Give Big is an annual celebration of our non-profit service organizations and a time to encourage you to donate to support them. It is sponsored by 501Commons, an organization that supports non-profits in many ways. This year the focus is on May 2 and 3 as days to Give Big, although you can, of course, donate to your favorite non-profit at any time, starting right now.
The Give Big website lists and lets you connect with 1,200 non-profit organizations in Seattle and surrounding Puget Sound neighboring counties, from Centrallia to Bellingham. On this website you can search for a particular type of organization, say, environmental organizations, that you’d like to support.
Included in the Give Big effort this year are eight organizations active in Wallingford. If you would like to help any of these we’ve listed below, just click on the organization name to go to their website. Look for a tab or a button to Donate.
Assistance League of Seattle works to remove barriers to education for under-resourced students of all ages. Operation School Bell provides elementary school children with new clothes each fall encouraging increased self-esteem, school attendance and academic performance. Through the Enrichment Scholarship Program, middle and highschoolers attend enrichment camps allowing for growth and skill development. The third program, Financial Aid for Education mentors and pays college tuition for adults wishing to earn a college degree. The Assistance League of Seattle partially funds their programs through a Thrift Shop located at 1415 N 45th St. It won King 5’s Best of Washington’s “BEST THRIFTING” award!
Boys & Girls Club provides support to young folks in the community through an after-school program and summer day camps. The Wallingford Club is located at 1310 N 45th St. They offer separate elementary school-age and teen programs. The after-school programs include homework assistance, arts and crafts and gym activities. Small group programs include activities such as drama, chess, photography, athletic instruction, cooking and reading games. The summer programs also include age-appropriate field trips and lunch.
FamilyWorks Family Resource Center (FRC) and Food Banks (next door to the Wallingford Branch Library) connect neighbors and families to nourishing food, essential resources, and a supportive community, so people can build resiliency to meet life’s challenges. The FRC hosts weekly playgroups in English and Spanish, operates a free Community Closet “thrift store”, offers referrals to family support services, parenting classes, and nutrition classes. The Food Banks (with locations in Wallingford and Greenwood) provide access to a wide variety of fresh produce, meat, dairy, and dry goods. In addition to distribution hours three days a week, the FamilyWorks Wallingford Food Bank provides Emergency “No-Cook” Food Bags, regular Mobile Food Pantry site visits, text-to-go & home delivery services, and weekend food for students through the PowerPack Program.
Historic Wallingford is a volunteer neighborhood organization with the mission of fostering an awareness of and appreciation for Wallingford’s history and architecture. They seek to connect residents and visitors with local history through our digital newsletter and activities like an architectural treasure hunt, lectures on architecture and building sustainability, and a digital-photo collecting initiative called Snapshot Wallingford. They led the successful multi-year effort to designate the Wallingford-Meridian Streetcar Historic District to the National Register of Historic Places. Historic Wallingford’s initiatives in 2023 focus on celebrating our neighborhood, with beautification activities like neighborhood cleanups and utility box art, a community-focused monthly radio show at the Farmers Market, and another self-guided exploration of Wallingford. Your support will help Historic Wallingford make these activities happen.
Solid Ground is an anti-poverty organization focused on assisting people living on very low-incomes, advocating for systems change, and helping keep folks from falling into poverty. Their programs span housing and homelessness, hunger and nutrition instruction, transportation services, advocacy for persons needing to access public benefits and training in financial skills. Solid Ground developed and operates six buildings that were surplused when the Navy left the Sand Point Naval Air Station, now Magnuson Park, and new townhomes and apartments on the Sand Point site, for a total of 175 housing units. It also operates a shelter for families escaping domestic violence and a family shelter that offers short-term housing in apartments. The housing services include case management and community resource and support services with the aim of finding permanent housing for the families as soon as possible. Solid Ground also operates the free downtown circulator bus and the ACCESS bus service that provides bus service for elderly and disabled folks who can’t rely on the Metro bus system..
Stone Soup is dedicated to creating a space where our youth can perform and develop their acting skills. They provide drama education enrichment programs at our location in Wallingford Presbyterian Church and to public and private schools in and around the greater Seattle area. Their goal is to expand young actors’ imagination through performance within Youth Conservatory, Stone Soup Kids, and after-school outreach programs.
Tilth Alliance promotes organic and sustainable practices using farms, gardens and kitchens as classrooms where people from all backgrounds can learn to grow, prepare and eat food. Tilth operates a growing garden and a children’s learning garden at the Good Shepherd Center, the Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Bradner Gardens Park in south Seattle. In May it will host its 40th annual edible plant sale at the Good Shepherd Center. It operates a free Gardener’s Hotline and teaches classes for educators and gardeners on topics like vegetable gardening, food preservation and cooking and permaculture. Their food security work includes distributing 30,000 vegetables bag as year as well as donating to the University District food bank. Tilth also runs school break, weekend and summer gardening camps for pre-K, elementary school age and early teens. It advocates for farmers and supports adoption of organic, regenerative, and sustainable agricultural practices.
Wallingford Community Senior Center (WCSC) is the place for positive and healthy aging. It creates and hosts vibrant programs and services for older adults and the greater Northeast Seattle community. Popular offerings include EnhanceFitness, bridge and mahjong, yoga, and community lunch. The center also has discussion groups, art groups, and plans special events and outings throughout the year. WCSC also has a dedicated social worker who is a geriatric mental health specialist. They can assess for dementia, depression, loneliness and provide a fall-risk assessment at home. They also assist adult children as they learn to care for their parents. The center also has space available for community groups to rent. Find “the hidden gem of Wallingford” on the first floor of the Good Shepherd Center, open 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
“They led the successful multi-year effort to designate the Wallingford-Meridian Streetcar Historic District to the National Register of Historic”
Correction: “they led the crass, willfully exclusionary effort in which only property owners were allowed a vote according to archaic rules:” despite being asked by hundreds of people to voluntarily adopt a more inclusive process – they refused.