When we moved to Maricopa four years ago, we thought it was just going to be a short-term stop on our journey to find somewhere “better” to live. I remember driving out to see the home we purchased, sight-unseen. As we drove down that 14-mile strip of desert along State Route 347, I remember thinking, “Where are we going?” 

Within the first week of us being here, people showed up to help us unload our moving truck, phone numbers were exchanged with new friends and a love for this community was kindled. Four years later and we are still loving the people we have connected with; so much so that we have resisted our desire to move elsewhere.

The only real draw for us to move to another city is to give our children more extracurricular opportunities. You see, we are a homeschooling family and rely on experts and mentors to guide and direct our children to discover and perfect their talents and hobbies.

If you’re a parent in Maricopa, you know how limited extracurricular options can be — especially for homeschool families. We decided that this needs to change. Too often, there just aren’t enough classes, camps or teams available during the hours that work best for our family.

We knew it was time to put our superpowers to good use — we are gatherers and entrepreneurs. Together, with the help of the community, we have built Home Is Our Sanctuary — a company designed to bring families together and create opportunities for our kids to learn and grow.

We need your help to create the type of community that all of our children deserve. Our Facebook group, Maricopa Extracurriculars, is where we will be asking you what you want us to bring to the community. If you want Spanish classes, we will bring you Spanish classes. If you want leatherworking, we will bring you leatherworking. The point is, we need your feedback so we can bring you what you want. The best way to get us that information is by joining our Facebook group and participating in our surveys.

With your ideas and input, we’re building a network of locally led classes and camps in everything from art and pickleball to sewing, mindfulness and more — all taught by skilled instructors right here in our own community.

We will be serving you through a variety of outlets including group classes, one-on-one tutoring, online and private homeschool pod enrichment groups where we come to you and your friends.

Let’s make Maricopa a place where families don’t have to settle. You can make our community stronger by inviting every local homeschooler, parent and friend you know to join our community on Facebook.

We are kicking off the summer with a foundational art class taught at the local library. Click here to sign up — there are only a few spots remaining as of Friday.

In the fall, we plan to bring you pickleball camps that also teach principles of emotional resilience. Join our group to sign up for the art class today. Spots are limited!