Chamber gets to know Volunteers of America

From enjoying pancakes once a month to stopping by for lunch, members of the Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce learned that there are many ways to help support the efforts of the Volunteers of America Western Washington (VOA) as it strives to care for Sky Valley community members in need.

VOA Sky Valley Services Center Director Calei Vaughn gave an overview of the programs available at the Sultan campus during this month's chamber luncheon on Wednesday, Sept. 7, at Sultan City Hall. Located near downtown Sultan on First Street, the VOA campus includes the Sky Valley Community Resource Center, the VOA Sultan Food Pantry and the Sky Valley Senior Center. Also on the property is the Sultan Boys & Girls Club, through a long-standing partnership between the two organizations.

The VOA works on a holistic level to address the basic needs of families, individuals, youth and seniors. The Sultan facility is multifaceted, as the nonprofit works to implement an integrated services approach.

"We are the first social services integrated service center in the county,GÇ¥ Vaughn said. "We're starting a new model that's going to be duplicated in a lot of different places.GÇ¥

The VOA seeks to fulfill six core functions with vital services, Vaughn said, all of which are available in Sultan. It offers conflict resolution, child and youth services, personal support services for seniors and individuals with developmental disabilities, volunteer engagement, behavioral health and basic needs, including hunger prevention and homeless services.

"We've seen a sharp decline in the need for homeless services over the past few years,GÇ¥ Vaughn said. "I'm happy about that, but I'm not as naive to think that it still doesn't exist, so I know there's people out there that we just haven't reached yet.GÇ¥

Vaughn just took over management of the VOA's Sultan Food Pantry, something that was formerly not within her purview as director. As a result, she has implemented various changes, such as new distribution days. The food pantry is now open on 5-7 p.m. on Tuesdays and from 9:30 a.m. to noon Fridays. The change was meant to ensure that food brought in during the week goes out during that same week.-á

Anyone in need can use the food pantry, she said.

"The only requirement to it is residence within the Sultan School District boundaries,GÇ¥ Vaughn said. "We typically ask for a valid utility bill or a recent piece of mail to verify that, and a picture ID. We also do serve homeless people who don't have that.GÇ¥

The VOA is currently seeking support for its backpack program, which serves kids in need during the school year. Every weekend, qualifying kids are sent home with a backpack filled with easily consumable food items, including things like single servings of peanut butter, oatmeal and tuna ' all kid-friendly foods that they can prepare themselves.

The need is great, Vaughn said.

"Last year there was an enrollment of about 1,950 students at the Sultan School District,GÇ¥ she said. "Over 50 percent of them qualified for free and reduced lunch so our need is probably about 1,000 backpacks a week. There's no way we can do that right now.GÇ¥-á

Donations to help support the backpack program would be much appreciated, she said.

Senior services is another area in which the VOA is looking for support.

Earlier this year, United Way announced it was changing the focus of its 2016-17 grant cycle to focus on "breaking the cycle of poverty by supporting programs that use an integrated service approach.GÇ¥ In the past, the United Way grant funding provided more than half of the senior center operating budget. Because of its new focus, the VOA was awarded grant funding to support the resource center, but not for programs like the senior center or at-risk youth.

To Vaughn, caring for the community's seniors is of paramount importance, so she is selling $10 Sky Valley Senior Center Supporter cards. They are hoping to use the cards in the same way that espresso stands use coffee punch cards, offering user rewards, so the pancake breakfast can be free occasionally. Anybody can come and eat breakfast at the monthly pancake breakfasts or eat lunch at the center from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

All the proceeds from the breakfasts and the lunches directly support the center.

The senior center also offers events and activities, including Bingo every Thursday, painting, quilting and informational sessions with Senior Services of Snohomish County.

"We're really trying to incorporate more events and activities, to keep brains going, to keep motor skills going and to keep social activity going,GÇ¥ Vaughn said.

Vaughn also heads up the Sultan Community Alliance, which has become the arm of the VOA that focuses on engaging with at-risk youth by propelling them toward future success. It also works to keep Sultan's parks and public areas free of refuse and debris. The Alliance was founded in 2014, after Mayor Carolyn Eslick created a task force to address issues related to homelessness and drug addiction.

Tons of trash was removed from Sultan's parks, when Vaughn partnered with former Police Chief Monte Beaton to offer services to the homeless individuals that were living in them.

"When we went out to the population that was living in the Steelhead Park area or in various other areas, the message was pretty clear,GÇ¥ Vaughn said. "It was, "You can engage in services or you can engage with law enforcement but you can't continue to do this.' We were really successful.GÇ¥

One individual had been living in Reese Park for 20 years. That person is housed today, she said.

One of the working goals of the Alliance is to bring families back to Main Street, which Vaughn is seeking to accomplish through various community events.

Vaughn admitted her mission is vast, and that community support will help ensure success. In addition to the Senior Center Supporter card program, Vaughn has implemented a giving campaign with a goal of collecting $1 per month for each Sky Valley resident.

"I'm not going lie; the senior center is in trouble this year,GÇ¥ Vaughn said. "My heart is with them right now because they deserve it. Those people worked hard all their lives and gave back to their communities, and now their incomes are limited and they still face cuts.GÇ¥

To support operations at the Sky Valley Senior Center or any of the other Sky Valley programs, visit www.voaww.org. Donations are routed through VOA headquarters in Everett, but can be designated to support Sky Valley programming. To support the senior center, select Sultan Senior Center on the pull-down list of the Gift Designation section of the Donate page. Eighty-six cents of every dollar donated is funneled straight back into VOA programs.