By Cyrus Guccione
Mail

Hoping to become more involved within its local communities, Target has set a goal to log one million hours of volunteer hours companywide.

For Fountain Hills, that means a goal of 460 hours for the fiscal year, which began in February 2024 and ends in January 2025.

So far, the Fountain Hills team has logged a total of 154 hours year-to-date, a strong start only three months into their fiscal year.

Jessica Miceli is Target’s Service and Engagement Team Lead who believes it is well within their ability to obtain 460 hours, especially since last year, Target employees exceeded one million community service hours.

Hitting the ground running in February, Target hosted Coffee with a Cop where the community was invited to attend and chat with members of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and Fountain Hills Town Council members.

“That was very pivotal for us,” Miceli said. “Bringing that event into the store was definitely big and the mayor (Ginny Dickey) showed up which was very neat.”

Hosting these in-store events is a priority, says Miceli, making it easier for Target team members to attend and helping foster more connections with members of the community.

In the past, in-store events included a Children’s Christmas Shopping Spree with the Fountain Hills Elks Lodge #2846 to spread Christmas cheer for local children and Mayo Clinic’s “Shop with a Doc” which teamed up students from McDowell Mountain Elementary School with doctors and medical students to select gifts for themselves and their families.

For Valentine’s Day, Target employees gave out cookies and filled out Valentine’s Day cards for patients of Hospice in the Valley Arizona and are organizing a meal-making event for hospice patients.

In-town community events

As a town with dozens of non-profit organizations, Miceli says she is eager to host events throughout Fountain Hills after attending the Volunteer Expo and returning with a handful of new connections.

Last year, Target employees helped paint the bathrooms at the American Legion Post 58.

As a member-led organization that cares for several senior veterans, it can be difficult to keep up with the maintenance of the building, Miceli said.

As a volunteer, Miceli has worked with Fearless Kitty Rescue and has reached out to plan more events in the future. She is also looking to schedule larger community service opportunities with Target employees from several locations.

“We’re definitely trying to get some bigger projects going where we can get multiple stores together in the area,” Miceli said, who recently led a store remodel at the Target on Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard.

Miceli says she plans to hold Coffee with a Cop events quarterly at Target to foster discussion among town officials and residents.

“Events like this are pivotal to create open conversations, trust, and a way to also appreciate the officers for their service to the community,” Miceli said.

Target is currently hosting its car seat trade-in event through April 27 where patrons can recycle their car seats and receive 20% off toward a new car seat, car seat base, travel system, stroller or select baby home gear.

Target is located at 16825 E. Shea Blvd. and open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For more information, call 480-837-8557 or visit target.com/sl/fountain-hills/1432.

We invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Cyrus Guccione can be reached at cguccione@iniusa.org.