About 100 Club

When tragedy strikes, the effects are swift and devastating. The 100 Club of Arizona recognizes the need to respond immediately with support and understanding. Whatever the need – financial, advisory or moral support, the 100 Club of Arizona is there to ease the pain of the family of those in fire, public safety or law enforcement who are injured or killed in the line-of-duty.

The concept of the “100 Club” was born in Detroit in 1952, following the fatal shooting of a young Detroit officer. Moved by the situation, William M. Packer, who was the largest Pontiac Dealer in the nation and a friend of the police commissioner, wrote to 100 of his friends encouraging them to donate to a fund for the fallen officer. He received a 100 percent response rate. Packer and the commissioner met with the expectant widow, reviewed her finances and arranged to pay off the mortgage on their recently purchased home, pay all the bills, set up an education account for the yet unborn child and deposited $7,000 in the widow’s checking account.

In 1965, a young Phoenix officer was killed in the line-of-duty. Several acquaintances with knowledge of the Detroit 100 Club got together and started the Phoenix 100 Club, and became an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1968. One of the earliest members was Frank Haze Burch. Frank’s father was the first Phoenix police officer killed in the line-of-duty in 1924, when Frank was just five years old.

The charter mission of the 100 Club of Arizona was to come to the immediate financial aid of the family of an officer who gave his or her life in the line-of-duty. As time passed, this mission expanded and changed. At one time, education assistance and medical insurance were provided to survivors. Today, these types of insurance benefits for survivor families are provided by various government branches. The 100 Club aims to provide any type of support needed by beneficiary families. The Club has even paid for a fallen officer’s mother’s yard to be mowed for several years, until her death, because the officer had always mowed her lawn.

Throughout the decades, the 100 Club of Arizona evolved its mission in a variety of ways. First, in 1994, the 100 Club of Arizona elected to provide immediate financial assistance to firefighters and law enforcement officers seriously injured in the line-of-duty, in addition to the families of officers’ who died in the line-of-duty. In 1997, Native American reservation tribal firefighters and law enforcement officers where added as recipients. Today, the 100 Club of Arizona supports all police, correctional, probation and parole officers, firefighters, and federal agents who are serving and protecting the citizens of Arizona. This includes all county, tribal, state and federal levels.

The 100 Club of Arizona and its members realize that money can never make up for the loss of or disability of a loved one, but it can be helpful in covering immediate expenses. In addition, the 100 Club of Arizona has a committee of experts, a Professional Advisory Team including members of the fallen officer’s agency, CPAs, attorneys, trust officers, brokers, financial consultants, insurance consultants and employee benefits consultants. This team, at the survivor’s request, will advise and counsel families in a wide-range of areas without cost or obligation.

In addition, the 100 Club has also added new benefit programs to enhance the safety and welfare of public safety personnel, agencies and families. Programs include the Peer 100 program, H.E.R.O.S., Safety Enhancement Stipends and the Scholarship Program. To learn more about these programs, click here.

The 100 Club of Arizona must continually grow its membership to meet the ever-increasing injuries and fatalities, and increase the amount of immediate financial assistance to public safety officials and their families. If you are a civic-minded individual and support the 100 Club of Arizona’s mission, there is a place for you among this group of extraordinary people. We simply want to help those who are always there to protect us.

Funds to assist public safety officers and firefighters are raised through membership dues, charitable campaigns, endowments and donations. The 100 Club of Arizona does not use telemarketing fund-raisers. The 100 Club of Arizona is a volunteer, benevolent, nonprofit, 501(c) (3) organization. Federal T.I.N. 23-7172077.

The 100 Club of Arizona is managed by a volunteer Board of Directors elected by the membership at the annual meeting. The Board meets quarterly or as needed to determine policy and direction, while undertaking the responsibility of stewardship for the 100 Club of Arizona.

Membership in the 100 Club of Arizona is open to everyone and provides minimum effort and maximum satisfaction. Members are invited to attend the Annual Banquet and Meeting, held each year in March. The Banquet pays tribute to fallen heroes and honors their family in a special ceremony, and also provides organization updates to members and public safety personnel.

The 100 Club of Arizona has more than 2,000 members, and continually seeks to raise awareness of its mission and gain new members from all walks of life. We have memberships available for individuals including teen, child, pet, senior and out-of-state residents, as well as joint memberships and Corporate sponsorships. As a member of the 100 Club of Arizona, you are asked to be a civic-minded individual, support the mission of the organization, pay annual dues, and that you don’t use your membership for personal or professional gain. Corporate memberships start at $500 per year, but are open ended. Some organizations have been able to provide as much as $20,000 annually. The fulfillment you receive from aiding families is a treasure that money can’t buy. To find out about membership opportunities, please click here.

Founding Members – Remembering those who started it all.

Lee Ackerman*, Eddie Basha, Troy Browning*, Frank Haze Burch*, Ira Lavin*, Frank Middleton*, Ken Patton*, Frank Peck*, Bill Shover, George Souvall*, Morris Tanner

*Deceased