Our 2024 Honoree

Darleen Santore
“Coach Dar,” Bestselling Author, Occupational Therapist, & Performance Coach

Darleen Santore, better known as “Coach Dar,” is an author, licensed and board-certified occupational therapist, sought-after motivational speaker, former Phoenix Suns Mental Skills Coach, plus a leadership and mental edge coach to professional athletes, CEOs and business leaders around the world. Her new best-selling book, “The Art of Bouncing Back: Find Your Flow to Thrive at Work and in Life – Anytime You’re off your Game” (McGraw Hill), was released in February 2023.

The book’s inspiration was evoked after bouncing back from her own myriad of life challenges, including three strokes over the past 24 years, and is driven to help people awaken their greatness, achieve peak performance, and live out their purpose.

Coach Dar is best known for her mental conditioning work with athletes in the NBA, NFL, MLB, PGA and NHL.  Her coaching reaches far beyond the sports world to work with Fortune 100 executives and world leaders. Her passion is to help others say “no” to the status quo and raise the bar in life.

Coach Dar is the United States Ambassador for the Global Pay It Forward Day Initiative and the founding member of WISH (Women in Service and Hope) in Phoenix, which is part of St. Vincent de Paul. She has been honored by the WNBA with the Most Inspiring Women Award, was named a Trailblazer in Phoenix by Voyager Phoenix, and received the 2022 Diamond Award for Coaching Excellence in Professional Sports. She recently was honored with the 100 Women to KNOW Across America Award.

Coach Dar, who resides in Scottsdale, Arizona, has appeared on FOX Sports, TODAY, Good Morning America, SiriusXM Radio, The 700 Club, and The List, as well as on many other media outlets and international publications.

Community Lifeline Award

The Community Lifeline Award, given to a chosen Honoree at the Connections of Hope Gala, celebrates individuals who selflessly devote their time, talent, and resources to local causes. Each award recipient serves as a community role model, inspiring others with their personal and professional integrity, leadership, and compassion. In 2004, the award was named in honor of the inaugural recipient, Alfredo J. Molina, for his service to Arizona youth and our community.

Previous award recipients include Alfredo J. Molina (2004), Peter Thomas (2005), Carole and Bob Machiz (2006), Derrick Hall (2007), Linda and Bill Pope (2008), John R. Norton III (2009), Bridget Pettis (2011), Jerry Colangelo (2012), Larry Fitzgerald Jr. (2013), Jordin Sparks (2014), Donald Tapia (2015), Tom Hatten (2016), Erik Olsson (2017), David Alexander (2018), Sissie Roberts Shank (2019), Lorry Bottrill (2021), Mandy Purcell (2022), David Allred (2023), and Darleen “Coach Dar” Santore (2024).