BELFAIR, Wash. — A first-of-its-kind bus will soon hit the streets of Mason County to help those battling substance abuse. The bus will respond to overdose calls along with firefighters and police. But the bigger focus of the team on board will be on connecting those in crisis to long-term treatment. The North Mason Regional Fire Authority was awarded a two-year, $500,000 grant from the Department of Justice last October to create a rural Quick Response Team. The 4-person team will be made...

A recent donation to Ryan’s House for Youth proved to good of an opportunity too pass up, even if it can’t be used yet. “The micro home was kind of sprung on us,” said program manager Amber Truex. “We’re not going to say ‘no.’” Oak Harbor High School’s robotics team built a “micro home” last March in an effort to address homelessness in the community. However, time started running short on how long they could store the home until an agency to donate to could be chosen. With the guidance of...

CRI is Proud to Present the 2019 Beyond Paper Tigers Conference Session Descriptions and Presenter Biographies! Join us for the latest information, and strategies to build RESILIENCE! CRI is honored to have expert presenters in their fields to showcase a diverse selection of sessions revolving around the BPT Conference theme, "Building Resilience Across the Life Span." Conference Session Descriptions and Presenter Biographies are now available for review! If you have not purchased conference...

At Washington State Penitentiary, Tony McGuire talks to the inmates in his construction trades apprenticeship preparation (CTAP) class about ACEs, trauma and resilience every single day. Not only is he teaching the guys a trade, but he also teaches them how to be a healthy, happy and well-adjusted employee. Note: Becoming a healthy, happy, well-adjusted employee is way harder than basic carpentry, plumbing, electrical and HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning).

Sound Discipline offers a Building Resiliency series for educators, parents and anyone who works with youth. Our next workshop is March 18 - Building Resiliency 1: Strategies to Engage Youth Exposed to Trauma. Details and registration here. Building Resiliency 2: Firmness Tools is next offered May 6. Details and registration here. You can take these workshops in any order. We appreciate your referrals! Refer your colleagues and friends - we do a drawing each month for a Community Building...

Please join ACEs Connection and the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) for a free webinar to learn how to drive public-policy change without violating the restrictions on non-profit organizations or the requirements of funders. It will beheld on Thursday, March 14 (9:00-10:30 am PT/noon-1:30 pm ET). The featured speaker of the webinar, “Strategic Advocacy: Winning Policy Change without Crossing the Lobbying Line,” is attorney Allen Mattison, an expert at helping...

Physical signs like the howling of a person with a broken arm are obvious indications someone is in distress; invisible ailments, on the other hand are more difficult to spot. It’s not always easy to tell if a person is undernourished, in an abusive relationship, or struggling with an addiction problem first glance. ...... United Way is determined to help Central Washington by making its presence more felt in Kittitas County to further provide support for at risk-people. United Way is...

On April 20 the Family Support Center of South Sound celebrated the launching of Washington State’s first Camp HOPE at the Governor’s Mansion with community members, elected officials, and advocates for children and youth in the South Sound community . Camp HOPE is an evidence based camping and mentoring program for children and youth who have witnessed domestic violence and experienced trauma and the Family Support Center was selected to develop Washington’s first program. Camp HOPE...

We’re just a little over two weeks away from Ignite Education Lab , our fourth annual storytelling event — and we want you to meet our speakers. .... Kari O’Driscoll The Power of Perspective Kari is a native of the Pacific Northwest, the mother of two teenage daughters and a huge fan of teenagers in general. She founded The SELF Project to promote mindfulness, self-awareness and critical thinking in teens, and to strengthen parent-teen relationships. She has worked in mental health and...

Not long ago, had you asked Lou Franchino, a Spokane firefighter for 23 years, if he would ever return to work, he would have said no. He was experiencing extended bouts of insomnia. While awake, he described a near-constant state of anxiety. Traumatic calls flashed through his head at a breakneck pace: People who shot themselves in front of their family members, people who died in fires, from sudden infant death syndrome or a heart attack at a family dinner. Franchino was having breakdowns,...

More than a third of Washington's foster kids become homeless after leaving care. But in Tennessee, there's a possible solution, and Washington is looking at copying it. MEMPHIS, Tennessee — Terrineka Maxwell is only 19, but she’s already had a lot of people come in and out of her life: 20 foster families since she was taken from her mom at 2, and at least seven caseworkers in the past seven years. But her newest caseworker, Cindy Walker, is supposed to be different. Unlike most previous...

BIRTH EQUITY PROJECT (BEP) C OMMUNITY INVESTMENTS THAT IMPROVE EQUITY IN BIRTH OUTCOMES Request for Letters of Intent Due March 4, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. PST TIMELINE PURPOSE Washington State Department of Health (DOH) proposes to fund projects aimed at improving maternal health and birth outcomes in priority populations through the Center for Disease Control Preventative Health and Health Services Block Grant (PHHS). We are inviting communities to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to apply for...