Moving Beyond Poverty: Innovations and Partnerships will feature innovative practices and practical solutions for the success of struggling children and families in Thurston County.
In November 2015, Thurston Asset Building Coalition, United Way of Thurston County and the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound hosted an event raising awareness about poverty in our community. In January of this year, United Way of Thurston County published their ALICE report which revealed that 1 in 3 households struggle to afford basic necessities month-to-month.
This second event in the Moving Beyond Poverty series will inspire action by providing examples of collaborative approaches to secure housing and financial stability, positive youth development and comprehensive health services for vulnerable citizens. It will feature three top-of-the-line leaders discussing innovative collective impact projects that benefit children and families. The event will also feature a discussion on the role of and opportunity for advocacy in our region.
The event will feature Michael Mirra, Tacoma Housing Authority CEO, describing how they used housing resources and teamed with their school district and the city to improve outcomes for low-income children and families. The keynote speaker Mary Jean Ryan, longtime social innovator from Seattle, who will engage attendees around the results of the Roadmap Project that aligns and focuses schools and nonprofits together to better serve and support the success of students and adults from cradle to career. “These examples will inspire us to build on and expand the great collaborative work already going on in Thurston County” said Mindie Reule, Thurston Asset Building Coalition Director.
“This event will also highlight some of our notable local innovations and collaborative approaches. We are fortunate to have an array of private and public organizations committed to working together on the complex social challenges facing our community.” said Paul Knox, Executive Director of the United Way of Thurston County. “Participants will also take time to discuss how we can more proactively advocate our local and state policy makers to help improve opportunity and conditions for all our residents.”
There is still time to register for Moving Beyond Poverty: Innovations and Partnerships, which will take place on Tuesday, May 24 from 8:30am to 3:00pm at the Lacey Campus of South Puget Sound Community College located at 4220 6th Ave SE, Lacey, WA 98503. Visit http://thurstonabc.org/poverty for event information or to RSVP.
