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Good news happens. This episode features poetry, prose, and perspective from Maven Gardner, a 2016 Seattle Youth Poet Laureate, whose writings have shed light on what it means to grow up in foster care and then experience homelessness as an adult in our region.

Maven read some of their poetry during a 2022 United Way Advancing Racial Equity Series event, and they gained some stability during homelessness via Seattle’s youth shelters, many of which were funded by United Way’s work to address homelessness.

United Way recently caught up with Maven, who now lives in Los Angeles and is active in Southern California’s creative circles. They spoke with Hourglass about relocating from the only place they’ve called home and continuing to use poetry to explore issues of race, class, gender identity, foster care, and houselessness.

We will also spotlight United Way’s Free Summer Meals program for school-age youth and discuss a local volunteer opportunity.

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Good news happens. This week’s episode features a conversation with Michele Storms, the executive director of the ACLU of Washington.

Since 1935, the ACLU of Washington has served as one of our state’s most formidable civil rights and civil liberties organizations. Much of its work aligns with United Way of King County’s efforts to address issues such as housing insecurity and education disparities.

In this episode, we will chat with Michelle about the ACLU’s work in those and other areas, the organization’s origins, and the things that give her hope amid the nation’s turbulent political climate.

We will also discuss United Way’s Free Summer Meals program for school-aged children and a local volunteer opportunity.

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Good news happens. In this episode, we’re talking baseball with Bookie Gates of Baseball Beyond Borders, a Kent-based organization that provides baseball and softball access for communities of color.

United Way of King County is proud to support Baseball Beyond Borders and its efforts to help student-athletes of color connect their passion on the field with their academic futures off the field.

We’ll also discuss our Free Summer Meals program for school-age youth and a local volunteer opportunity.

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This week's episode is a conversation with Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown.

Hourglass met with the attorney general on Friday, just moments after the US Supreme Court ruled against an injunction that prohibited the White House from limiting birthright citizenship in the U.S.

Earlier this year, Brown led a lawsuit challenging the White House executive order to limit birthright citizenship, and he’s been one of the nation’s attorneys general who have used the courts to preserve the rights of immigrants amid federal mass deportation efforts.

We chatted with Brown about the Supreme Court's decision, our nation’s anti-immigration climate, and other issues that are pillars of United Way’s work.

We will also discuss our free summer meals program for school-age children and a local volunteer opportunity.

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Good news happens. This episode is about ParentChild+, a national organization with local affiliates that works with parents, toddlers, communities, and caregivers to support children’s early learning.

We’ll chat about ParentChild+ with United Way Community Impact Manager Whitney Nakamura and Elisa Jimenez of El Centro De La Raza, a United Way-supported, Seattle-based organization that serves as a voice and hub for King County’s Latino community.

We will also discuss our Summer Meals Program for school-aged children and a local volunteer opportunity.

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Good news happens. This episode features a conversation with Naomi Mulitauaopele Tagaleo’o of Education with a Purpose for Pacific Islanders, a Kent-based organization that provides education resources and support to Pacific Islander youth and their parents.

United Way of King County proudly supports Education with a Purpose for Pacific Islanders and its efforts to help students succeed in the classroom and beyond.

We will also discuss United Way’s Free Summer Meals program and a local volunteer opportunity.

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Good news happens. This week's episode is a conversation about tackling our housing crisis.

United Way of King County recently launched its Bridging the Wealth Gap campaign, which aims to increase access to financing and capital for homeownership and small business development in communities of color across the Greater King County region.

In this episode, we will chat with Kathleen Hosfeld of Homestead Community Land Trust, the leader of one of the organizations we’re partnering with in our campaign. The Seattle-based organization works to create stability, equity, and opportunity through permanently affordable homeownership.

We will also hear about an upcoming Bridging the Wealth Gap campaign event and a local volunteer opportunity.

I’m your host, Joe Burris. Thanks for tuning in!

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Good news happens. This episode features a conversation with Lisa Fruichantie, the executive director of Na Ah Illhee Fund, a United Way-supported, Seattle-based organization that promotes Indigenous women's leadership in communities from the Pacific Northwest to the Arctic to the Rockies.

Fruichantie will discuss how her drive and passion for her work stretch back to her childhood in the area of Alaska that is still experiencing the effects of the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, one of the most catastrophic environmental disasters in U.S. history.

We will also hear about an upcoming United Way event and a local volunteer opportunity.

Thanks for tuning in.