Vashon YMCA

Mission: "Building a community where all people, especially the young, are encouraged to develop their fullest potential in spirit, mind and body."

About: "The Vashon YMCA is a satellite program center of the YMCA of Greater Seattle’s Fauntleroy Branch. The volunteer leadership of the Vashon YMCA is committed to a fundamental belief that every individual deserves the chance to develop to their fullest potential.

We work with the Vashon School District, PTSA, Vashon Parks District, as well as other island and off-island community and civic organizations to focus our collective energy and experience on this goal. In 2004, volunteers with the Vashon YMCA donated over 1838 hours of time to help meet the needs of our community. "

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Facing the Future

About: "Facing the Future: People and the Planet is a non-profit organization founded to help educate young people about complex global issues and promote critical thinking. We provide teachers, students, and the public with dynamic curriculum resources and community action opportunities that explore the global challenges of poverty, population, environment, consumption, and conflict, and tie these challenges to sustainable solutions that students can pursue in their everyday lives."

According to Executive Director Wendy Church: "The focus in k-12 education today is on core subjects: reading, writing, science and math. However, students today are overwhelmed and often rendered hopeless by what's going on with the world at large and what their place is in it. Teachers are faced with decreasing resources and increasing requirements to focus on core subjects and testing, and have little time or money to help students develop perspective as global citizens. And, while many programs exist that help students learn about the world through travel or languages, they are expensive and reach only a small fraction of students.

"Facing the Future affordably equips middle and high school teachers and schools with materials and training that help students make sense of their world, while at the same time enhance student achievement in core subjects. We provide standards-based curricula, professional development training for teachers and school-wide consulting on global issues and sustainability."

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Jewish Family Service

About: "Jewish Family Service is a comprehensive social service organization dedicated to serving the Jewish and general community in the Puget Sound region. JFS is one of the oldest social service agencies in Seattle, providing essential services to low income individuals and families, the elderly, children, people with cognitive disabilities, refugees, and victims and survivors of domestic violence. JFS has two primary goals: to move families and individuals out of crisis by providing for urgent, basic needs such as food, housing, clothing and job training; and, to help families and individuals improve the quality of their lives through affordable counseling, family life education and stronger connections to the community."

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Rwanda Partners

About: "Rwanda Partners was founded in August 2004 by Tracy Stone for the purpose of coming alongside the people of Rwanda as they seek to rebuild, reconcile and restore their nation from its tragic genocidal past. For years, Tracy had felt burdened by the pain of this tiny Central African nation and longed to find a way to respond to their many needs and encourage their efforts at healing and reconciliation. In the spring of 2004 this burden was translated into a vision for a non-profit organization called Rwanda Partners."

"I think it is vitally important," says Stone, "that the international community - and the west in particular - respond to the needs that Rwanda is facing today in their efforts to rebuild and restore their traumatized country. In the face of all that we didn't do to stop the genocide in 1994, I think it is our responsibility to do all that we can today to come alongside the people of Rwanda and help them in their efforts to reduce poverty, reconcile their people and seek to build a peaceful future."

With the popularity of the new movie Hotel Rwanda, the tragedy of the country's genocide of almost a million people has been brought back into the public eye. The Seattle Times wrote an interesting article last week about a recent lecture given by former Rwandans now living in the Seattle area.

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Seattle Times article

Lutheran Alliance To Create Housing

About: "LATCH is a grass-roots coalition of Lutheran church congregations, incorporated in 1990 to address the need of homeless and low-income families and individuals for decent, affordable housing within communities of mutual support and accountability. Currently LATCH owns and operates 208 apartments and houses in Bothell, Kenmore, Shoreline, SeaTac and the Greenwood and West Seattle neighborhoods of Seattle, providing stable homes to more than 550 people per year. "

Mission: "LATCH builds safe and nurturing communities that recognize the right to affordable housing, the importance of self-determination, and the value of mutual respect. We work collaboratively to develop and maintain housing; create resident-managed rental cooperatives; and advocate for public policies that address the needs of our communities."

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Childhaven

About: "Childhaven's primary goal is to provide early intervention and treatment in the lives of abused and neglected children ages one month through five years in order to reduce long-term harmful effects caused by maltreatment. Children receive treatment for emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect. They come to an environment that will help them form an emotional attachment to a primary caregiver, learn to know and trust adults, develop interactive skills necessary to form other secure relationships and bond to positive social values."

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Childhaven Opens Lake City Facility

According to the Seattle Times: "The youngest victims of abuse and neglect have a new facility serving their needs.

Childhaven, which operates therapeutic child care as well as programs for drug-affected infants, will open its fourth facility today, in Seattle's Lake City neighborhood. A staff of 15 will oversee care of up to 34 children, ages 1 month to 5 years old, who have largely been referred by Child Protective Services. "

Seattle Times

Childhaven

Seattle Times recognizes ElderHealth

Liz Taylor writes:"One of the factors that makes ElderHealth stand out in the care business is its philosophy toward its employees: It treats them fairly, intelligently, respectfully."

Full story

History: "ElderHealth started in 1976 as a grassroots organization responding to the real need in the community for care options for frail elders. Our first adult day center served a few dozen people in a storefront in Ballard. Today, we have multiple centers throughout Puget Sound and have helped thousands of people live healthier and fuller lives."

ElderHealth

FareStart: Giving Disadvantaged People a New Start

The saying, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” mirrors the intent and vision of FareStart, a Seattle nonprofit dedicated to transforming the lives of homeless and disadvantaged men, women and families.

FareStart works by empowering the homeless and disadvantaged to achieve self-sufficiency through life skills, job training, and employment in the food service industry. Since 1992 this nonprofit has become a leader in Seattle's social-service scene, a place for the down-on-their-luck to reinvent themselves, under the culinary guidance of celebrity guest chefs.

Participants come from homeless shelters, drug-rehab centers and prisons. (FareStart doesn't take violent offenders or people with chronic mental illnesses, and alcoholics and drug addicts must first complete a rehab program.) Each 16 week course has 45-55 students who are provided shelter and clothing. Then, under the supervision of a full time culinary staff, the students make 2,500 meals daily for shelters and local Head Start progams, for FareStart cafes, and for a catering service and restaurant. “Guest Chef” is a highlight of the program. Every Thursday, a top chef teaches students how to make elaborate, three course meals that are served to the public for just $19.95/plate. Reservations often fill up months in advance, as the meal is renowned for its gourmet delights. For youth FareStart offers a barista training program, a unique opportunity for at-risk youth.

Not only do the FareStart programs provide top notch instruction for work in food service industry, they also emphasizes life skills, such as conflict management, responsibility, and employment goal setting. Nearly 80 percent of Fare Start graduates are employed immediately upon graduation, and after three months, 80% of graduates are still employed. Fare Start has helped over 1500 people turn around their lives in the last 15 years. The FareStart restaurant, located at 1902 Second Avenue, is open to the public daily for lunch. For more information go to www.farestart.org . Now how about some fennel and garlic with that saumon au citron?