Coyotes, Multiple Partners Treat Phoenix Students to Day of Reading & Fun

The Arizona Coyotes sure know how to make reading fun.

The Arizona Coyotes Foundation hosted Coyotes Reading Fun Day on Thursday at Cloves C. Campbell Sr. Elementary School in Phoenix, a partnership with the Arizona Center for African-American Resources (AZCAAR), Delta Dental, FedEx, The Literacy Lab, Target, NOAH, and Wendy’s. Students in multiple grades enjoyed street hockey clinics, reading clinics, motivational speakers, and multiple giveaways throughout the day.

The result was smiles abound.

“We have partnered with so many different organizations to bring together a reading day, and it has been such an incredible experience,” said Alexis Meruelo, Chairwoman of the Arizona Coyotes Foundation Board of Directors. “It is our responsibility as a sports team to make a difference and leave an impact in this community. That’s how we put our foot forward and leave our mark – and our claw – in the sand.”

The trip was especially meaningful given that February is Black History Month in the United States. Campbell Elementary is part of the Roosevelt Elementary School District, located in south Phoenix, and has served the local African-American community for decades.

The Foundation’s partnership with AZCAAR played a central role in Thursday’s festivities, and Nadia Rivera, the Coyotes’ Chief Impact Officer and Executive Director of Foundation and Community Impact, said events like Coyotes Reading Fun Day are key to its core values, which include supporting underserved and diverse communities.

“Working with AZCAAR and other organizations, we came to realize that in the African-American community one of the topics that continually comes up is early childhood literacy,” Rivera said. “It was very serendipitous that we have a reading program the Coyotes have been operating for many, many years, and it became a natural fit. There’s a need, and we have this amazing resource, let’s expand our presence and bring this resource by way of our partners.”

Seventh and eighth grade students also listened to two motivational speakers: Mia Watson, an FBI Agent, and Roy Lewis, a local firefighter and former NFL football player. Lewis said that he grew up just minutes from where the then-Oakland Raiders played, but never had the opportunity to meet a professional athlete, past or present.

He vowed that if he ever made it to that level, he would pay it forward, and continues to live up to that promise to himself.

“The message that I always try to leave kids with is, have a plan, and then stick to that plan,” Lewis said. “If you don’t know how to create that plan and navigate that space, talk to a teacher, a parent, an adult, or a coach, and have them help you make that plan and progress throughout life.”

Campbell Elementary School principal Megan Callahan said the school was excited to engage so many of its students from kindergarten through eighth grade, including functional skills students, were able to participate in the day of reading and fun.

Students beamed as they received books, backpacks, and other gear as they participated in the many events the day had to offer.

“Reading is the most important thing here at Campbell -- having the necessary reading skills will help them in all of the grade levels, so we’re so thankful that our kids were able to benefit from this,” Callahan said. “We would love to thank the Arizona Coyotes and Delta Dental for coming today, and for all of the donations. Our students were excited, and they are ready to get reading in their new books.”

In the end, the kids at Campbell Elementary School were able to learn valuable life lessons from some of the most admired individuals in the Arizona community.

“They’re learning about sportsmanship and teamwork, which is so vital in the next generation and building the new CEOs of that generation,” Meruelo said. “Teaching the next generation that they can be the next CEOs of sports teams, that they can be leaders, you have to see it to believe it. That’s the example we’re leading with.”