Tucson Business Radio

IMPACT Ep1: John Klippstein, Sa’ad Allawi, Melvin Morgan

Play Episode Pause Episode

Mute/Unmute Episode Rewind 10 Seconds 1x Fast Forward 30 seconds

00:00 /

RSS Feed

Share

Link

Embed

GUESTS:
John Klippstein, OV Optimist Club-Past President 
PO Box 68171 
Oro Valley AZ 85737
520-591-2537
ovoptimistclub@gmail.com
Orovalleyoptimist.com 

The son of famed Chicago Cubs pitcher Johnny Klippstein and a former pitcher himself, John Klippstein (aka Klipper), has called Tucson home since 2003. He’s built a solid reputation in the automotive services industry, having completed more than 100,000 service transactions in Oro Valley, Marana, and Tucson, and has been active in his community in a variety of ways. One of his passions is the Oro Valley Optimist Club where he has served in a variety of positions, including President. He also supports youth sports and is a huge UA fan!

The Oro Valley Optimist Club (OVOC) has been serving the youth of this community since November 20, 2002. Currently, there are 25 members that support 12 different youth groups throughout our community. We consider ourselves a “small but mighty” club and we are hoping to change the “small” part of that sentiment by increasing our membership. We sponsor one fundraiser each year, “Scramble for Youth Golf Tournament”, which we are also in the process of expanding. The OVOC has made a positive difference for the youth in this community by annually raising funds for Pennies for Childhood Cancer, Project Graduation, Pima County Youth on Their Own and Arizona Youth Partnership, just to name a few. In addition to providing financial support, the OVOC is involved in service projects such as Dispose-A-Med, Shop With A Cop and Drug Awareness day. We also serve the youth in this community with our education programs such as Student of the Year and Oratorical and Essay contests.

Our mission is to “promote good health, positive citizenship, and lifestyle in the youth of northwest Pima County.”

The OVOC  seeks to support the Oro Valley Police Department(OVPD) by establishing the OVPD Retired Police Canine (K-9)Fund that is separate, but under the umbrella of the OVOC Youth Services Fund, a 501c3 entity. The fund will be used to reimburse a K-9’s handler for out-of-pocket expenses incurred for non-routine medical care for retired police dogs. The K-9s are often adopted by their handlers when they retire, and most go on to become beloved members of their families. However, retired K-9s can experience costly medical challenges. Most agencies, cities, or counties provide the K-9s with veterinary care during their working career, yet it’s not uncommon for the agency to discontinue to pay for medical costs after retirement. Thus, the responsibilities fall to the handler. 

That’s where the OVPD Retired Police Canine Fund comes in. This monetary effort will ensure the K-9s have proper medical care during retirement for expensive procedures due to work-related injuries. The fund will truly benefit the dogs after their working careers are complete. 

Sa’ad Allawi, Director of Strategy and Operations
Healing Arizona Veterans 
7598 N. La Cholla Blvd 
Tucson, AZ 85741
203-820-9308 
sallawi@comcast.net 
healingazvets@gmail.com 
healingarizonaveterans.org 

Sa’ad Allawi is the co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Performance Logic Inc. He has 35 years of experience in consulting, 20 of those to healthcare organizations in various capacities. Prior to co-founding Performance Logic, Mr. Allawi led Nextera’s healthcare practice. Before that, he built and was the chairman of William Mercer’s healthcare provider practice. Prior to that, he built and was the director of APM’s Operations Improvement program. In addition to healthcare, Mr. Allawi worked in other industries. He was the Director of Business Development for AI industries and worked for McKinsey and Co., where he was a consultant to Fortune 100 companies and public sector organizations. He was an engineer with CA Parsons, the turbine generator manufacturers, and a section leader for MW Kellogg, petrochemical design engineers. He served on the Advisory Boards of a number of Healthcare Service and Technology companies and the Private Sector Development in Iraq for the CPA. He was a prior president of Oro Valley Rotary and Board member for Healing Arizona Veterans. He is an extensive public speaker on management and the Middle East. His work at Healing Arizona Veterans covers many aspects, including lobbying the State of Arizona to pass HB2513 (unanimously) for supporting the use of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy to treat veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury.  

Summary of Sa’ad’s nonprofit’s work in the community and the IMPACT he has. 

Healing Arizona Veterans uses donations to sponsor the treatment of military veterans suffering from wartime TBI and PTSD. The treatment utilizes Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) and adjunctive therapies at private facilities.

Melvin (Butch) Morgan, President 
Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 106 
P.O. Box 40903  
Tucson, AZ 85717-0903
816-719-8546 -/-home 520-838-0528 
butchmorgan@yahoo.com 
www.tucsonnamvets.org 

1963-1967 Marines Cpl. (E-4)
!969-1971 Army Guard Spc. (E-4)
1972-2004 Air Force SMSgt. (E-8)
Active Service 26 years 10 months 18 days
Total Service 39 Years 10 months 18 days
Born in Wewoka, OKLA September 1944
Raise in Carthage MO and Gradated Carthage Sr High 63 / Have an AA degree.

On March 3, 1963, I enlisted in the Marines Corps on the delayed program to go on active duty in July of 1963. I was a senior in Carthage Sr. High when a recruiter from the Marine Corps came in and gave a talk to all seniors. There were other recruiters there as well, but the Marine gave the best talk of them all and looked the best in his Blues.

I left for Kansas City to finish the processing and leave for boot camp on July 6, 1963. July 7 was the day I was sworn in with 12 others and given orders for San Diego MCRD.

My days with 7th Motor at Camp Pendleton CA were some of the fun days driving the 5 tons the first two and half years there.

I left for Vietnam in August of 1965 and return August 31 of 1966. We made landing from Oct to Dec of 1965 when we left the Ships for good on Dec 24 for our base camp at PHU BI Vietnam. All my memories of my time in the Marine Corp were good ones and only two or three close calls in Nam weren’t so good. Most of Vietnam was a very nice place.

The biggest challenge I had was in Vietnam learning how to work with the people there.

I lived in other countries as a young kid but learning how to work with people of another country was defendants.

What I learn as a Marine I took with me my hold life as to how to care and work as a team for the men and women around you and as a person.

As a person who had a hard time learning in school in some subject, I would say and still to young mem and lady today stay in school and go to on higher if you can. If you join a service, get all the schools you can there.

I have told this to my grand-kids many times don’t go to school and put things off for someday you are going to wish you had learned it back then. Never stop learning.

I am still servicing veterans today where I can help them and learning from them.

This is my career in the service:

• Marines: Motor Transport 7motors / 1motors / 3motors / Guard Co.
• Army: Engineer B Co Carthage MO.
• Air Force Reserve: Air Cargo 77MAPS  Kansas City
• Air Guard: / Life Support / Airfield Manager 180AS/139AW St. Joseph Mo
• I had many other jobs. Feed Mill Hand / Hog Farming main two.
• Left for Vietnam Aug 5, 1965, and return home Aug 31, 1966
• Service at HUE / PHU BI Vietnam area
• Married September 10, 1966, to Lois Wescott now of 53 years
• One son Aaron Morgan two Kids: Live in Boston Mass.
• One Daughter Stephanie Morgan Ables three kids: Live Weston MO
• Move to Tucson in September 2010 from Kansas City MO
• Join Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 106 in 2011
• Chapter President 2016-2018, Reelected President for 2018-2020
• Chapter Membership / Museum Dir / last two years Nam to Sand Jam Dir
• On Tucson Board of Veterans Affairs / on VVA State Council  /Esperanza En Escalante Board

About VVA Chapter 106

VVA Chapter 106 provides help to Veterans in need by way of (paying gas/electric/rent/phone).  These are a one-time thing. Also, we have paid for meals on a wheel of up to 6 months. Have help with bus fare/hotel room for a couple of nights. Each year the Chapter helps to the tune of a between $6600 to $7800. We are a large Chapter in the State of the 8 Chapter. Members about 225.

• We have a Car Show and Nam Jam now calls Nam to Sand Jam where we raise the funds.
• We donate to Veterans Org each year around about $2000 that needs help.  Our Chapter is 36 years old.

Our Motto: Never Leave Any Man Behind or Women.

SHOW HOST:
Barbara McClure, Executive Director  
IMPACT of Southern Arizona 
3535 E Hawser Street 
Tucson, AZ  85739                                                    
520-825-0009 / Mobile Phone: 206-915-0919 
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.