Kent’s effort to end homelessness has received a welcomed boost from an honorable friend.
The Lowry Fund to End Homelessness – established by the family of the late Mike Lowry, former Washington governor and congressman – awarded $4,000 each to three organizations for their exemplary work to help curb the crisis.
Two of the inaugural Lowry Fund recipients were presented to Kent-based agencies – Kent Youth and Family Services (KYFS) and Open Doors for Multicultural Families – during a brief ceremony at City Hall on Monday afternoon.
The third gift went to Bellevue-based LifeWire.
Administered through the Church Council of Greater Seattle, the funds were given in honor of Lowry’s legacy and passion to end homelessness and develop affordable housing to own or rent for people of low or modest incomes. The council – the curator of the funds on behalf of the Lowry family – has worked for 40 years at the intersection of addressing homelessness and providing for affordable housing for people.
Lowry was a member of the church council and a founding governing board member on behalf of the council for the Committee to End Homelessness in King County, now known as All Home.
“The issues of housing and homelessness were very near and dear to his heart,” Diane Oakes said of her father, a proud liberal Democrat who championed the needs of others. Oakes and her family participated in the ceremony. “If he was here, the No. 1 thing he would say is, ‘Thank you to the church council, thank you to the organizations that do this work on a day-to-day basis. You are very important to the people you serve.’
“He would just be thrilled, really thrilled to see how this money was being used.”
Michael Ramos, the church council’s executive director, said the three organizations have made an impact.
“We thank all the fine organizations that applied for funding that make such a difference in the lives of people experiencing homelessness,” Ramos said. “These projects to be recognized stood out for their ability to walk with diverse and vulnerable populations toward exiting homelessness and achieving lasting housing stability. We believe these efforts honor the spirit and legacy of the passionate, solution-driven innovator toward ending homelessness, the honorable Mike Lowry.”
For Mike Heinisch, KYFS executive director, the funds will support the organization’s work to provide transitional housing and provide services for single, teenage and young adult mothers and their children.
Heinisch described the plight of someone his staff helps.
“If you can envision starting disenfranchised in your life … 17 years old, living in a car with your child and haven’t finished school … with a criminal record, suffering from mental health issues and trauma,” Heinisch said. “There’s no worse place to start.
“A lot of work that we do … is to really give these young women a chance in transitional housing, stabilizing their family lives, getting them back in school or at a job, getting their kids in preschool. … and moving them onto permanent housing.”
Receiving funds named in honor of Lowry, a friend and former colleague, humbled Heinisch.
“It was the reason to get up this morning,” he said. “The reason to be at work this week was to be here today.”
Open Doors, which is celebrating its 10th year of operation, has been instrumental in serving the needs of families of many cultures who struggle with homelessness and have children with disabilities. Its staff of 31 speaks 25 languages.
“We are really blessed to have this opportunity, and we are so thankful for the Lowry family to acknowledge the work we are doing,” said Ginger Kwan, Open Doors executive director.
LifeWire provides homelessness and housing stability services for domestic violence survivors and their families. It has helped more than 145,000 domestic violence survivors break free from abuse to find safety, heal and create a stable home for themselves and their families.
“Gov. Lowry lived a life of service as a defender of the poor and homeless,” said Kelly Becker, development director at LifeWire. “And we are grateful to accept this gift in honor of his legacy.”
Mayor Dana Ralph lauded the organizations’ efforts and their ability to partner and help specific portions of the homeless population.
“We couldn’t get anything done without partnerships,” Ralph said. “We are so grateful for the work that you are all doing, not just in Kent but our region.
“Homelessness is probably the biggest challenge we face as a region and a country,” Ralph said, “and it is not something as we know can be solved in 10 years. I don’t know if it will be solved in our lifetime. We can make it better. We can address it. But part of what makes it such a big challenge is the diversity in our homeless population. Why people are homeless, why they are not able to access the programs that are available, and the challenges that go with it.”
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Mike Heinisch, executive director of Kent Youth and Family Services, explains the work his nonprofit organization does in addressing homelessness and providing transitional housing and services for young mothers and their children. With Heinisch is Laurie Peterson, KYFS program director for Watson Manor, and Hira Singh Bhullar, KYFS board member. MARK KLAAS, Kent Reporter
