The Origin Story
BORN OUT OF
LIVED EXPERIENCE
Jay Jones didn't start Rising PHX Foundation from a boardroom. He started it from the streets — from knowing firsthand what it feels like when the system overlooks you, when resources run dry, and when hopelessness feels like the only option left.
Growing up in circumstances that could have defined him, Jay chose a different path. He chose possibility. And once he found his way through, he turned around and decided to build a road for others to follow.
What began as a simple belief — that every person deserves to be seen, supported, and reminded that they matter — became the foundation of a movement that has now touched thousands of lives across Arizona.
"I didn't build this for recognition. I built it because I've been the kid who needed a bed, the teenager who needed to belong, the adult who needed someone to believe in him first."
— Jay Jones, Founder
THIS IS
Jay Jones
As a speaker, coach, podcaster, and community organizer, Jay has built Rising PHX Foundation into a multi-program nonprofit delivering beds, bikes, vision care, youth programming, and emergency family support — all powered by ordinary people choosing to become extraordinary instruments of hope.
His Philosophy
WEAPONIZING
HUMANKINDNESS.
Turning everyday compassion into a strategic, unstoppable force for community transformation — one intentional act at a time.
Hope isn't a slogan. It's a strategy.
It's showing up. It's building relationships.
It's serving with intention.
It's becoming a catalyst for possibility.
Let's deal hope. Let's rise together.
Core Convictions
WHAT JAY BELIEVES
Hope Is a Strategy
Jay believes hope isn't passive — it's the most powerful force for activating change in a community.
Community Over Everything
No one rises alone. Real transformation happens when people show up for one another with intention and consistency.
Action Interrupts Hopelessness
Strategic, tangible acts of human kindness break cycles of poverty, isolation, and despair.
Story Changes Culture
When we tell the truth about where we've been, we give others permission to believe in where they're going.
