the merger.

We have an interesting Cookie Jar challenge this year (see below), and we thank you for your support in meeting our goal.