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As I continue my journey in elected office, I have made it a goal to be proactive about connecting, building, and fostering relationships with the organizations in my district whose tireless efforts often go unnoticed but play a pivotal role in addressing the critical issues that we face in District 4 and King County as a whole. These organizations provide vital services and support that not only alleviate immediate needs but also contribute to broader societal changes.
From community centers offering mental health resources, to food banks combating hunger, from shelters providing emergency housing, to programs promoting community safety initiatives, their efforts ripple out to create significant positive impacts towards the multifaceted challenges faced by our fellow neighbors. This month, I have made an effort to spend time with some of these organizations in the places where they do this vital work. Building relationships and trust is not just a formality but an essential foundation for effective governance. Listening and working collaboratively will allow me to better understand the challenges our community faces and develop targeted solutions that address them, big or small, through funding or policy making.
One issue about which I hear often is community safety. It is clear to me that community safety is not an isolated concern, but rather one that consists of numerous intersecting threads. It cannot be adequately addressed without acknowledging the multitude of factors that contribute to its existence. Among these, lack of affordable housing, mental health and addiction issues, and inadequate safety nets for families, victims, and survivors stand out as prominent contributors.
Throughout this newsletter I would like to highlight how the work of the organizations I spoke to this month reflects and informs my work on the County Council. The work they do is critical and often overlooked. Please be sure to check the funding opportunities section, and I especially invite eligible organizations to fill out an interest form for the upcoming District 4 grant funding awards. For more details, scroll to the end of this newsletter.
With gratitude,
 Jorge
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Clockwise from upper left: 1) Panelists Ilona Lohrey, Sharmila Swenson, and Lalita Uppala; 2) In-person attendees, 3) Councilmember Perry sharing remarks, 4) Jeanne Kohl-Welles and myself, and 5) Sarah Reyneveld, Chair of the King County Women’s Advisory Board, presenting an award to Jeanne Kohl-Welles.
Women’s History Month Panel: Empowering Women Who Power the Economy!
In honor of Women’s History Month, the County Council hosted this year’s annual panel. This event is part of the legacy of my predecessor on the King County Council, Jeanne Kohl-Welles, who spearheaded this event as an opportunity to hear from incredible women sharing their stories, expertise, and wisdom. I’m glad to say that this event continues with Councilmembers Sarah Perry, Claudia Balducci, and Teresa Mosqueda carrying on this tradition.
This year’s theme, Empowering Women Who Power the Economy, featured discussion on the role women have and continue to take on in our economy.
I was honored to see Jeanne Kohl-Welles be recognized for her work to support and uplift women by being awarded the first annual “Jeanne Kohl-Welles Women Uplifting Women Award” to recognize her years of public service.
Kudos to all those who made this event possible and thank you, Jeanne, for leaving behind such an impactful event!
Missed it? Watch it here KCTV
Transit Appreciation Week
Reliable transportation is essential to the well-being, mobility, and inclusion of all residents, especially riders with disabilities and those who rely on public transit to meet their daily needs. Transit helps residents be part of our communities and access activities happening across the county, at work, or school.
As a transit rider myself, I recognize that our transit systems can only run efficiently and successfully because of the incredible work of everyone at King County Metro, Sound Transit, Water Taxi, and all other transit systems operating in the region.
Thank you transit employees for helping our residents thrive!
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As I noted earlier, this month I dedicated time to connect with local organizations to learn more about their work, better understand the needs of the communities they serve, and how I can advocate on their behalf in my leadership position at the council.
From left to right: 1) A health care room at Mary’s Place; 2) CEO Dominique Alex and me; 3) Jessie Friedmann, CEO Dominique Alex, me, and Chief Communications & Government Affairs Officer Linda Marshall
Mary’s Place and YouthCare
I paid a visit to Mary’s Place to connect with two of their leaders, Dominique and Linda. During my visit they shared how they provide essential services to families, including health care, early learning, dignified housing, and more in District 4 and throughout King County.
Their work demonstrates the urgent importance of increased funding for holistic, trauma-informed care for our neighbor's experiencing homelessness. Mary's Place provides both the concrete resources, and compassionate care that families needed to move towards healthy, stable futures.
Similarly important work is happening at YouthCare, which serves over 1,500 youth and young adults experiencing homelessness each year. I attended the 50th Anniversary Luncheon for YouthCare and had the honor to hear Dr. Mark Bennett’s story, a past YouthCare client who – thanks to the support he received from frontline staff – was able to exit homelessness, reunify with his son, and pursue higher education. You can listen to his story here. Dr. Bennett’s story is a reminder of the importance of the incredible staff at the forefront of the homelessness crisis in our region. Knowing that someone rooted for you without judgement is important especially when you are young and are faced with being unhoused with nowhere to turn.
These organizations have built a foundation of service that includes extending support, mentoring, and creating an environment where someone in need is accepted and understood. This is essential to ensure we foster trust, unity, and hope within our communities for all to thrive.
I will be honored to bring the stories and knowledge that I have gained to advocate for our unstably housed neighbors. As a member of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority’s Governing Committee, the Council’s Health and Human Services Committee, and Budget and Fiscal Management Committee. I will support living wage jobs for residents of King County, and especially human service workers. The work they do is not only beneficial to the clients they serve, but vital to the safety and well-being of our community.
 Group photo with some of the folks who attended the 50th Anniversary Luncheon for YouthCare.
Ballard NW Senior Center, Ballard Food Bank, & Sound Generations: Meals on Wheels
With many people in our community facing food insecurity, I visited organizations that are addressing this need through a myriad of different programs, including meals, mental health support, and much more.
 From left to right: 1) Pictured with Matt King, Peggy Hougardy, and Vedrana Durakovic from the Ballard NW Senior Center; 2) Pictured speaking with Jen Muzia, CEO of the Ballard Food Bank.
It was wonderful to chat with Executive Director, Matt King and the entire team at the Ballard NW Senior Center to learn how they support the wellbeing of senior residents. Visiting the center very humbly reminded me of the critical importance of centering our elders in policy discussions to support residents as they age.
I also had a highly informative conversation with Jen Muzia, CEO of the Ballard Food Bank, about the unprecedented number of our neighbors who are experiencing food insecurity. In addition to a myriad of other services, the food bank supplies prepared food for nearly 9,000 people who don’t have reliable kitchen access. Their café is specifically seeing unprecedented demand: in March, they served more than 900 meals per day, an increase from the previous record of 752 at the end of 2023. Their team has made the Food Bank into a community resource hub, where individuals and families may come for a meal and access mail services, connections to housing, and more. Coming together to help our neighbors in need is crucial, and I appreciate that they approach providing these services in a dignified, and culturally responsive environment.
Lastly, another organization whose work also tackles food insecurity, specifically in our senior population, is the Meals on Wheels program at Sound Generations. I was troubled to hear that Meals on Wheels has a 1,300-person waitlist: meaning that there are 1,300 seniors who are food insecure and not able to access this essential service. Meals on Wheels not only provides healthy meals to our seniors but is an essential way to help them build community connections.
Our elder residents are among the most susceptible to housing instability, isolation, mobility challenges, mental health challenges and predatory practices. King County has a dedicated resource to support the challenges facing seniors through the Veterans, Seniors & Human Services Levy. These visits were also a strong reminder to elevate the voices of our seniors as we seek to implement the King County Crisis Care Centers Levy.
 Pictured with the Sound Generations’ Meals on Wheels staff.
The work these organizations are doing every day is one piece of the puzzle in alleviating food insecurity, homelessness, loneliness, and mental health. I am committed to looking for more opportunities to continue supporting these organizations and the vital work they are doing to help those in need in my time in office
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 Source: https://kingcounty.gov/en/dept/dchs/human-social-services/community-funded-initiatives/crisis-care-centers-levy
Update on Crisis Care Centers Levy
As we work towards implementing the Crisis Care Centers Levy, my team has met with 10 behavioral health and human service providers to better understand what they would like to see reflected in the plan. We have had great conversations about collaboration between first responders and behavioral health settings, developmentally appropriate services for youth, the importance of long-term access to affordable, accessible behavioral health care, and much more.
The next step in the Crisis Care Centers Levy process is for the levy’s implementation plan to be discussed in the upcoming Regional Policy Committee and Health and Human Services Committee meetings. During these meetings, councilmembers have the ability to amend the plan as it’s written. We are exploring how to best reflect what we heard from community and hope to have some updates to share in future newsletters!
Law and Justice Committee Meeting
On Wednesday, the Law and Justice Committee took up two significant reports outlining work I know many of you are very interested in - the Executive’s proposed plan to close the Children and Family Justice Center by 2028 and King County Metro’s SaFE Reform Initiative.
First, the committee was briefed on the Care and Closure strategic planning report, which outlined work done so far to reimagine the youth legal system, prioritizing youth healing, accountability and community safety. Care and Closure work is ongoing, and there are still a number of significant issues that need to be worked through. I invited a panel comprising contributors to the plan, including representatives from the King County Executive’s Office, Superior Court, Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Department of Public Defense, and Department of Community and Human Services, to share their perspectives on this effort. Care and Closure Advisory Committee meetings are open to the public and more information on how to engage is available here.
After that robust discussion, the Committee heard an update on Metro Transit’s SaFE Reform Initiative, which has been looking at key ways to promote safety at transit stops and on buses, especially in high-traffic and high-interest areas including Third Avenue.
Missed it? Watch it here.
 Group photo in recognition of Public Defender Day at the King County Council.
Recognizing the Work of Public Defenders
I was grateful to join Councilmember Zahilay in proclaiming March 18, 2024 as Public Defender Day in King County. Public defenders work diligently to provide high-quality representation to anyone accused of a crime, regardless of their financial circumstance. As an attorney myself, I know how serious that responsibility is, how overwhelming it can be, and how absolutely essential it is for due process. Our public defenders and staff have been courageously honest about the ways that responsibility impacts their lives, their health, and their satisfaction at work. Across the state, increasingly heavy caseloads have led to high attrition and recently the Washington State Bar Association’s Board of Governors issued a revised version of their public defense standards, including reevaluated caseload standards. These standards recognize the need for us as a community to ensure we continue to deliver high-quality public defense services. For those reasons and so many more, I was grateful for the opportunity to express our collective appreciation for the work and commitment of public defenders serving our county.
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Expression of Interest for King County Grants
I am happy to share a set of opportunities for King County grant funding for eligible non-profit community organizations and government entities working to support and uplift our local communities. These resources can be used to support new or existing programs, operations, and capital needs. If interested in being considered for these funds, please submit an Expression of Interest for King County District 4 Grant Awards. Priority deadline for submissions of this interest form is Sunday, April 21, 2024 at 11:59 PM.
Best Starts for Kids Lead and Toxics: Reducing Toxics Exposures in our Communities Request for Proposals (RFP)
Best Starts for Kids Lead and Toxics: Reducing Toxics Exposures in our Communities Request for Proposals (RFP) is now open! Environmental racism and other injustices have resulted in toxics waste and polluting industries being concentrated in areas where communities of color and low-income families work, live, and play. This has resulted in those communities experiencing higher exposure to toxics and higher rates of health problems from those exposures. For more information on eligibility, timeline, and other important info please visit their website. This funding opportunity closes on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 at 2 PM.
Be Heard: BIPOC Voices about Mental Health & Wellness Community Listening Project Funding
The King County Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) Behavioral Health and Recovery Division (BHRD) is pleased to announce a Request for Applications (RFA) for the Be Heard: BIPOC Voices about Mental Health & Wellness Community Listening Project. For full RFA details, please visit their blog. Applications are due April 17, 2024, by 2 PM.
King County Landmark Nomination Support Fund
This grant funds the preparation of local landmark nominations for historic places in King County. It is open to individuals, groups, and municipalities that have a property owner’s consent for landmark designation. Applications are due Wednesday, April 24, 2024 by 5 PM.
For more information and how to apply, visit this website.
Please share with anyone you may think would benefit from these opportunities!
Connect with me and stay up to date on our work!
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