Skip Carney – Mesa Life Options

Growing up in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Skip Carney was constantly surrounded by opportunities to give back to the community. Not only did the local university encourage civic engagement, but his mother, who was designated the first lifetime member as PTA president at his elementary school, set a standard that Skip was encouraged to follow.

“Our family just had a sense of community service and civic engagement from those early times,” he said. “I sort of just caught this thing in terms of civic engagement pretty early.”

Skip was active in community service programs during high school through his involvement with the Boy Scouts and as a member of the City of Fayetteville Recycling Committee. When it came time to find a job, Skip sought a profession that offered opportunities for community involvement, and city management provided that chance.

During a 30-year career that included 13 years in Des Moines, Iowa, and seven years in Little Rock, Arkansas, volunteer efforts were always a part of the job.

“That was the thing that really drove me toward the profession,” Skip said. “The idea of public service at the local government level is a really rewarding kind of thing. You see a lot of things happening to be involved with, including various local projects and city services. It was a natural fit for me.”

At 55, Skip and his wife, Peggy Jane, took early retirement and moved to Arizona to care for her mother.

“In one day we went from full-time paid work to full-time unpaid work,” he added.

Once established in Mesa, the couple’s life philosophy of giving back to the community continued. This time, however, they were able to expand their civic engagement services. Today, the couple is caring for not only Peggy Jane’s mother, but also her aunt and a 1-year-old grandson. Skip also serves as a board member with the Mesa Symphony Orchestra, the Funding Review Panel at the United Way, and his community’s homeowners association. He is also active in numerous committees at his church.

As a participant in the Mesa Life Options program, Skip was the first person to be mentored by one of the MLO peer mentor volunteers. Other community efforts have included volunteering at the Heard Museum Guild, Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix Zoo Friends, Boyce Thompson Arboretum, Riparian Institute, Taliesin West, and Audubon Society.

Recently, Skip counted up the number of groups he is actively involved in and came up with a total of 12 separate commissions, committees, or groups. Although managing the time might seem like a difficult task to many, Skip has no plans of stopping any time soon.

“It’s meaningful work,” he said. “We see the value of the people involved with these things. They are really good folks.”