Category Reclaiming The Narrative

Unlocking What’s Already There

When Bryan C. was told by teachers that college wasn’t in his future, he didn’t accept that narrative. And neither did his family or the community that stood beside them. Through his involvement with Open Doors programming Bryan discovered what…

Connecting a Family to Critical Services

Our Arabic and Kurdish speaking Family Support Specialist, Qaydar Ali, helped a family new to Washington state settle-in to life here. The mother and daughter, originally from Iraq, were living in Michigan, but decided to move to Washington state because…

Bringing Family Voice to Olympia

Our Family Leaders showed us the power of their voices during a recent trip to Olympia. Family Leaders took time out of their busy schedules to join us for two days to meet with Legislators, and when they spoke, Legislators…

A Rising Advocacy Star: Mahad Dahir

Expect great things from Mahad Dahir. Mahad ran for Vice President of the Associated Students of Highline College (ASHC) and won! He is not only the first person from the Highline Achieve Program, a program for students with disabilities, to…

Cultivating Friendships and Connection

During the pandemic, we held sessions for youth over Zoom where we provided social emotional learning via arts and music. We are now back in person! “My son does enjoy Friendship circle so much and always looks forward to signing…

Keeping Families Safe and Together

Saadiya Hirsi was struggling to find the right services for her 9-month-old, Fadumalaki. She was waiting for services to be delivered in-person but became homeless after COVID-19, and Fadumalaki was then hospitalized. Our Case Managers provided the family with COVID-19…

COVID-19 Relief Program

During the pandemic, we provided families with emergency assistance to keep them fed, housed, and digitally connected. We have provided more than $15 million in emergency rental assistance in King County and employment opportunities for people who lost work.