History

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. We have added safety stipends to purchase equipment and training that underfunded departments can't otherwise afford, scholarships for family members of officers & firefighters seeking a higher education or trade, H.E.R.O.S. fund for various financial hardship cases. We provide services and financial aid to ALL public safety members throughout Arizona. We stand behind the men and women who stand behind the badge.

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, 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.

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.