The Share the Plate (STP) Committee has been busy the past month evaluating the sixteen applications we received and choosing six organizations that met the criteria of the STP application as well as OUUC’s desire to focus on racial justice, economic inequality, and climate change/sustainability. While there were several deserving organizations that applied, the following six organizations/programs were chosen:
January-February – The Community Kitchen – The mission of The Community Kitchen program is to ensure that no one in Thurston County goes hungry for food. With the help of more than two hundred volunteers, an average of 10,000 meals are served each month. Each person served is treated with dignity, compassion, and respect. Our focus is on serving individuals, children, families, and veterans struggling with poverty and the effects of intolerance and racism. We actively join with others to work for justice. More than 90% of those we feed are living unsheltered. Several OUUC members are regular volunteers at the Community Kitchen. For more information: https://ccsww.org/get-help/shelter-homeless-services/community-kitchen/
March-April – HOPE Garden Project (Hands On Personal Empowerment) – Hands On Personal Empowerment engages Mason County Youth to become empowered, productive members of their local community and the world they will inherit. At HOPE we teach job skills, leadership, communication, social justice, nutrition, and health all through a garden modality. For more information: https://hopegardenproject.org/ or https://www.facebook.com/thehopegardenproject
May-June – Arrest and Jail Alternatives Program – The Arrest and Jail Alternatives (AJA) program’s mission is to provide long-term case management and peer counseling to individuals experiencing intersecting challenges of homelessness, behavioral health symptoms, and involvement with the criminal justice system. Through collaboration with housing and shelter providers, mental health and substance use professionals, crisis services, law enforcement, and other stakeholders, we wrap around individuals who may otherwise slip through the system’s cracks. For more information: https://ccsww.org/get-help/specialized-services/arrest-and-jail-alternatives-aja-program/
July-August – Halki Farmers Collective – Haki means Justice in Swahili. Haki Farmers Collective seeks to bolster and reincorporate traditional and inherently sustainable farming knowledge that is present in our migrant and indigenous communities. By holding close decolonization frameworks, Haki seeks to encourage our intersecting Black, Indigenous and Immigrant peoples to reclaim life-giving knowledge of truly sustainable foodways and plant medicine creation. For more information: https://hakifarmers.org/
September-October – A Pathway to Hope DBA ‘The Black Power Initiative’ – The Black Power Initiative’s mission is to empower and create financial access for Black people to have the power to determine the destiny of our Black Community. With that as our ultimate vision, one small but significant first step is to provide emergency financial support in the form of small, low barrier cash grants to Black people in need to keep people from slipping through the cracks in this inequitable system. For more information: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064181738140 @black.power.initiative (instagram).
November-December – Olympia Community Solar – We help steward an equitable and accessible transition to clean energy. For more information: https://Olysol.org/ or www.facebook.com/olympiasolar
The ten other organizations or programs that applied were also impressive in the work they are doing and worth checking out further and giving some of your time, talents or dollars to. Following is a brief description of what they do, and some contact information.:
All Kids Win – Provide food during weekends to students via school counselors. www.allkidswin.org
Olympia Coalition for Ecosystems Preservation – Focuses on protecting, preserving, and restoring important habitat in Olympia and areas of important habitat connectivity with ecosystems in Olympia. www.olyecosystems.org
SideWalk – Since 2012, SideWalk volunteers have helped over 1,800 people escape the streets of Thurston County. www.walkthurston.org
South Puget Sound Community College Foundation – Engages community and builds resources to support success for all students. www.spscc.edu/foundation
ASHHO Cultural Community & Job Training Center (CCJTC) – Unites people of all cultures through soul food, education, and gatherings. www.ashho.org
The South Sound Reading Foundation – Brings the joy and promise of books and reading to all our region’s children. www.southsoundreading.org
TREEhouse…Growing…Eating…Living – An edible education in outdoor learning! A classroom on the farm connecting early learners and pre-kindergarten to the soil, stewardship and sustainability, health and wellness. www.KinderGardenintheGarden.com
Acceptance and Change for Health – An international NGO dedicated to improving mental health services in Somaliland, where little, if any, mental health resources exist. https://achealth.ngo
Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light – Transforms faith into action for the well-being of communities and the environment. We organize people of faith to advocate for strong environmental policies and provide strategic guidance to religious communities working toward environmental justice. https://earthministry.org
The Moore Wright Group – A unique BIPOC lead 501(c)(3) organization that leverages agreements with local and national retailers to donate large numbers of unused and often brand-new goods — everything from food and basic necessities to furniture and household appliances — to families in need, at no cost to the families. www.tmwg.org
Thanks to this year’s Share the Plate members for their time and contributions – Anne Hundley, Gail Wrede, Maureen Fitzgerald, John Rapano, and Seldon Hall.
