Feeding the Community During Winterhaven Festival of Lights

December 19, 2024

By Matt Sterner

The holiday tradition comes alive each year when the annual Winterhaven Festival of Lights pops up in midtown Tucson.

The colorful home decorations, lights, and giant trees of the Winterhaven neighborhood bring out thousands of people each year for a holiday stroll. The festival runs from 6 – 10 p.m. now until Saturday, December 28 at Fort Lowell and Country Club.

Winterhaven Festival of Lights (Photo by Matt Sterner)

While there is no entrance fee for the Festival, folks are asked to bring nonperishable food or make monetary donations to the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona as they enter the neighborhood.

“We appreciate all our Winterhaven neighbors do to make this festival such a fun and cheerful tradition,” says Malea Chavez, CEO of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. “It means even more to us since it’s our second biggest food drive of the year. We’re grateful for all who donate.”

Donations may be dropped off at any of the neighborhood entrances. Last year, festival visitors donated nearly 38,000 pounds of food!

Most Needed Food Items:

Founded in 1976, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona provides food for people in need, advocacy, and nutrition education throughout southern Arizona including Cochise, Graham, Greenlee, Pima, and Santa Cruz Counties. The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is a member of Feeding America.

Donations may also be made online at communityfoodbank.org.

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Article By

Matt Sterner

At a very young age, Matt Sterner was gifted with the artistic ability to masterfully roll a burrito to the highest of standards, but the wrapped medley of delicious innards wasn’t his first love. Matt’s first true love was a combination of reading, writing, and creating. He grew up reading comics, the ingredients list of his shampoo and conditioner bottles, choose-your-own-adventure books, and the Scrabble dictionary — something he found useful when challenging his grandmother to a game.

He attended college at New Mexico State University and graduated with a degree in Digital Filmmaking. One of his favorite classes was screenwriting because he became responsible for the story’s birth before it came to life on-screen. After school, Matt took on numerous positions at a local television station in Tucson. From dealing out stories about heartbreak to producing “fluffier” content for a lifestyle broadcast, he learned what it takes to adapt to the many emotions the world of media can stir. Since 2017, Matt has dabbled in the culinary world of Tucson as well as San Diego, California from time to time.

If you’re in the mood for strange stories, head over to his pride and joy, wonkytimes.com. And in case you’re curious — yes, after all of this time, he still manages to roll a killer burrito.

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