TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Northside nonprofit Beads of Courage uplifts children and youth who are coping with serious illnesses. After moving into what was supposed to be their “forever home" earlier this year, an AC went down, and now they’re raising money to replace it.
“Home is where the heart is, and we have a heart for helping kids,” said Beads of Courage founder Jean Gribbon.
She tells me this building also serves as their international headquarters, where they support 60,000 children in nine countries daily.
The building has three AC units to cool each section, and the one that’s broken is in the main room where volunteers work.
“We knew that one of the AC units was dysfunctional and would need to be replaced, but it was in the winter when we moved in, and we thought 'we'll tackle that as our next obstacle in the future.' And so here we are in the heat of the summer," said Gribbon.
KGUN 9 visited Beads of Courage on Wednesday morning and saw they have fans and portable ACs running in every corner.
Due to the size of the building, there is a hefty replacement cost. Gribbon says they set a fundraising goal of $16,000.
“Our forever home is 4,200 square feet. So, it's a pretty large square footage space, and the AC unit that we need is more on the industrial side, commercial side, if you will," Gribbon said.
Volunteers are working in a different area while the nonprofit raises funds for a new AC.
“We're now in the other space of our forever home, which we consider our artist gallery," said Gribbon. "And so, we've been able to scaffold, if you will, an air conditioning in a cooler solution in the interim.”
Every bead that is distributed comes from Tucson. Gribbon says she’s thankful for her large team of volunteers who are adjusting their schedules to beat the heat.
“Our volunteer services is actually super critical. If you were to visit, you would not see a machine here that's packaging the beads that go out to hospitals to support children. It's a human labor of love," Gribbon shared. "The beads are all individually packaged by our amazing volunteers that support us in pursuit of our mission.”
You can support Beads of Courage by participating in their 2025 Summer Challenge. Details are here.
——
Jacqueline Aguilar is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born and raised in Yuma, AZ., she is no stranger to the unforgiving Arizona heat. Now this U of A wildcat is excited to be back in Tucson and is looking forward to involving herself in the community. Share your story ideas with Jacqueline by emailing jacqueline.aguilar@kgun9.com or connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
