{"id":420807,"date":"2025-12-03T02:17:24","date_gmt":"2025-12-03T02:17:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/420807\/"},"modified":"2025-12-03T02:17:24","modified_gmt":"2025-12-03T02:17:24","slug":"phoenix-family-helps-struggling-families-throughout-holiday-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/420807\/","title":{"rendered":"Phoenix Family helps struggling families throughout holiday season"},"content":{"rendered":"

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Phoenix Family<\/a> is helping struggling families and seniors enjoy the holiday season through comprehensive support programs across Jackson County.<\/p>\n

The organization has been selected as KCTV\u2019s December 3-Degree Guarantee winner for their work addressing poverty in multiple ways<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For seventh grader A\u2019jah Adams, Phoenix Family\u2019s assistance has been transformative. Adams said her education improved dramatically after connecting with the organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore I came here, my education was really bad,\u201d Adams said. \u201cBut ever since coming here, my grades have been up. Last year I finished the sixth grade with a 4.0.\u201d<\/p>\n

Food assistance provides stability<\/b><\/p>\n

Adams said the organization\u2019s food pantry has eliminated worries about hunger in her household.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe food pantry helps a lot because when our food is running low and we have no money,\u201d Adams said. \u201cThey come in big.\u201d<\/p>\n

Phoenix Family operates across 21 housing complexes in Jackson County, Missouri. According to their website<\/a>, their mission focuses on \u201cdelivering support and opportunity right where they live\u201d through programs for children, families and older adults.<\/p>\n

Multiple support programs address needs<\/b><\/p>\n

President and CEO Kimber Myers Givner said the organization provides various forms of assistance.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a life coach program, we\u2019re constantly working to do direct emergency assistance,\u201d Givner said. \u201cWhether that\u2019s for rent, utilities, clothing vouchers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The organization offers a free afterschool program called HIKE<\/a> for parents who cannot afford daycare. Children spend nearly two hours selecting books and working with reading coaches.<\/p>\n

Second grader Bailee Miller said she enjoys the program\u2019s educational focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to read Lilo and Stitch and learn about different animals,\u201d Miller said. \u201cI like to do a lot of work because it makes me smarter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Education focus aims to break poverty cycle<\/b><\/p>\n

Givner said reading proficiency plays a crucial role in preventing future poverty.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they don\u2019t read on level, especially by 3rd grade, they\u2019re more likely to not graduate from high school,\u201d Givner said. \u201cWe know that if kids don\u2019t graduate from high school, they\u2019re more likely to live in poverty.\u201d<\/p>\n

KCTV 5 will donate up to $1,550 to Phoenix Family this December to continue this mission. Givner said the funds will support multiple programs. You too can make a difference by donating here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d be thrilled to put that into a food pantry. Put that into the HIKE program, help more of our seniors to remain independently living,\u201d Givner said. \u201cI can assure you that all of those dollars go to good use.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 KCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – Phoenix Family is helping struggling families and seniors enjoy the holiday season through…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":420808,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5131],"tags":[196599,5229,5643,1587,196601,40808,1589,196600,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-420807","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-phoenix","8":"tag-3-degree-guarantee","9":"tag-america","10":"tag-arizona","11":"tag-az","12":"tag-helping-struggling-families","13":"tag-holiday-season","14":"tag-phoenix","15":"tag-phoenix-family","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-united-states-of-america","18":"tag-unitedstates","19":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","20":"tag-us","21":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115653237018587924","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420807","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=420807"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/420807\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/420808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=420807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=420807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=420807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}