GIVING BACK
One of the “soul” purposes of this festival is to give back to the community. The originating festival founder, Toni, lost her second son, Trey, when he was just 7 months old due to a grievous medical misdiagnosis. She was told by Trey’s doctors that he had asthma but when he died 7 days after her final appointment where she exclaimed to the doctor “I fear that he’s going to die. His cough is so bad”, her worst nightmare was realized. Trey did not have asthma. He died of severe pneumonia-a claim the doctor chalked up to her just being an overreactive mother. This festival is in memoria to her son, one of which she intends to benefit the Arizona community and non-profits.
The festival is thrilled to announce that it has chosen Creative Drill Sergeants as the non-profit that they have partnered with for the 1st edition of their festival. Please read the information below to gain an understanding as to why they have chosen this outstanding organization to benefit from their festival proceeds.
The founders honor veterans in many ways such as giving them a discount of 50% off passes as well as providing very special gatherings during the festival. One of our festival founders, Jason-Toni’s fiance, is a proud Navy veteran whose mission is to give back to his fellow vets any way he can through the festival.
FLEUR is also looking for other organizations to partner with. If you are a non-profit interested in financially benefitting from this festival, please contact us on our Inquire page. We look forward to the possibility of partnering with you.
THEIR MISSION:
Creative Drill Sergeants empowers veterans, artists, and communities by providing innovative training, media production, and creative programs. They foster personal and professional growth through arts, media, and technology, equipping individuals with the tools to tell their stories, develop their skills, and find purpose in creative expression. Their programs focus on using media as a platform for healing, collaboration, and workforce development, particularly for those transitioning from military service to civilian life.
Operation Enjoyable Employment
Creative Drill Sergeants (CDS) is a Veteran Owned and Operated 501(c)(3) nonprofit. They help veterans with economic stability through their workforce development program, Operation Enjoyable Employment.
Creative Drill Sergeants provides technical and creative training in media production, broadcasting, and distribution to underserved communities and our nation’s heroes. By offering hands-on educational programs, CDS is cultivating a new generation of media professionals equipped to tell their stories and make their voices heard. They are helping Veterans develop their creativity and voice in the visual content creation world.
Their vocational skills/workforce development programs encompass the most important aspect of chronic care management and successful veteran reintegration and economic stability. We encourage everything to support this organization in any way possible. It's a tremendous cause!