A special event celebrating the art of expression by our current featured gallery artists Pamela Fingerhut, Diane J. Huff, and Margit Kagerer.
Join Master Gardener and Monarch Tagger, Adiane Hopkins, Director of Education at Butterfly Wonderland, as she shares how small changes in your yard can make a big difference for Arizona butterflies, including monarchs. You will also learn why monarchs are tagged, what we have learned by tracking them, and how each of us can contribute to their protection.
Discover how paleontology reveals the ancient world through fossils, prehistoric life, excavation, and scientific clues. Taught by accomplished STEM students, this free session helps grades 1–5 learners build curiosity and critical-thinking skills while exploring what paleontology can look like as a future career. Each participant will uncover “fossils” and use evidence to reconstruct prehistoric life.
Travel the globe with National Geographic explorer Dan Buettner through all four episodes of the original Blue Zones docuseries, discovering how the world’s longest-living communities create longer, healthier, and more fulfilling lives. Enjoy stretch breaks, mindfulness activities, trivia prizes, and conversation between episodes—or drop in for a single stop on the journey.
Teens ages 14–18 are invited to join the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Cadet Program — a unique opportunity to learn about law enforcement, build leadership skills, and serve the community. Weekly Tuesday afternoon sessions provide hands-on training and real-world insight into public safety. This is a drop-in program—students can start at any time.
Join Dr. Brian Browne and take a tour through the brain's major structures and networks—and define what they are and how they change with age.
Join in for this free session and become a weather scientist for the day where you will discover what makes our atmosphere so exciting! Students will learn how clouds form, why storms happen, and how meteorologists predict the weather. Then students will participate in a fun, hands-on cloud-in-a-container experiment and create a tornado model to explore air movement and pressure.
Come to our haunted desert for the 7th Annual Prickly Pear Festival! This free, family-friendly event features prickly pear treats and products, demonstrations of juicing, jojoba oil pressing and mesquite flour preparation, plus face painting, caricatures, a haunted-desert photo opportunity, and an interactive storytelling performance. Come in costume and kick off Halloween with fun, food, and desert-inspired festivities for all ages!
Discover the fascinating world of Arizona’s bats and their essential role in the desert ecosystem. Hally Cokenias, co-founder of Arizona Bat Rescue, explores the biology, behavior, habitats, and ecological importance of the state’s 29 bat species, including their role in controlling insects and pollinating native plants. Gain a deeper understanding of these often-misunderstood animals and the vital role they play in our desert.
Discover the history, culture, language, and agricultural traditions of the O’odham and Piipaash, members of a thriving community bordering Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, and Fountain Hills. Explore how their ancestors lived along the Gila and Salt Rivers, including innovative approaches to water delivery and crop cultivation. Presented for free in partnership with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community.
Whether you know us as Foothills Community Foundation or The Holland Center, we're celebrating 40 years of bringing people together, and we'd love for you to join us! Over four decades, our organization has grown and evolved, bringing people together through programs, events, education, the arts and countless shared experiences. Along the way, we've built lasting friendships and a wonderful community of people who have helped shape who we are today.
Explore the forces and sounds that shape our world! Taught by accomplished STEM students, this free session helps grades 1–5 learners discover the basic laws of gravity and how sound travels and is processed by the human body. Students will verify Newton’s gravitational laws through an experiment, see a theremin demonstration, and observe sound vibrations through a “dancing rice” activity while exploring physics as a future career.
Bring your family, friends, and four-legged companions for a free community event celebrating pets, RV life, and connections that make a difference. Meet adoptable dogs, explore Newmar RVs, watch mobile grooming demonstrations, discover local pet-care resources, and cool off with ice cream. Hosted by RVOptimizer, this event brings people and pets together while helping deserving dogs find loving homes.
Join us for a leisurely stroll through our local native desert park — led by a Desert Awareness Naturalist — and learn about Sonoran Desert upland plants and how they survive. Walks are the 1st Saturday of the month December through April, begin at 10 a.m., and last for 60-90 minutes. The Nature Trail is relatively flat, and the Saguaro Trail is slightly uphill.
The Sonoran Desert has sustained its own remarkable ecosystem for thousands of years. But the rapid urbanization of Arizona and the broader Southwest has put that balance under serious strain. As Arizona and the surrounding states face large cutbacks of Colorado river water, understanding our role is crucial. Join us for a community conversation about our unique Cave Creek environment.
Teens ages 14–18 are invited to join the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Cadet Program — a unique opportunity to learn about law enforcement, build leadership skills, and serve the community. Weekly Tuesday afternoon sessions provide hands-on training and real-world insight into public safety. This is a drop-in program—students can start at any time.
Join in on an all-ages, interactive live music and storytelling performance that uncovers Arizona’s rich blended heritage through traditional folk music and dance. We will hear revived tunes showing how cultures converged to create a unique sound, reminding us to connect with the beauty of our state’s open skies, deep canyons, and vast forests.
Unplug and join us for a day of fresh air, fun and adventure at the Jewel of the Creek! Our signature program, the Desert Awareness Committee, and the Desert Foothills Land Trust for the 14th annual Desert Discovery Day. Explore the Sonoran Desert, learn about its past and present inhabitants, meet native wildlife, and enjoy hands-on activities for all ages.
Looking to make a difference in Carefree and Cave Creek? Join us for this free community event featuring local nonprofits in one place. Meet representatives, learn about missions and volunteer opportunities, ask questions, and sign up for volunteer training. Discover ways to turn your skills and passions into meaningful local action—all while enjoying a free light lunch.
How can American education better prepare students for the future? Explore the challenges facing K–12 education, their implications for civic engagement and workforce readiness, and potential paths forward. This timely discussion examines innovative learning models and the growing role of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning, opening a conversation about how emerging technologies could help improve student outcomes.
Teens ages 14–18 are invited to join the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Cadet Program — a unique opportunity to learn about law enforcement, build leadership skills, and serve the community. Weekly Tuesday afternoon sessions provide hands-on training and real-world insight into public safety. This is a drop-in program—students can start at any time.
Join this free session where students will take a journey inside the human body! Students will learn how major organs and body systems work together, including the heart, lungs, brain, muscles, and bones. Students will conduct a heart-rate experiment to investigate how activity affects the circulatory system and they will build a working lung model to see how breathing happens.
What fuels the brain, and how does its ability to use that fuel change with age? Join Dr. Brian Browne—a nutritional neuroscientist with more than 20 years of experience in aging, dementia, and nutrition—to explore how the brain uses glucose, the role of insulin resistance and ketone bodies, and how changes in brain metabolism may contribute to age-related cognitive decline.
Teens ages 14–18 are invited to join the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Cadet Program — a unique opportunity to learn about law enforcement, build leadership skills, and serve the community. Weekly Tuesday afternoon sessions provide hands-on training and real-world insight into public safety. This is a drop-in program—students can start at any time.
Explore the science of astronomy and how you can get started stargazing at home with Kevin LeGore of Focus Astronomy.
Join us for the 5th Annual Winter Artisan Market, presented by The Holland Center and the Sonoran Arts League! Shop a wonderful selection of handcrafted gifts and one-of-a-kind creations from talented local artists and makers. It’s a fun way to kick off your holiday shopping, support local artists, and maybe even find a little something for yourself. 🎁 Admission is free, so bring a friend and come enjoy a festive day of shopping and creativity!
Join us for a leisurely stroll through our local native desert park — led by a Desert Awareness Naturalist — and learn about Sonoran Desert upland plants and how they survive. Walks are the 1st Saturday of the month December through April, begin at 10 a.m., and last for 60-90 minutes. The Nature Trail is relatively flat, and the Saguaro Trail is slightly uphill.
Join us for the 5th Annual Winter Artisan Market, presented by The Holland Center and the Sonoran Arts League! Shop a wonderful selection of handcrafted gifts and one-of-a-kind creations from talented local artists and makers. It’s a fun way to kick off your holiday shopping, support local artists, and maybe even find a little something for yourself. 🎁 Admission is free, so bring a friend and come enjoy a festive day of shopping and creativity!
Teens ages 14–18 are invited to join the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Cadet Program — a unique opportunity to learn about law enforcement, build leadership skills, and serve the community. Weekly Tuesday afternoon sessions provide hands-on training and real-world insight into public safety. This is a drop-in program—students can start at any time.
Scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated and knowing what to look for can help you protect yourself and the people you love. Join us for an informative and practical session designed to make you feel more confident in recognizing scams and protecting yourself and your loved ones. Discover proactive, helpful tips and tools you can put to use in everyday life.
34250 N. 60th St., Bldg. B
Scottsdale, AZ 85266
(480) 488-1090
info@hollandcenter.org
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