Just Housing, Homeless Camp Residents Organize

Above: Michelle, a former medical assistant, lives at the Nickerson encampment for the houseless off Eastside Street in Olympia. She has gastroparesis, a digestive system disorder, and other chronic illnesses. 

By Invitation, Little Hollywood Visits Nickerson Camp

By Janine Gates

Little Hollywood

https://janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

“I had two closets full of shoes!” Michelle laughed, but then paused. “It almost makes me want to cry,” she added.

Michelle, a former medical assistant, has lived at the Nickerson homeless encampment, a wooded, 2.5-acre property located on Wheeler Avenue off Eastside Street in Olympia, for about three months.

She has always worked, and is waiting for her Social Security disability benefits to start.

From Pierce County, Michelle became homeless after a divorce, but says she is healthier now in spirit than she was while married.

Her decline into chronic illness began after colon surgery in August, 2014. She has gastroparesis, a digestive disorder in which the stomach cannot empty itself of food in a normal fashion.

Then she suffered her first heart attack in July, 2015.

She needs regular colostomy supplies but has no address for them to be delivered. Instead, she uses sanitary pads as a heavy duty, makeshift bandage for her stomach so she doesn’t soil herself. She is in pain, which perpetuates vomiting.

“I’m used to being the one who takes care of others, but I’m resourceful,” she says. “I grew up on a farm in Lewis County.” 

Michelle is just one of nine residents at the Nickerson Camp who has a story, illustrating how easy it is to slip into a life of homelessness and lose access to the everyday conveniences of modern life.

Above: A meal of ravioli at the Nickerson Camp.

Nickerson Camp History

The city recently bought the Nickerson encampment area for use as a future park.

Camp residents were served a 72 hour notice of eviction on July 12. The area has been a homeless encampment for many years, but this was the first time this specific property had been served with such a notice.

Last month, Olympia city council members put off the eviction until further notice.

It was the same evening the council declared homelessness a public health emergency and the optics didn’t look good to take action on both actions on the same night.

Then, on July 24, the city announced the proposed locations of two city sanctioned sites for the homeless. A council finance committee met July 31 to discuss financing options for those sites and other homeless response efforts.

Councilmembers will hold a study session on August 21 to discuss those financing options, which include current operating and capital budget monies, and the possible use of Home Fund sales tax dollars, parks funds, and emergency reserves from the city’s operating budget.

City manager Steve Hall says the Nickerson site is not an ideal site for a permanent camp due to the environmental sensitivity of the area. In reality, hundreds of Olympia residents are living in wooded areas around Thurston County and all of them are environmentally sensitive.

Residents of the Nickerson Camp are interested in being part of the solution.

Prior to the eviction notice being served, they had collected numerous bags of trash to take off the property. The bags have been removed by members of Just Housing, an all volunteer advocacy organization, without the assistance of the city. 

With boots-on-the-ground, the group works directly with the homeless on daily and long-term solutions to local homelessness issues and urges councilmembers to adopt realistic, cost-effective approaches to managing the city’s unhoused residents.

Above: Tye Gundel of Just Housing takes a call while sitting at the Woodland Trail trailhead near the Nickerson Camp. 

Tye Gundel of Just Housing visits the Nickerson camp and other homeless encampments several times a week. She not only listens to residents, she washes their laundry at laundromats, brings needed supplies, and facilitates communication among residents, councilmembers, the faith community, and other community social service providers.

“City staff and councilmembers are gradually taking steps to embrace some of our ideas,” Gundel said diplomatically this week.

Gundel has suggested numerous goals, policies and procedures regarding local homelessness since the group started its work advocating for open 24/7 restrooms in November 2016.

Recently, the group created several half-inch binders, one for each city councilmember and some for staff, chock full of solid local research and practical strategies. Gundel gave them to councilmembers prior to their July 24 study session on homelessness.

For example, Just Housing provides suggestions for regulating camping rather than imposing an outright ban.

One approach includes a “shelter-in-place” plan to working with existing encampments, in addition to the creation of alternative legal and safe encampments, like the two recently proposed emergency housing locations.

People will camp even if it is banned, because some people have no other choice, says Gundel.

The study session fell flat, as Just Housing and other community social service providers were not offered a seat at the table and the material did not appear to be used.

Now, as the days inch toward cold weather months, councilmembers are increasingly interested in making sure community partners and social service providers are included in future conversations.

In the meantime, Gundel will continue her efforts.

“I have had some great meetings with folks about structure and organizing the camp. 

We are also continuing to look for a partner for a camp. So far, two churches are interested. Our next step is to arrange a meeting with some representatives from the churches, the city, the camp, and some of our folks to go through more of the details of how we should move forward,” said Gundel this week.

Nickerson Camp Residents Speak to Little Hollywood

Above: Micky Nelson, 34, a resident of the Nickerson Camp, has twice addressed Olympia city council members during public comment time, and has ideas for organizing the camp.

Little Hollywood visited the Nickerson Camp property, by invitation, with Gundel in late July and last week.

Many residents of homeless encampments do not want to or cannot live in an enclosed shelter or camp-like environment.

Mickey Nelson, 34, moved from Texas to Washington State in 2009. He and his girlfriend, Jackie Taylor, 39, have lived at the Nickerson Camp since January, making them the longest, consecutive resident campers on the property.

Nelson is a jack-of-all-trades and has worked in construction, remodeling, steel fabrication, welding, auto body, detailing, lawn care, dog services, and cook.

Nelson has back issues which began with a motorcycle accident, then a car accident, in which he was a passenger, three months later. He is on state disability and is reapplying for Social Security. He says he has a long standing mental health history and is a participant of Capital Recovery Center programs. 

Capital Recovery Center is a community nonprofit, peer-supported agency that has special programs such as Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH), a point of contact for adults experiencing homelessness who also suffer from mental illness.

Nelson says the camp is on good terms with its housed neighbors, and one neighbor brought them trash bags. He credits Taylor for cleaning up the camp, almost single-handedly. Trash is gradually taken off the property by individuals with Just Housing, without the assistance of the city.

“Evicting us off the property would push us back into downtown, or on other city property,” he said. “Since we have been here, foot traffic and noise has gone down. It’s a safe place for the sick, youth, pregnant women, and domestic violence victims.

“We are looking to be a camp that has a positive impact on society. Not all of us have the desire to live indoors because we’ve been homeless for so long. We have to do the best we can with the best we have.”

Nelson hopes to start a nonprofit whose mission it would be to purchase property for homeless people to camp on and use as a safe place.

He is co-director of InReach, an organization organized by the homeless community. In collaboration with James Joy of The Jungle, Olympia’s largest homeless encampment of about 200 residents, Nelson is creating a practical survival guide for the houseless. The guide would be updated every six months.

“I’ve done so many bad things in my life as a kid. Doing this is my way of atoning for the people I can’t ask forgiveness from, for whatever reason. I’m making it up to the universe,” he said. Nelson has an eight year old son and a 21 year old cousin living elsewhere.

“I want this world to be better than mine was,” he said.

Jackie Taylor, sitting nearby, was born and raised in Olympia, and patiently waited to tell her story. 

To relieve her stress and anxiety, she likes to bicycle at night.

“I don’t do daytime. I can’t be around traffic and people,” she says.

She says the state department of social and health services provides outdated information, such as telling women who are homeless to go to Bread and Roses, a former shelter for women that has been closed for years.

It is her goal to create a donation supply drop off center at the Nickerson Camp, similar to the one at The Jungle.

She also wants a more organized camp. All the area camps are currently self-managed through peer-support but Taylor wants the city’s support in establishing a resident list and process for approving people as new residents.

Taylor brainstormed a Nickerson resident code of conduct and her wish list for the camp: it must be clean and sober, no theft, no bullying, and no violence. She would appreciate it if the city would provide the camp a small dumpster and a porta-potty with a sink.

“This is my safe haven – a small community where people follow the rules and help out. I don’t want the city to spend a lot of money,” said Taylor.

Taylor says the Just Housing organization has been supportive of their work. “You couldn’t ask for anyone better,” she said.

Little Hollywood often writes about homelessness issues, and unsheltered, street dependent individuals. For more information about these issues, go to Little Hollywood and use the search button to type in key words.

Independent, local journalism takes time. If you appreciate community journalism and photojournalism, please consider a donation to Little Hollywood. A PayPal donation link is located on the sidebar of Little Hollywood’s main page at www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com. Other ways to donate are also available. Thank you!

A Stronger Latinx Community, Una Fuerte Comunidad Latinx

Above: Bill Fishburn, president of the Hispanic Roundtable of the South Sound, gives Olympia immigration attorney Steffani Powell a hug after Powell gave a passionate, 30 minute speech detailing the repercussions of the Trump Administration’s immigration plans and policies.

South Sound Hispanic Roundtable Summit Highlights Community Resources, Immigration Issues

By Janine Gates

Little Hollywood

https://janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Una fuerte comunidad Latinx, A Stronger Latinx Community, was the theme of the first Hispanic Roundtable of the South Sound community summit held in Tumwater on Friday.

About 200 people attended the event held at the Capital Region ESD 113 event facility in Tumwater.

Many were representatives of area schools and colleges, state agencies, and nonprofit, community agencies that serve the Latinx population in Thurston, Lewis, Grays Harbor, Mason and Pacific counties.

Cosponsored by Educational Service District 113, participants were invited to collaborate, create conversations, and identify opportunities, gaps, and barriers regarding Latinx access to employment, housing, public health, education, legal, financial, and community resources.

According to 2016 Washington State Office of Financial Management statistics, Latinos comprise 12 percent of the Washington State population. Thirty-two percent of Latinos in Washington are immigrants. 

Latinos comprise eight percent of Thurston County’s population and 10 percent each of Lewis, Grays Harbor, Mason and Pacific counties.

Above: Business cards and organizational materials were exchanged throughout the day as new relationships were forged during conversational sessions at the Hispanic Roundtable community summit on Friday. 

Left to Right: Maira Ramirez, Kaleidoscope Play and Learn facilitator at Child Care Action Council, Karin Verrill, League of Women Voters Thurston County, Aleyda Cervantez, program assistant for outreach services at Highline College, Carlos Ruiz, president, ALPFA Seattle, an organization that promotes opportunities for Latinx advancement, and Pat Dickison, immediate past president of the League of Women Voters Thurston County.

The summit’s timing meant that recent national and state immigration issues and policy shifts focusing on Latinx youth, children and families took center stage.

Olympia immigration attorney Steffani Powell’s voice broke as she described the Trump Administration’s immigrant deportation plans and policies and the hundreds of parents and children who are currently being separated.

“Trump’s vision of America is exclusionary….As of last Sunday, 300 of the 550 children currently in custody at U.S. border stations had spent more than 72 hours in custody…almost half are younger than 12,” she said.

On Thursday, it was confirmed that as many as 120 asylum seekers were transferred from Texas to the federal detention center at SeaTac. The group consists of mothers who arrived with their children seeking asylum and were prosecuted for unlawful entry. Their children are being held elsewhere, with their location unknown to the mothers.

A solidarity day of action at the SeaTac Detention Center in support of the mothers being detained was scheduled for Saturday afternoon.

Above: Olympia immigration attorney Steffani Powell described the Trump Administration’s widespread immigrant deportation plans and policies at the Hispanic Roundtable Community Summit on Friday.

“This is beyond sickening….this isn’t really about law and order. Separating immigrant families is cruel and immoral. Many of the people crossing the border are fleeing from violence in Central America and seeking asylum in the United States, which they have a legal right to do.

“U.S. Homeland Security recently announced the end of temporary protective status for approximately 57,000 Hondurans living legally in the United States. In other aggressive policy moves, over the next two years, more than 300,000 individuals from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Nepal and Sudan, who are legally in the U.S. with permission to live and work, will be asked to depart voluntarily or be deported,” she said.

Powell said that as of March, there were 680,000 pending national immigration court cases. Each individual has just one and a half hours to present their asylum case and some judges have a 99 percent denial rate.

According to the American Immigration Council, there are 980,000 immigrants in Washington State. One in seven Washington State residents is an immigrant.

Three hundred and fifty thousand people in Washington live with at least one undocumented family member.

“This current administration has commandeered the immigrant story….they have rubbed out all color, love, hope, sacrifice and struggle. They have erased the tenacity, the courage and devotedness of their characters….This administration has vilified and dehumanized and criminalized immigrants. It’s trying to make us believe a grim, desolate life story.

“It is imperative that we take back the immigrant story…the true story is of sacrifice, endurance, fortitude, resolution and devotedness to the cause of families.…It is not a story about people who need to be kept out by a wall….The people who have arrived in our communities have traveled far….The only wall that should be built is a wall around hatred, willful ignorance, xenophobia, racism and intolerance,” said Powell.

Above: Many resources for immigrant family support were provided at the first Hispanic Roundtable community summit on Friday. Karina Brown, a Spanish teacher at Elma High School, picks up materials at a table about Sound to Harbor Head Start and ECEAP, which provides individualized preschool education, health education, and family support in Grays Harbor, Mason and Thurston counties.

For more information about the Hispanic Roundtable of the South Sound, go to www.hispanicroundtable.org

Native Women Occupy Washington State Capitol Overnight

Above: Seven Native women peacefully occupied the Washington State Capitol Campus in front of the Legislative Building in Olympia on Monday night. After being told to disperse, a representative for Governor Jay Inslee told them that they would be allowed to stay. Negotiations with a federal representative will occur on Tuesday.

Interview with Water Protector Janene Hampton

By Janine Gates

Little Hollywood

https://janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

The first day of the Washington State Legislature’s 60 day session in Olympia on Monday began with a climate justice rally organized by 350.org and other climate action groups and ended with the overnight occupation of the Capitol Campus by seven Native women.

Major themes for the morning rally were stopping Puget Sound Energy’s liquid natural gas facility which is being built at the Port of Tacoma on Puyallup Tribal land, encouraging renewable energy, an end to fish farming, and protection of the 76 remaining Southern Resident killer whales in Puget Sound.

While the rally was underway, a Native encampment with several “tarpees” occupied the strip of grass located between the Legislative Building and the Temple of Justice. 

Tarpees are portable shelters made out of tarps and not to be confused with teepees.

Above: The Native encampment occupied the Washington State Capitol Campus in Olympia on Monday.

An unexpected situation for Capitol Campus facility staff occurred when they approached the camp at about 4:40 p.m. and requested that the “tents” be taken down, saying they were in violation of Capitol Campus grounds rules. 

According to policy, the structure could be there but they would have to put a wood floor down, remove the stakes and not have anyone in it overnight and move it every five days. 

One tarpee was occupied by seven indigenous women, including a 12 year old, who were threatened with arrest for trespassing.

When they did not leave, representatives for Governor Jay Inslee came out and delivered a message to say that the Washington State Patrol could be called to clear the camp.

A civil discussion of the issues ensued between Native camp representatives and Inslee’s staff. Inslee was working on his State of the State address, which he will deliver Tuesday at noon.

The land that the Washington State Capitol Campus occupies is Medicine Creek Treaty Land. 

After it was clarified that the Medicine Creek Treaty supersedes the State of Washington, a representative for Inslee came out and said that although they were trespassing and the occupation was unpermitted, the Washington State Patrol would not do a sweep of the camp as long as there was no danger or violence. 

The women were expected to spend the night on the Capitol Campus grounds in front of the Legislative Building. Negotiations with a federal representative will occur on Tuesday.

A live feed posted on Paul Cheoketen Wagner’s Facebook account chronicled the drama as it unfolded.

When Wagner requested that Governor Inslee call a federal government agent who deals with treaty rights, Inslee’s representative asked Wagner, “How long do you want to stay?”

“Fifty-nine days,” replied Wagner. “It’s not so much to ask - we’re on our own land!” Wagner laughed.

Saying that the LNG terminal violates all the treaties and cultural genocide is being delivered, Wagner said, “We’re here…we’re going to be here and exercise our treaty rights…and make sure they know that we’re doing this work, and they need to do this work too.…The luxury of time is gone. The luxury of weak decision making and decision making for the corporations and profiteering – that era is over and we need to realize that we are in a different era today and the choices are limited if we want to have a future....Celebrate the victory we have tonight – for future generations.”

Above: Paul Cheoketen Wagner, Saanich First Nations of Vancouver Island, who is credited with creating the tarpees used at Standing Rock, spoke earlier in the day at the climate justice rally on the Capitol Campus. Elizabeth Satiacum, Quileute, in purple coat, holds up a copy of the Medicine Creek Treaty.

Interview with Water Protector Janene Hampton

The night was quiet at about 9:00 p.m. when Little Hollywood interviewed Janene Hampton, Colville and Pentictan Indian Band, one of seven women spending the night in the tarpee.

A massage therapist and mother of three grown daughters, Hampton says she closed her massage practice to go to Standing Rock and stayed for six months. 

She now works at a spa in Bellevue that is supportive of her being in Olympia. She told them that she may need 60 days off, she says, laughing.

While the Washington State Patrol patrolled the area, the conversation turned more emotional as Hampton described how indigenous people have always known that they are supposed to protect the water.

“...The womb itself is water, the uterus, where the spirit goes from the spirit world into the human form...that is why we are water protectors. The men are the fire keepers but we are the life givers.

“Three hundred Tribes gathered to try and stop the Dakota Pipeline. There are 700 pipelines in the United States, and we are fighting the LNG in Tacoma. It is on a fault line….We have the right to our way of life, so we’re here because we want to be heard. Even today, when we were in [the opening ceremonies for the House and Senate], there were chants - ‘It’s not an Evergreen State if you don’t take care of the water.’ We are literally fighting for our culture not just for us but for everybody and not just here in Olympia.

“I have to talk like you in order for you to listen and that hurts because I’m losing my tradition. This is my family. It’s a sacrifice. It’s not easy. I worked double shifts so I could be here and not fundraise and ask for money. To me it’s really important to be self-sufficient...You don’t want to be a burden to the movement. You want to be able to help. 

“We have until noon on Tuesday and a federal agent will come...I honestly think they [Capitol Campus grounds staff] were stumped as to where they stood legally. I’m in traditional dress and I think they respect me more when I’m dressed traditional. I’m representing the people...I have to be pure of heart and do things in a good way. I cannot be violent, I cannot engage with them. This is a mentality that we got from Standing Rock...[law enforcement] were paid to try to make us engage so that they could fire upon us…and so, that’s the way that I walk, gently, so that I don’t put lives in danger. I am literally in ceremony.”

“When you’re in ceremony, you’re not supposed to draw attention to yourself...people take pictures of you all the time, you’re in a spotlight, you still have to represent the people. Just because I’m out here doesn’t mean I want to look broken. There’s a standard that you want to put out there because people look at us like we’re dirty and uneducated, they just don’t have respect. A lot of people don’t even know we exist. They think we’re in history books….

“I do educate people when I give massages. They’re on the table for an hour, so they’re like, “So, how long have you been here?” I’m like, “Well….” 

And then Hampton laughs again.

Above: Robert Satiacum, center, holds a copy of the Medicine Creek Treaty on the Capitol Campus on Monday.

Emergency Shelters for the Homeless Go Year Round

Emergency Shelters for the Homeless Go Year Round

by Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Advocates for the homeless are a devoted, seemingly tireless, loose connection of social service organizations, faith communities and people concerned about homeless issues.

Recently, many have eloquently spoken up, some for the first time, at Olympia city council meetings in response to ordinances that move homeless campers away from city hall property and criminalize sitting or lying on sidewalks.

Much of their work is behind-the-scenes for most of us, but very much on the front lines for those who need it most.

In a spot of good news in what is a daunting, ongoing issue for the community, these advocates, along with area congregations, have now made it possible for emergency shelters to be open year round. Funding to take this new step came from Thurston County and United Way.

The new shelter coordinator, Laurian Weissner, coordinates locations and their schedules. His part time paid position with Interfaith Works is currently funded for one year.

"Traditionally, the shelters for homeless men and women have operated seasonally during the cold weather months, ending in February for men, and ending in March for women," said Weissner, in an interview today.

Weissner says that in order for the shelters to be operational year round, current participating churches host twice a year. He has the women's shelters tentatively scheduled through the beginning of May and is appealing for two or three more congregations to "step-up" and help host the shelter.

Weissner urged that anyone needing emergency shelter should call (360) 515-5620. He also emphasized that people will not be denied shelter for theological reasons, meaning, they will not be required to participate in any religious ceremonies sponsored by the host church.

The women's shelter provides 18 beds for the homeless women, while the men's shelter provides 12 beds. Unused beds at the women's shelter are also available to families when the Family Shelter is full.

Local churches shelter homeless women in two week rotation cycles. St. Michael Parish on Olympia's eastside and Sacred Heart Parish in Lacey shelter homeless men. Coordination and screening to house the men and women is done through Sidewalk, Olympia's homeless advocacy and support center, and Interfaith Works.

The women's shelter is currently at The Lutheran Church of Good Shephard, on North Street in Olympia.

Partnership Organizations

The women's emergency overflow shelter provided 1,786 bed-nights of shelter in winter 2011-12, hosted on a rotating basis by 12 different congregations. The shelter is now officially called the "Women's Interfaith Shelter."

"Usage of the shelter in November 2012 was about double the volume of the previous year," said Danny Kadden, executive director of Interfaith Works, in an email to Little Hollywood yesterday.

"After 22 years of operating various types of winter-only shelters, we heard a growing chorus of our faith community members seeking ways to serve the year-round needs of unsheltered people. With funding in hand from the County and United Way, Interfaith Works will begin in Spring 2013 operating the faith-based shelters for both men and women every night of the year. This will require significantly more volunteers and participating churches and temples than ever before, but we are all determined to fill this gap in our shelter system," said Kadden.

There are few alternatives for women without Interfaith Works' shelter involvement. The Salvation Army has only 14 beds for single women and has limitations on the length of their stays. Bread and Roses can only serve 12 women at a time and sometimes has a waiting list.

The system is complicated for all who are involved. Apart from the Salvation Army and Interfaith Works' shelter, youth 22 years or younger are served by Community Youth Services. Families are served by the Family Support Center, and women fleeing domestic violence are served by Safeplace.

When and if Olympia's Smith building on 8th Avenue is operational, it will have family transitional housing on top, and a family shelter on the bottom. That's the long-range vision. Funding for it is significant.

Advocate Christie Kruger

Christie Kruger, a longtime, trained volunteer advocate for the homeless, urges more churches to become involved in hosting the homeless.

"Churches do not have to be a member of Interfaith Works to participate in the rotation, but they preferrably need to be on a bus line."

Kruger serves the homeless in multiple roles as an in-take coordinator at Sidewalk, conducting brief interviews with people who walk-in needing housing or referrals to other resources. She also assigns clients to other volunteers for longer term advocacy. Sidewalk advocates help clients fill out applications, apply for state and federal benefits and find housing.

"There's layers and layers of work, depending on their situation. It can be overwhelming." Kruger does suffer from burn-out from time to time, but it doesn't last long.

She's also an overnight host at the women's shelter operated by Interfaith Works. Volunteer hosts check in the shelter guests, spend the night at the church with them, and do laundry. Two hosts sleep over each night. One of the hosts needs to be a woman. Shelter hours are from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. with lights out at 10 p.m.

As if that's not enough, she also schedules volunteer hosts for Camp Quixote, the homeless "tent city" that rotates from church to church.

Kruger, who has an approachable, friendly style, spent several nights with the women when St. John's Episcopal Church hosted the women's shelter from November 30 to December 13.

"Reaching out to the poor is a basic tenant of almost every faith...it's in their ministry," says Kruger.

"One of the benefits of doing this type of work is breaking down stereotypes and stigmas. Participating congregations will find they create and enrich a sense of community in their hosts as well as for the guests who might otherwise be outcast or socially isolated."

"If the homeless don't get screened into a shelter, where can they sleep safely, or at all? That's what it comes down to...." says Kruger.

SideWalk will be having a volunteer training in January. Go to www.walkthurston.org and click "volunteer" to sign up for training or find out more information. 

Sidewalk is currently looking for volunteers to serve as greeters, hospitality volunteers, volunteer support specialists, advocates, and intake specialists. Volunteers can give as much or as little as they are able, though most of Sidewalk's work is done during business hours, Monday- Thursday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

For more information, contact Emma Margraf, Community Outreach Manager at Sidewalk at (360) 515-5587 or emma@walkthurston.org.

Interfaith Works has comprehensive information, including a calendar of events and activities, on their website at www.oly-wa.us/interfaith.

 

P.O.W.E.R. Art Fundraiser Continues Sunday

Above: Callie and Ben entertain a steady stream of folks coming to check out the P.O.W.E.R. fundraiser today at 309 5th Avenue SE, in downtown Olympia next to Rainy Day Records. The event continues on Sunday from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

 

P.O.W.E.R. Art Fundraiser Continues Sunday 

by Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Despite the rain, a steady stream of bazaar and arts supporters were out in force today, knowing that the best place to shop is indoor, supporting local crafters, school parent-teacher organizations, businesses, and organizations doing good work.

One of those organizations is Parents Organizing for Welfare and Economic Rights (P.O.W.E.R.) in downtown Olympia. Their mission statement says that "P.O.W.E.R. advocates for and with low-income parents for a strong safety net while working toward a world where children and care giving are truly valued, and the devastation of poverty has been eradicated."

Their cozy office, at 309 5th Avenue SE, next to Rainy Day Records, was the scene of live music and art offered by local artists as a fundraiser for their efforts. Participating artists had the choice to donate 50% or 100% of their proceeds to the organization and were encouraged to write biographies to place near their art.

One young artist, Sarah Bredeson, wrote this: "I am 12 years old. My mom and I have helped with P.O.W.E.R. off and on for the last few years. I enjoy craft projects, painting, acrylics, sewing, making self-care items like scented bath salts, and beading. I am supporting P.O.W.E.R. because I like the work they do in making people aware of others living in poverty. I enjoy art because it is a stress relief and FUN."

Today, art by Jennifer Khuns (mosiacs), Marla Beth Elliott (knitting), Lynn Grotsky (beading), and other lesser known artists filled the walls and office space, which includes a separate child care room, and kitchen filled with treats and warm drinks for sale.

The event continues tomorrow from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. with live music by other musicians throughout the day.

P.O.W.E.R. sponsors several activities, including a Women's Economic Collective. For more information about the work of P.O.W.E.R., go to www.mamapower.org or call (360) 352-9716.

Full Disclosure: Little Hollywood Photography is a participating business at this worthy event. I was raised by a wonderful, hardworking single mom, and I was a single mom for most of my children's lives. By cobbling together a variety of self-employment, artistic, and entrepreneurial activities, I've never missed a mortgage payment. I'm one of the lucky ones.

Above: Necklaces offered by local mosiac artist Jennifer Khuns. Khuns is most recently known for being the artist of the artesian well work in downtown Olympia.