Staff Spotlight: Beth Pitts
Meet: Beth Pitts Job: Manager, Navy EFM Respite Care Program District: South Puget Sound EFM stands for “exceptional family members,” and Beth has been a faithful ally for these special-needs children and their families since joining the agency’s Bremerton staff in...
Sister of Fallen Soldier Raises Nearly $1,000 for Refugees
Curtis Fairless would be proud of his little sister, Angela, for raising nearly $1,000 to help resettle Afghan refugees in Oregon and Washington. Angela held a drawing Dec. 1 for a small ruby that her brother, a former Marine, brought home from his Oregon National...
Staff Feature: Kristina Hammond and Blaine Huizinga
Meet: Kristina Hammond and Blaine Huizinga Job: Crime Victim Advocates District: Spokane Driven by a passion to help some of society's most invisible crime victims, Kristina and Blaine want to share what they know with anyone who will listen. Both are certified sexual...
Resettling Afghan Refugees: An Updated Message From Our CEO (9/29/2021)
To the LCS Northwest community, With an extraordinary wave of refugees from Afghanistan to the United States now underway, LCS Northwest is ramping up services, programs and staffing to meet this historic moment. Thank you for your outpouring of interest in partnering...
Responding to the Housing Needs of Asylum Seekers in Puget Sound
Since 2015, LCS Northwest has helped 2125 asylum seekers in Puget Sound find a path to stability and hope with comprehensive case management services through our Refugees Northwest program. Asylum seekers face numerous challenges to self-sufficiency. They usually...
North Puget Sound District Relocates Seattle Office to University District
After weeks of planning, organizing and packing, LCS Northwest's North Puget Sound (NPS) District moved its Seattle office from Northgate to the University of Washington business district in May. “We were at the Northgate location for about 10 years,” NPS District...
Offering Comfort and a Warm Paw to Victims of Sexual Assault
If you spend time at our LCS Northwest office in Spokane, you will likely meet a pair of nearly inseparable teammates: Mark Kloehn and Walker. Mark is the tall and chatty biped. Walker is the furry quadruped who will greet you with a friendly tail wag. Mark (he/him)...
Meet: Tom Bratvold, LCS Northwest Donor
This post is our latest entry in the Centennial Series. It features donor Tom Bratvold of Spokane. An adoptee, Tom found his forever family through Lutheran Community Services Northwest. Tom Bratvold’s story with LCS Northwest began before he was born. After a...
Nora Foster Tapped to Lead LCS in Klamath Falls
Four years ago, Bob Pickel called managers into his Klamath Falls office. He was challenged to build a succession plan and asked if anyone was interested in becoming the associate district director. Nora Foster agreed to try it. “At first, I didn’t want to be the...
Marking a Century of Service: LCS Northwest and United Way of Pierce County
Two time-honored Puget Sound organizations mark their 100th anniversaries this year: Lutheran Community Services Northwest and United Way of Pierce County. Our Chief Development Officer Elliot Stockstad sat down with Dona Ponepinto, President & CEO of...
Building a Future for Refugee Youth
With a surge of youth trying to seek asylum in the United States at the Mexican border, Lutheran Community Service Northwest works to be part of the solution. We support Unaccompanied Refugees Minors (URM) and place them in foster care in the Seattle and Spokane...
Bob Pickel Ending Long Run at LCS Northwest
After a long career, one often thinks of riding off into the sunset. Not Bob Pickel. “I look at it as a sunrise – the start of a new day.” Bob said. After 25 years as Director of Lutheran Community Services (LCS) Northwest in Klamath Falls, Pickel is calling it a...
Finding ‘Meaningful Work’ at LCS Northwest
This is the third article in our Centennial Series. We feature a current employee who found social work as part of his Lutheran faith. Our founders in 1921 were a group of Lutherans who came together to help people who were struggling. While LCS is turning 100, our...