The Ahwatukee Community Network (ACN) is bringing passionate people together again, this time on the topic of children in foster care.

It started off as a challenge to celebrate Martin Luther King Day. In our class we were discussing how we could make a difference in the world. There are so many “NO Bullying,” “No Name-Calling,” and “No Hate” programs. They are good, but we felt they were all negative messages. We wanted to do something positive. One of the ways we have found to make a difference is to do a project called “100 Random Acts of Kindness.” Random acts of kindness are random and kind things you do for others. For example, you can hold the door for an elderly person.

PARC Treasurer Jim Jochim sits down with Allison Hurtado to discuss the Phoenix Loop 202 project at the Ahwatukee Foothills News office on Monday, May 13, 2013.

Editor’s note: This is part one of a continuing summer series on the proposed South Mountain Loop 202 Freeway.

Senate Republicans are proposing a nearly $8.8 billion spending plan for the coming year, a tiny -- 1.6 percent -- hike over current levels.

It’s been eight months since I had the great opportunity to join the Ahwatukee Foothills News. Since that time we have not made radical changes to the paper or wild editorial changes to the product. What I wanted to do was listen to our readers and take note of any changes that would aid this great community.

It was a small turnout with a lot of passion at the Protecting Arizona’s Resources and Children (PARC) meeting on Saturday, May 11.

Jewell Parker Roades, the Virginia G. Piper Chair in Creative writing, meets fans and discusses "Sugar," her new novel for middle readers. It tells the story of a 10-year-old girl who lives on a sugar plantation on the banks of the Mississippi and takes it upon herself to serve as the cultural bridge between the plantation residents and the Chinese workers who come to harvest the cane. Roades will sign copies of her book after the presentation.

A zoning adjustment hearing to discuss allowing a medical marijuana dispensary to go into a location at 48th Street and Warner Road was postponed due to an application error.

If the recent season finale of “Project Runway” left you jonesing for a fashion fix, look to Scottsdale on May 18.

After months of waiting The Lakes Golf Course has closed its doors, but the future of the course still remains unknown.

“Hi, Mike? I am so glad I got a hold of you. My computer is running so slowly that I turn it on, make coffee, take the dog for a walk, and bake a few dozen cookies then maybe; just maybe the website will be fully loaded. This computer is running terrible! Can you help?”

Meeting city, state, faith and education leaders on Thursday, Sen. John McComish, of District 18, voiced his continued support for Gov. Jan Brewer’s plan to expand Medicaid in the state at a panel hosted by the Valley Interfaith Project (VIP).

The Phoenix City Council voted on Wednesday to begin phasing out a portion of the city’s food tax on Jan. 1, 2014.

Here’s a sobering statistic: 46 percent of workers surveyed had little or no confidence that they will have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement years, according to the 2010 Retirement Confidence Survey, issued by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. So you may want to explore all possible retirement savings vehicles —including a variable annuity.

This Pulitzer Prize-winning play, staged by Arizona Theatre Company, follows up on the events of “A Raisin in the Sun,” adding new levels of intricacy to the discussion of race and real estate in America.

The Phoenix City Council will discuss options for the city’s food tax during a public policy meeting on Wednesday, including an idea to phase out a portion of the tax beginning January of 2014.

Having observed the failure of our education system by dumbing-down our children for the past 50 years, concern has to be expressed about the “new” Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI).

The last two sessions of spring football have led to two great rides during the regular seasons.

Connecting to Serve and the Ahwatukee Community Network would like to extend our gratitude to our panelists and the victims of domestic violence who attended our special forum on this serious issue April 16 at Mountain Park Senior Living.

When Arizona voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 2010, Steve Cottrell saw a way to combine his laboratory background and his interest in the plant he’d been studying since his 11-year-old son died of cancer more than a decade before.

The Kyrene School District may consider getting an appraisal on the parcel of land near Club West before sending out a Request for Proposals to sell it.

It’s been nearly 10 years since his science-fiction indie “Primer” left audiences spellbound, which makes the arrival of Shane Carruth’s “Upstream Color” an even more momentous occasion.