BIO ~ Gary Coxon
Gary grew up in San Manuel, AZ. His family was one of the 1st to live there.
He graduated from the University of AZ with a degree in Civil Engineering. He spent his career working on large, complex engineering & construction projects principally for electric utilities and the US government. Because of his work, he & his family moved a number of times including an 18 month assignment in England’s Lake District (our favorite).
Gary was a registered Civil Engineer in several states and a Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers. He has served on numerous Boards of Directors including banks, hospitals and civic & charitable organizations. Gary has been a Rotarian for more than 25 years & currently serves as Foundation Chair for the Oro Valley Rotary Club.
After retiring in 2010 he & his wife moved back to the Oro Valley area. Gary & his wife have 2 adult children and 5 grandchildren. They love to travel. Gary has been to about 100 countries including business & personal.
BIO ~ David Thatcher
Principal of Edge High School, Northwest campus
My name is Dave and I am the Principal of Edge High School, Northwest campus. I have served in that capacity for the past 5 years.
My professional career and life experiences have given me insight into the challenges students face in today’s world. I have over 28 years of experience as an Educator with a M. Ed. in Educational Leadership, Certified Athletic Administrator, father, coach, and leader. I know how to help adolescents overcome challenges and look forward to sharing this knowledge with them to help navigate their future and unleash their talents and potential.
I grew up in Wyoming and moved to Tucson in 1986. I graduated from Amphi High School, then attended U of A where I received my Bachelors in History. I started my teaching career at Amphi and then moved to Canyon del Oro High School, teaching World History, Economics, and American Government.
I then received my Masters in Ed Leadership from NAU and have spent the past 21 years as an administrator in TUSD, Amphi and with Pima JTED. I have sponsored many after school clubs and coached several sports during my career and truly enjoy spending time with students in and out of the classroom.
I have been married to Michelle for 30 years, she is a Naturopathic Doctor who has her own practice on the Northwest side of town. We have 3 amazing kids; Madison who graduated from U of A and works in theater as a Stage Manager, Gavin graduated from NAU majoring in music performance and education focusing in Percussion, and Easton who will be a senior at U of A as a wildlife conservation major. We live on the Northwest side of Tucson and have three rescue dogs that take up a large amount of time. I enjoy the outdoors, hiking, and camping. I like to cook, spend time with my family and travel whenever possible. I’m a Broncos and Wildcats fan and watch sports as regularly as possible.
Email Address: davet@edgehighschool.org
Company Phone: (520) 877-9719
Barbara McClure, Executive Director 
IMPACT of Southern Arizona
3535 E Hawser Street
Tucson, AZ 85739
Phone: 520-825-0009
barbara@impactsoaz.org
www.impactsoaz.org
SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter |
Barbara McClure wakes up each morning passionate about going to work at a place that improves lives and inspires futures every day! She has been the Executive Director of a Tucson social service nonprofit called IMPACT of Southern Arizona, for ten years. What is it that keeps you passionate about your role Barbara?
Barbara has been a visionary and planner with decades of experience as a small business owner and in nonprofit leadership; her innovative ideas and strategic thinking, along with a talent for bringing the community together, has helped grow IMPACT five-fold in a very short time. Her talents and interests are diverse but all center around helping people, improving the community, bolstering education, building capacity and sustainability, being vocal about the rights and conditions of others, experiencing art, nurturing all inhabitants of your garden, and enjoying life to the fullest.
And now Barbara is about to experience another exciting chapter in her life with hosting a brand-new Radio Show Podcast here on the Tucson Business RadioX Network starting in November.
IMPACT of Southern Arizona is a 20 – year old social service nonprofit stabilizing families and seniors, and moving people out of poverty. IMPACT’s programs are designed to stretch household budgets so earned income can be spent on necessities such as improved housing conditions, fuel to get to work, utilizes, and needed medical attention and prescriptions. Its clients are your neighbors! People come to IMPACT because it is a welcoming place where they are always treated with dignity and respect, and where they find resources, referrals, coaching, and help to attain the skills that can move them forward into self-sufficiency.
Barbara grew up in Pasadena CA, moved to Long Beach for college, got married and started our family then moved to Seattle area ten years later. Took our youngest son on an 11-month motorhome trip to get to Tucson – Homeschooled for 10th grade.
We vacationed at a rustic cabin when I was growing up, where we had no phone or television; and spent all our time outside fishing, hiking, horseback riding, listening to old radio shows, playing pool, reading comic books from the local small grocer, and using our imaginations all day long. I always admired the superheroes who defended people and cities like Gotham and Metropolis, so when our three boys were born, we named them after familiar character: Colin (Bryce for an overlay of Bruce Wayne, Kent, and Parker. Our first grandchild was born last year, and as in the family tradition, named Logan, after the Wolverine. I used to always tell them they were my superheroes – and they still are today!
Barbara loves working with numbers and has always loved math and the organization of things, so accounting seemed perfect, but I soon realized that I if I became a CPA I would have to spend many months inside doing tax returns, and that did not appeal to me as a long–term career! I have a great imagination and enjoy creating things, so thought I should find a better path that might nurture that side of my personality. I was working in the shipping industry in SoCal at the time and fell in love with import and export, so shifted my majors to Marketing and International Business. Those were wonderful fits, and I imagined graduating and moving to the largest port on the planet, in Germany; then, I met my future husband and things took a different turn.
A little bit about how Barbara got into Nonprofit work:
All along with my husband and I were always involved in nonprofits and community volunteer opportunities, and often said it was too bad we could not make a living doing those things we loved so much. Leadership roles in PTO, Boy Scouts, Historical Societies, Junior League, Elks, Rotary and more. Then when we moved to Tucson I looked for a local opportunity to impact my community. A Board position was about to open at IMPACT, and my local bank branch manager, Peggy Smoot, suggested I would be very passionate about getting involved in the mission work there. I worked in the Food Bank.
There are thousands of nonprofits in Tucson. What makes IMPACT Unique is that they bring the community together to stabilize families and move people out of poverty. Our true success lies in partnering with a large number of businesses, agencies, social clubs and other nonprofits. We invest $2.5 million in the community each year, and we do it all with a lean staff of amazing professionals supported by more than 170 volunteer shifts each week! We have put great systems in place to run efficiently, effectively and with a commitment to sustainability and integrity, protecting the community’s investment in our work, striving for perfect audits, being innovative, building capacity and most importantly – treating everyone with dignity and respect. We are an award-winning nonprofit with numerous nods to incredible customer service. Our clients are your neighbors… We improve lives and inspire futures of people living in Southern AZ.
So, IMPACT is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, and you have been at the helm half that time. Share with me the things IMPACT has accomplished over the years, and the things you have planned for this celebratory year.
