FIESTA BOWL ORGANIZATION NEWSLETTER
JIM HATFIELD
Randal Norton
INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
BOARD CHAIR
OPENING KICKOFF Spring has sprung! While that adage pertains to the weather, it is also relevant to the activity at the Fiesta Bowl this time of year. It’s not yet Bowl Season and the Fiesta Bowl has been abuzz in the last few months with activity, impacting our community and preparing for a big football season to come. When you look at the range of what we have delivered, there is much to be proud of. In late March, we spread kindness around the Valley in our second annual Kindness Arizona tour, followed by the start of tenures for our new Board of Directors and Yellow Jacket Committee, opening applications for the community to seek grants for the Empowering Diversity Scholarship and our annual Charitable Grant Giving, celebrating Volunteer Appreciation Week, watching our alumni be selected in the NFL Draft and successfully hosting our Spring Summit and Path to the Summit for athletics administrators and coaches. Learn more about our activities and events in the pages that follow. The Path to the Summit took a leap forward this year, as aspiring head coaches and athletic directors from underrepresented populations in attendance experienced additional panels, networking and career development meetings to enhance their opportunities for advancement. This unique event has a mission to increase learning, interactions and hiring prospects for qualified candidates. There is more to come, as the Fiesta Bowl will help welcome more than 225 high school basketball teams to Arizona for a four-day mega event that features courts throughout State Farm Stadium this June. Make your plans to attend this free to the public one-of-a-kind event. Thank you for your support of the Fiesta Bowl and all our community impact, on and off the field.
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Board chair appointment The Fiesta Bowl Organization named Randal Norton as the Chair of the Board of Directors for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. The 20-year Fiesta Bowl Yellow Jacket Committee Member was appointed to the Fiesta Bowl Board of Directors in 2015. Norton will oversee the governance of the Board, helping lead and promote the nonprofit organization, its prominent role in college football and extensive community and charitable efforts. Norton served as Yellow Jacket Committee Chair for the first year of the College Football Playoff during the 2014-15 season, as Board Chair-Elect and on the Executive Committee for the last two seasons and was named Committee Member of the Year in 2013-14. Over the years, Norton has held leadership roles with a wide range of committees, including budget and finance, strategic planning and audit and compliance.
yellow jacket rising Carrying on a family tradition of community involvement and Fiesta Bowl volunteer leadership, Ramey J. Peru has been named the Fiesta Bowl Yellow Jacket Committee Chair for the 2022-23 season. As Yellow Jacket Committee Chair, Peru will lead the fundraising and participation efforts of this year’s committee, which is comprised of 120 community leaders. Peru served as Chair-Elect during the 2021-22 season. Peru has been officially involved in the Fiesta Bowl since 2009 but was an unofficial volunteer as a youth when he attended Fiesta Bowl events alongside his father, Ramey G. Peru, who was a Yellow Jacket Committee member. The son then joined the Yellow Jacket Committee in 2010 and was named Committee Member of the Year in the 2011-12 season, one year before his father joined the Fiesta Bowl Board in 2012-13. The younger Peru also met his wife, Kelly, through the Yellow Jacket Committee as both have been members for 10-plus years.
ELLIE THE TRAILBLAZER During the annual Bowl Season meeting, one of the Fiesta Bowl’s finest was honored with inclusion into the Leadership Hall of Fame. The honor recognizes individuals or groups who through their actions have contributed significantly to college football Bowl organizations specifically and to the entire bowl system generally. Ellie Ziegler became the first female inductee of the Bowl Season Leadership Hall of Fame this year, after an incredible legacy within the Fiesta Bowl Organization. Serving the Fiesta Bowl through devoted volunteerism and as a philanthropist, Ellie presided over the organization as Board Chair during a historic 2006-07 season and donated to the organization and brought the Ellie and Michael Ziegler Family Fiesta Bowl Museum to life with their generous donations.
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F I E S TA B O W L
KILLING IT KINDNESS W I T H
The Fiesta Bowl Organization delivered Kindness Arizona back in late March by taking the philanthropic focus of the Fiesta Bowl and bringing resources, supplies and cheer directly into the communities it serves. Over three days, Kindness Arizona made six stops around the Valley. Efforts included donations to schools and community groups, revitalizing facilities, providing clothing, supporting seniors and performing acts of kindness to support those within our community.
The Fiesta Bowl teamed with partners such as Salt River Project, Arizona Office of Tourism, Raising Cane’s, BHHS Legacy Foundation and NOMS Cookies to spread kindness throughout the week through volunteerism, donations and financial assistance to Arizonans in need.
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NEW TICKET PARTNER SeatGeek, the technology platform transforming the live-event experience for fans, teams, and venues, today announced a multi-year partnership with the Fiesta Bowl. As the Fiesta Bowl’s Official Primary Ticketing Partner, fans will use SeatGeek’s mobile app to buy tickets and enter Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl games, including this year’s College Football Semifinal Playoff matchup at State Farm Stadium in Glendale. SeatGeek will power Fiesta Bowl’s dynamic, easy-to-use ticketing system, helping their sales team manage their business efficiently and distribute inventory appropriately. Translation: SeatGeek will make it seamless for the Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl to get its customers their tickets when they want them, where they want them, and at the right price.
NEW PLATES The Fiesta Bowl Organization and the Arizona Department of Transportation have created a custom Arizona license plate with Fiesta Bowl branding. Featuring the recognizable sunburst logo and Fiesta Bowl wordmark, the plates can be ordered at azmvdnow.az.gov. There are non-personalized and personalized (six-character limit) versions available, in addition to a disability Fiesta Bowl plate. For every sale of the specialty plate, $17 of the proceeds support Fiesta Bowl Charities and programs across the state of Arizona that support youth, sports and education.
GET YOURS TODAY
HIGH SCHOOL HOOPERS The Arizona Basketball Coaches Association announced the return of the Fiesta Bowl Section Seven Basketball Team Camp presented by the Legacy Foundation. The four-day high school basketball mega-event will bring 229 teams and over 500 college coaches to Glendale, Arizona, from around the country. It will feature 12 courts of live game action occurring simultaneously from within State Farm Stadium. Fiesta Bowl Section Seven presented by the BHHS Legacy Foundation is sanctioned by the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) during the NCAA recruiting live period, with the event taking place June 16-19. This year, general admission is free to the public. The Fiesta Bowl joins Section Seven in its first year as title partner of the event, as part of the organization’s deep commitment to enhance organizations that commit to the success of their communities through youth, sports and education.
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BETTER TO GIVE RECEIVE T H A N
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At the heart of the Fiesta Bowl Organization is a simple mission: to enhance organizations that contribute to the success of their communities through youth, sports and education. Through its two annual bowl games in the Valley, the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl and the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, as well as community events throughout the year, Fiesta Bowl Charities selected 51 Arizona nonprofits through its 2021-22 Grant Cycle. Over 575,000 Arizonans will be impacted by the Fiesta Bowl Charities Grant Recipients!
2021-22 Numbers 406,941 youth impacted
258,610 benefiting from sports programming
346,945 benefiting from educational programming 6,180 books distributed
20,000 pounds of fresh produce provided
LEARN MORE
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VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT First Year as Volunteer: 2015 First Year as Fiesta Bowl Board Member: 2016 Favorite Fiesta Bowl Game: Last year’s Oklahoma State vs. Notre Dame was epic and for me to be a team liaison for the Cowboys made the whole experience incredibly memorable. Favorite Fiesta Bowl Moment: The second-half comeback win for Oklahoma State over Notre Dame was something I will never forget. The largest comeback in Fiesta Bowl history and to be right on the sidelines, with the team before, during and after to see how they faced adversity and came out victorious was awesome!
Kirk McClure Client Solutions JE Dunn Construction
Why I Serve the Fiesta Bowl: I have a servant heart and love to give back. It amazes me to watch how the Fiesta Bowl impacts the community with the money we raise: playground builds, Wishes for Teachers, grants we distribute. It is all awesome to see where we make an impact in the community I live. Favorite Job: Team Liaison and Par 3 Chair – both hold a special place with me and are experiences I will never forget. Interesting fact: I grew up in Michigan and came to Arizona to attend ASU where I played hockey.
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NEWSWORTHY
ABC15
FIESTA BOWL CHARITIES GRANT PROGRAM NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
ARIZONA’S FAMILY
FIESTA BOWL CHARITIES GIVING OUT $3 MILLION IN GRANTS TO ARIZONA NONPROFITS
FIESTABOWL.ORG
VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: BRIAN MALLORY
NEWSBREAK
TEACHERS RECOUNT HOW FIESTA BOWL GRANTS IMPACTED CLASSROOMS
SPORTS BUSINESS DAILY
FIESTA BOWL GOES WITH SEATGEEK FOR TICKETING
ARIZONA’S FAMILY
PHOENIX HS GETS SURPRISE INVITE TO BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
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PG 7
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