Arlington teens put service skills into action for Family Centers
The Arlington High School Interact Club has discovered the power of community service. In January, the club partnered with our Family Support staff as volunteers for the Point in Time homeless count. Club members met a young woman with a child living in her car and...
Protection Orders improve for Sexual Assault Victims
Advocacy teamwork helped lead to improved protection orders for sexual assault victims in Washington State. With a stroke of Governor Jay Inslee’s pen Friday, May 5, a new law changed protection orders for sexual assault victims. Before that, victims of sexual assault...
Adoption Day: A Reason to Celebrate for Former Foster Child
We all celebrate birthdays, wedding anniversaries and other significant milestones. For Kayla Balassone of Tukwila, an annual celebration is her Adoption Day. That day transformed her life. Balassone was just four years old when she entered the state foster care...
Give Local: Online Giving Days in May
Help us make stronger, more vibrant communities for us all. Lutheran Community Services Northwest is a pathway back to life for parentless and neglected children, victims of violence and torture, refugees, the mentally ill and addicted and forgotten and...
One Family’s Climb Out of Homelessness
In the fall of 2015, Candy Braget was pregnant with her fourth child, suffering from gestational diabetes, and her family was homeless. Unsure of where to turn for assistance, she called 211 in Snohomish County and was referred to LCS Northwest’s Family Support...
5 Questions: David Ochan, Case Manager for LCS Northwest’s Minority AIDS Initiative (MAI)
David has been a Case Manager with the MAI program since 2013. MAI is a collaboration with Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). Our partnership helps provide intensive, culturally-specific and appropriate services to refugees and immigrants living...
America Offers Refuge and Hope to New Asylee
(Editor's note: We have changed the name of this story's subject to protect his family.) Hailu never dreamed that his research work in Ethiopia would make him a political target who feared for his life. Five years ago, Hailu would have described his personal life in...
Teaming Up with Gonzaga for Sexual Assault Advocacy
Sexual assault is an uncomfortable topic. How sexual assault is handled on campus is a difficult issue for students and universities. A collaborative program between Gonzaga University and Lutheran Community Services Northwest in Spokane takes a unique...
5 Questions: Delivering Hope Is Peggy Ray’s Mission
Many clients who seek assistance at our Family Support Centers do so in a crisis and out of desperation. They often feel their lives have spun out of control. Peggy Ray believes her job is to ensure that they leave her office with hope. Peggy is the Family Support...
LCS Northwest will Continue to Welcome All Refugees
At Lutheran Community Services Northwest, we have a rich history of welcoming, resettling and meeting the critical needs of refugees. We’ve welcomed more than 35,000 refugees over the past 40-plus years in Washington and Oregon. LCS Northwest remains committed to...
Santa for Seniors: Bill Looney’s Community Legacy
Bill Looney didn’t want any senior to feel forgotten at Christmas. A man of action, the Tacoma businessman equipped himself with a Santa suit that he would wear to local nursing homes. He brought gifts and made sure residents felt special. The act transformed Looney...
5 Questions: LCS Northwest’s Tatyana Bondarchuk, Crime Victims’ Advocate
The Crime Victims’ Advocacy Program in LCS Northwest Program provides advocacy, referrals and information services to the community of Multnomah County, which includes Portland. All services are offered free of charge to victims of crimes. Tatyana Bondarchuk is a...
Tim Ward’s Journey of Surviving the Oso Mudslide
Lutheran Community Services Northwest is there over the long haul. This is Tim Ward’s story of healing. He is one of nine people who survived the massive mudslide near Oso, WA on the morning of March 22, 2014. Forty-three people died in the slide, including Ward’s...