Hourglass: United Way of King County

Good news happens. In this episode, we’ll chat with members of United Way staff and officials from the Federal Way School District, which offers a firsthand look at the impact of Breakfast After the Bell in Lake Grove Elementary School. Pictured here are Alisha Barlow, Executive Director Of Nutrition Services at Federal Way Public Schools (left), and Lake Grove principal Amanda Wilde. We’ll also h...

Good news happens. This episode is the first in a series highlighting members of United Way of King County’s board of directors. We’ll spotlight United Way board member Shkëlqim Kelmendi of Housing Connector, a Seattle-based organization that increases affordable housing access for those in need by addressing financial and residency challenges.  We will also talk about our upcoming Rapid Response...

Good news happens. In Hourglass's first podcast of 2025, we’ll chat with Jennifer Tanaka, Deputy Director of King County’s Children, Youth and Young Adult Division, and Joy Sebe, United Way of King County director of education strategies, about partnerships between nonprofit and government sectors. We’ll speak specifically about United Way’s Racial Equity Coalition. This county-funded collect...

Good news happens! This episode is Hourglass United Way’s Year in Review. We chat with United Way of King County president and CEO Gordon McHenry, Jr., about our organization’s work in 2024 and how that guides our work for this New Year. We will also hear from United Way’s chief philanthropy officer, Lindsay Harper, about our year-end giving Campaign and discuss an upcoming volunteer opportunity....

Good news happens! In this episode, we chat with United Way Systems Change and Public Policy Coordinator Nancy Lu about ways our public policy team advocates for local, regional, and state resources to help make a difference in our communities. We will also hear from United Way’s chief philanthropy officer, Lindsay Harper, about our year-end giving Campaign and discuss an upcoming volunteer opport...

Good news happens! This week’s episode concludes our two-part series on workplace giving. We will chat with Harold Baker, United Way of King County Associate Director, Corporate Development, and Scott Meden, United Way board member and retired Nordstrom chief marketing officer, about the current and future state of workplace giving. We will also hear from United Way’s chief philanthropy officer, L...

This week’s episode features Project LEAD, United Way’s annual training program for people of color, that helps them develop leadership and management skills to serve on nonprofit boards of directors.  We will also hear from United Way’s chief philanthropy officer, Lindsay Harper, about our year-end giving Campaign and discuss an upcoming volunteer opportunity. Thanks for tuning in!

Good news happens! On this week’s episode of United Way of King County’s podcast Hourglass, Coming up, we’ll hear from Russell Brooks of Red Eagle Soaring, an Indigenous youth theater group that uses art to address social and environmental issues. United Way proudly supports Red Eagle Soaring, which is slated to perform at the December 9 Seattle Arts and Lectures Encore event featuring Indigenous...

Good news happens. In this week’s episode, we’ll hear how United Way of King County’s Emerging Leaders 365 group has redefined community engagement. Emerging Leader Malena Magallanez and United Way Senior Marketing Program Manager Taylor Roberson will discuss how Emerging Leaders impacts the lives of local professionals and the communities they serve. We’ll also discuss United Way’s Our Neighborho...

Good news happens! This week, we'll chat with Scott Pinkham of United Indians of All Tribes Foundation, a Seattle-based cultural center and social service provider for Indigenous people in our area. We will also discuss United Way of King County’s Our Neighbor Fund and an upcoming volunteer opportunity. Thanks for tuning in.

Good news happens. During this week’s episode, we chat with Kayla Harstad of Urban Native Education Alliance, a Seattle-based organization that last week embarked on its annual trip to Washington, D.C., during Native American Heritage Month to learn more about the history of Indigenous people nationwide. United Way proudly supports Urban Native Education Alliance and how it spends its time engagin...

Good news happens! Election Week is here, and this week’s episode concludes our three-part Get Out the Vote series. This episode is all about civic engagement. We’ll chat with Amanda Sandoval, United Way director of systems change and public policy on how you can make your voice heard through civic engagement on election day and all year long. This episode also features a special message on voting...

Good news happens! In this episode, we visit BENU Community Home in Seattle, a transitional shelter for single adult males experiencing homelessness that was launched more than two years ago by United Way of King County grantee Africatown Community Land Trust.  United Way proudly spotlights the BENU Community Home and its efforts to help men experiencing homelessness, particularly those of African...

Good news happens! This week’s episode of United Way of King County’s podcast Hourglass is the first in a two-part series on workplace giving. We will discuss workplace giving origins, its heyday at United Way of King County, and its place in the current work landscape. We will also discuss United Way’s Our Neighbor Fund and an upcoming United Way Conversations for Change event. Thanks for tuning...

Good news happens! In this second episode of our three-part Get Out the Vote series, we talk ballot initiatives. We chat with Amanda Sandoval, United Way director of systems change and policy, for a discussion about the importance of ballot initiatives and two initiatives on the ballot in November’s General Election. We also discuss United Way’s Our Neighbor Fund and an upcoming United Way Convers...

Good news happens! This week’s episode features a conversation with Robin Wall Kimmerer, an Indigenous scientist and storyteller whose book Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants remained on the New York Times bestseller list for more than three years.  Kimmerer will be a returning guest speaker for the Seattle Arts and Lectures Encore Series on De...

Good news happens! In this episode, we visit Jewish Family Service, a Seattle-based organization, that, via its food bank, supports the needs of Jewish individuals and families, refugees and immigrants, and our broader community. United Way is proud to support Jewish Family Service and spotlight its annual Community-Wide Food Drive & Food Sort, which enlists volunteers and partners to provide...

Good news happens! This week, we visit the Iraqi Community Center of Washington, a Kent-based organization that provides services and programs that help its community members achieve self-sufficiency.  United Way of King County proudly supports the Iraqi Community Center of Washington and how it spends its time serving the nearly 5,000 Iraqi people who call our state home.  We will also discuss Un...

Good news happens! In this episode we will chat with Yusuf Bashir of Falis Community Services, a Kent-based organization that spends its time providing services and opportunities for immigrants and refugees. United Way proudly supports Falis Community Services and its efforts to help immigrant and refugee youth, and families succeed in our area.  We will also discuss United Way of King County’s Ou...

Good News happens! This week, United Way of King County’s podcast Hourglass features the first episode of our three-part Get Out the Vote Series.  With the November Election less than two months away, United Way stresses the importance of exercising your right to vote. Our Get Out the Vote Series will discuss the importance of voting, initiatives on this year’s ballot, and ways to stay civically e...

Good news happens! In this episode, the leader of United Way’s 1,100 organizations discusses topics such as her career in service to others, her tenure at the helm of United Way Worldwide, and her views about the nonprofit sector. We will also hear about United Way of King County’s Our Neighbor Fund and an upcoming Get Out the Vote event. Thanks for tuning in!

Good news happens! This week’s episode features Dr. Kelly Kinnison, the new CEO of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. Dr. Kinnison, a former Division director of the US Department of Health and Human Services, took over for the Authority earlier this month.  She recently spoke to United Way of King County about how she’s spending her time addressing one of the area’s most longstandin...

Good news happens! This week’s episode features a conversation with Gregory Davis of Rainier Beach Action Coalition, an organization that empowers its South Seattle community and helps kids across the region prepare for the upcoming school year.  United Way of King County proudly supports Rainier Beach Action Coalition and its efforts to build a connected, sustainable, and equitable community. We...

More than one third of the people experiencing homelessness in the US live in West Coast states. Hear how United Way of King County and other United Ways on the West Coast spend  time addressing the homelessness crisis. We’ll also discuss United Way’s Our Neighbor Fund and a volunteer Opportunity at Lambert House. Thanks for tuning in!

Good news happens! And for some local nonprofits, we’ve helped make it happen from the very beginning. In this episode, we talk about how we’ve spent our time helping people launch or grow nonprofit organizations that serve the needs of our communities. We will also hear about United Way’s Our Neighbor Fund and our upcoming event with the Seattle Mariners! Thanks for tuning in!