Saturday, December 7, 2013

Compiling a Resource Guide for the White Tanks Angels Foundation

I am going to begin the project of building a quick reference resource guide for our White Tanks Indigents Project.  I need all the help that I can get building this resource guide.  

To any of my friends from Arizona, if you could please give me as many names as possible of Newspapers, Funeral Homes and News Networks or Online Publications, I would really appreciate it. I will be doing the online research for it, but I want to make sure that I do not miss any and need to know from those who live there which publications are most common and what resources are most commonly used.

This resource guide project will include the following:

  • Newspapers: So that I can look up the obituaries and find the indigent listings that ask for more information. Also for contact purposes if we need to propose to any reporters to do stories to gain awareness to our causes.  
  • Funeral Homes: We will be working directly with the funeral homes regarding those who are listed as needing more information and will be buried as indigents.
  • News Network Information: Specifically ones the are local for White Tanks and ones that have shown direct interest in publishing stories about White Tanks.  To make any changes to the policies regarding indigent burials-- we will have to bring as much public awareness as possible to the issue.  Investigative Reporters are usually the most help in this matter.
  • Names of politicians for government positions in Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona. I would like to send letters to the Senators and other politicians to gain awareness to the issues of indigent burial policies, lack of next of kin searches, the stupid rules of White Tanks Cemetery (not being able to have headstones, etc...)  I really feel that we need to try and correct the out of sequence procedures for burying these loved ones at White Tanks Cemetery. And if we can't fix them being buried there without searching and notifying next of kin-- then we need to at least allow families to have appropriate markers to celebrate the life of their loved ones with shrines, stones, etc...


I realize that many of these indigents are homeless people. The significant amount of homeless individuals in Phoenix (and all over Arizona) is QUITE a controversial issue. Yes, some of these people have made choices that led them to where they end up-- but does it make them any less human?  Does it mean that they deserve to be placed in the ground without any family to mourn their passing? I do not feel that it does.  Each life that God gives on this earth is a life worth celebrating, no matter how off track the person may have gotten. We are OUR BROTHER'S KEEPER and we need to what is necessary to give these people the dignity and respect that they deserve!

I know that to get to the root of this problem, it really takes outreach to the homeless, mentally ill, substance abusers, etc... but I can't do that.  I can only do the little bit that I can from across the country- but I feel that any effort made is better than no effort made.

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