Zion M. | Sands Branch

Eighteen-year-old Zion Makel, a senior at Deer Valley High School and member of the Sands Boys & Girls Club, is a young man who turned silence into purpose. At sixteen, he learned his mother would spend forty-five years in prison—a moment that shattered his world and left him feeling invisible.

Everything changed when he found the Club. Staff greeted him by name, believed in him, and helped him rediscover confidence he thought he’d lost. Zion showed up every day—sometimes biking through storms or walking miles—because the Club became his safe place.

In just a year and a half, he completed three AZYouthForce internships, served four Emerging Leader terms, and advocated for 1.5 million youth during a trip to Washington, D.C.

Zion hopes to pursue psychology or policing and dreams of working for Boys & Girls Clubs while continuing his education.