Latoya Ayala
May 13, 2016
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Latoya Ayala is President of the Estrella Foothills High School Football Booster Club. A relatively new nonprofit, the organization continues to find innovative ways to raise funds.
This year, the booster club's long term goal is to provide an end zone camera system for the program. A woman with ambitious goals... we are fortunate to have her in our community! My advice would be to get involved in the community as much as possible, whether it be volunteer work or community activities. It truly is very much like a small town, and there is so much to offer and appreciate here. THANK YOU Latoya for your time for being part of making Estrella a great place to play, volunteer, and live!
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Q. Where are you from and how did you move to Estrella?
A. I moved to Phoenix from Sioux City, Iowa in the late 80's and have spent most of my life in the Phoenix area. My husband, children and I relocated to Colorado, then to Las Vegas, NV. A job opportunity for my husband landed us back in Arizona, which allowed us to live in Estrella. It has always been a dream of ours to reside here. We had visited the community several times in years past, and fell in love with it immediately.
A. I moved to Phoenix from Sioux City, Iowa in the late 80's and have spent most of my life in the Phoenix area. My husband, children and I relocated to Colorado, then to Las Vegas, NV. A job opportunity for my husband landed us back in Arizona, which allowed us to live in Estrella. It has always been a dream of ours to reside here. We had visited the community several times in years past, and fell in love with it immediately.
Q. How long have you been here?
A. We have been in Estrella since 2012.
A. We have been in Estrella since 2012.
Q. Please tell me about your family.
A. My husband Steve and I are high school sweethearts and have 3 beautiful children. They are Steve who is 22 years old, Jacob who is a Senior at EFHS and graduates this month, and Selah who is a 7th grader at EMES.
A. My husband Steve and I are high school sweethearts and have 3 beautiful children. They are Steve who is 22 years old, Jacob who is a Senior at EFHS and graduates this month, and Selah who is a 7th grader at EMES.
Q. What are your interests in the Estrella community?
A. My time is pretty well spent devoted to the EFHS Football program. My son Jacob played for them for 4 years as quarterback. Football has played a huge part of our children's lives, and we love to give back to a sport that gives so much to our youth. When I do get free time, I love to get outside and take advantage of the many beautiful trails, and the lakes. My husband and I enjoy spending time walking the lakes, and fishing in them when the lakes permit. We spend a lot of time at Starpointe using the gym, and pool in the summer. We also take advantage of the many wonderful activities the community puts on at the lake. We feel fortunate to live in a place such as Estrella!
A. My time is pretty well spent devoted to the EFHS Football program. My son Jacob played for them for 4 years as quarterback. Football has played a huge part of our children's lives, and we love to give back to a sport that gives so much to our youth. When I do get free time, I love to get outside and take advantage of the many beautiful trails, and the lakes. My husband and I enjoy spending time walking the lakes, and fishing in them when the lakes permit. We spend a lot of time at Starpointe using the gym, and pool in the summer. We also take advantage of the many wonderful activities the community puts on at the lake. We feel fortunate to live in a place such as Estrella!
Q. Tell me about the EFHS Booster Club... What is your role and your goals?
A. The EFHS Football Booster Club is a fairly young non-profit organization, that began a few years ago. I was elected as President a year ago, serving with an entire newly elected board along side of me. We have made some great strides since, and I'm very proud of the work we've done for the football program. We've implemented some new fundraising programs, such as our Sponsor Banners. It was our inaugural year, and never in school history had we offered a banner program for our football field. We had 2 weeks to secure sponsors and it was a tremendous success! Our goal is always to surpass the amount of money raised from each previous year. Long term goal, I would love to provide an end zone camera system for the program.
Our fundraising allows us to provide necessities to our entire program (Freshman, JV, and Varsity). There is a tremendous amount of money required to run this program that most don't realize. Most high school football programs require at least $300 per player just to sign up and play high school ball. Our Head Coach Lamar Early runs an awesome program, and understands that most parents cannot afford this expense. He relies on our Booster Club to raise funds that help supply what he needs to get them ready for the season. That includes Spring and Summer uniforms, speed and agility training, travel expense, and of course meals. Football players eat a lot of food!
Every Thursday evening during football season, the night before our Varsity games I set up at the gym and feed roughly 80 players and our Coaching staff. Unfortunately our fundraising does not raise everything these athletes need to be fed each week. As a result I rely heavily on my football parents to help me feed them weekly during football season. I am always in search of donations from local restaurants willing to provide their weekly meal, which is always a treat and very much appreciated! The boys thoroughly look forward to their weekly meal before the game, it helps them to focus on the big game ahead.
A. The EFHS Football Booster Club is a fairly young non-profit organization, that began a few years ago. I was elected as President a year ago, serving with an entire newly elected board along side of me. We have made some great strides since, and I'm very proud of the work we've done for the football program. We've implemented some new fundraising programs, such as our Sponsor Banners. It was our inaugural year, and never in school history had we offered a banner program for our football field. We had 2 weeks to secure sponsors and it was a tremendous success! Our goal is always to surpass the amount of money raised from each previous year. Long term goal, I would love to provide an end zone camera system for the program.
Our fundraising allows us to provide necessities to our entire program (Freshman, JV, and Varsity). There is a tremendous amount of money required to run this program that most don't realize. Most high school football programs require at least $300 per player just to sign up and play high school ball. Our Head Coach Lamar Early runs an awesome program, and understands that most parents cannot afford this expense. He relies on our Booster Club to raise funds that help supply what he needs to get them ready for the season. That includes Spring and Summer uniforms, speed and agility training, travel expense, and of course meals. Football players eat a lot of food!
Every Thursday evening during football season, the night before our Varsity games I set up at the gym and feed roughly 80 players and our Coaching staff. Unfortunately our fundraising does not raise everything these athletes need to be fed each week. As a result I rely heavily on my football parents to help me feed them weekly during football season. I am always in search of donations from local restaurants willing to provide their weekly meal, which is always a treat and very much appreciated! The boys thoroughly look forward to their weekly meal before the game, it helps them to focus on the big game ahead.
Q. How can the community support your efforts?
A. What is surprising to me is that there are quite a few people that don't realize Estrella Foothills High School is here in Estrella. In our fundraising efforts we meet so many people, and the one constant we have all heard from residents and business owners is that they didn't realize there was a high school here. My hopes in doing this interview is that I can bring some recognition to our program and a bigger crowd to our football games, as well as invite the community and business owners to come and visit our Facebook and Twitter page to get our latest events. Also, if there are businesses or groups wanting to be involved in our Sponsorship program, we are always appreciative and glad to receive any help we can get. Our boys will be out in the community over the summer fundraising for the football program, it means a lot to them if we can get the support in that capacity as well.
A. What is surprising to me is that there are quite a few people that don't realize Estrella Foothills High School is here in Estrella. In our fundraising efforts we meet so many people, and the one constant we have all heard from residents and business owners is that they didn't realize there was a high school here. My hopes in doing this interview is that I can bring some recognition to our program and a bigger crowd to our football games, as well as invite the community and business owners to come and visit our Facebook and Twitter page to get our latest events. Also, if there are businesses or groups wanting to be involved in our Sponsorship program, we are always appreciative and glad to receive any help we can get. Our boys will be out in the community over the summer fundraising for the football program, it means a lot to them if we can get the support in that capacity as well.
Q. What is your advice to new people moving to the area?
A. My advice would be to get involved in the community as much as possible, whether it be volunteer work or community activities. It truly is very much like a small town, and there is so much to offer and appreciate here.
A. My advice would be to get involved in the community as much as possible, whether it be volunteer work or community activities. It truly is very much like a small town, and there is so much to offer and appreciate here.
Q. What is one thing you'd like to see in the Estrella community over the next 5-10 years?
A. In the 4 shorts years we've been here, we've seen Estrella grow so much! The one thing I would love to see like the rest of the community is a nice restaurant.
A. In the 4 shorts years we've been here, we've seen Estrella grow so much! The one thing I would love to see like the rest of the community is a nice restaurant.
Q. Anything else you'd like to add?
A. I would like to thank our many businesses and community members that have supported us over the years. It means a great deal to our football program to have your support and recognition to allow us to continue to grow! GO WOLVES!
A. I would like to thank our many businesses and community members that have supported us over the years. It means a great deal to our football program to have your support and recognition to allow us to continue to grow! GO WOLVES!
EFHS FOOTBALL SEASON GAME SCHEDULE
CAN BE FOUND ON ESTRELLA MOUNTAIN RESIDENTS'
PRIVATE FACEBOOK PAGE UNDER EVENTS HERE
ALSO FIND THE GAME SCHEDULE ON OUR
EXCLUSIVE ESTRELLA MOUNTAIN RESIDENTS WEBSITE CALENDAR HERE
ESTRELLA MOUNTAIN RESIDENTS SUPPORTS ESTRELLA FOOTHILLS HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
*LOOK FOR OUR BANNER AT EACH FALL FOOTBALL GAME
AND ANSWER OUR TWITTER TRIVIA QUESTIONS FOR A CHANCE TO WIN PRIZES
