Investing in Our Future: The Importance of the Housing Levy   

By: Alesha Washington  I recently renewed the lease for my townhouse. On the surface, it was a rather insignificant moment beyond signaling to my friends and family in Cleveland that Seattle is becoming my new home. As I look back over my life and consider the distance traveled, not in miles but in lived experience, […]

Cultura Cura / Culture Cures: Neigbor to Neighbor (N2N) Fall 2022 Spotlight

By Aileen Balahadia // Fall’s round of N2N grantees demonstrate how Cultura Cura or “culture cures.” N2N has a long history of partnering with Black, Indigenous and people of color, along with immigrants, refugees and youth building community and transforming their neighborhoods.

Neighbor to Neighbor expands to SeaTac/Tukwila

SeaTac/Tukwila communities are creating a region where residents work together so everyone thrives; N2N’s expansion aims to bolster their efforts with support and new investments. For more than 30 years, Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N) has advanced racial equity by investing in the power of place and community. This commitment continues with the addition of our […]

Nosotros Existimos—Afro-Indigenous and Indigenous Perspectives on Hispanic Heritage Month

By Vanesa Gutierrez, with Shaylan Dolmo, Etelbina Houser, and Antonio Flores Quin Every year, many people across the United States with cultural ties to Latin America kick off Hispanic Heritage Month by celebrating their country’s independence from Spanish rule. Latin America, however, is more than its ties to Spanish colonization. “Podemos reconocer la historia violenta como […]

Neighbor to Neighbor Spotlight Summer 2022: Praxis Institute for Early Childhood Education

Centering the power of community is critical when providing safe and culturally responsive spaces for Black youth. Bringing community voice back to the education of Black students is one way to help close the racial disparity seen in classrooms. By Aileen Balahadia, N2N Program Consultant When Dr. Debra Sullivan talks about supporting Black childhood education, […]

Honoring Pillars of this Community

“Liberated relationships are one of the ways we actually create abundant justice, the understanding that there is enough attention, care, resource, and connection for all of us to access belonging, to be in our dignity, and to be safe in community.” ? adrienne maree brown By Alesha Washington As I reach my three-month mark with […]

N2N Spotlight Spring 2022: New Connections of South King County

A fresh start for justice-involved youth, adults, and families. By: Aileen Balahadia, N2N Program Consultant New Connections has a 20-year history of serving the Kent and the South King County communities. Their mission is to connect justice-involved youth, adults, and families for a fresh start with education and resources. Justice-involved youth are those who have […]

Healing and Celebrating

Uplifting Mental Health Challenges and Resources in AA-NHPI Communities By Seattle Foundation’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Collective Seattle Foundation envisions a thriving region of shared prosperity, belonging, and justice, where all individuals and communities have equitable access and outcomes. Through our Blueprint for Impact, we recognize and address the longstanding racial and […]

Transforming Our Region

Announcing the Fund for Inclusive Recovery’s First Grantees By Kris Hermanns Today, Seattle Foundation and our partners are elated to announce the first round of funding for the Fund for Inclusive Recovery. Twenty-one organizations led by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) individuals – those with intimate knowledge of the obstacles their communities face […]

N2N Spotlight Winter 2022: Inside White Center and the UpNUp

Our words, our way: A look at two community-based podcasts recently funded by N2N. By: Aileen Balahadia, N2N Program Consultant and Elaine Chu, Senior Philanthropic Officer Representation matters. In the mainstream media, we do not see accurate representation of the faces, languages, viewpoints, and lived experiences of diverse communities of color. Negative stereotypes, unbalanced reporting, […]

Every Dollar – and Effort – Compounded

In honor of Black History Month, we’re highlighting three Black trailblazers who continue to make significant strides in Seattle. Voices are hushed. Steady music comes from the altar. And the worship leaders remind their congregation of the importance of contributing anything they can. The donations range from a $1 to $1,000. No amount is too […]

Taking “Many Roads” to Stronger Communities

A New Booklet Celebrates 30 Years of Neighbor to Neighbor. By Aileen Balahadia I have had the honor of partnering with countless community organizations through my work with Seattle Foundation’s grantmaking program Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N). For 30 years, N2N has advanced racial equity by investing in the power of community in Seattle-area neighborhoods. Today, […]

Contemplating the complexity of our identities: Hispanic, Latino/a, Latinx, Latine, and more

Seattle Foundation Program Officer Vanesa Gutierrez speaks with a community partner about why it is important to speak with individuals about preferred identifiers, rather than seeing people groups as monoliths. By: Vanesa Gutierrez Seattle Foundation is committed to sharing personal reflections on identity to deepen our knowledge on backgrounds different to our own and better […]

Fostering Resilient Environments

Treehouse Uses COVID-19 Response Fund Grant to Support Youth in Foster Care We’ve heard the stories echo across the nation: children, young adults, and their caregivers dealing with the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. One area of significant challenge: remote learning. In 2020, nearly 93% of households with school-age childrenreported they engaged in […]

Utilizing Census Data to Inform Civic Engagement

Ensuring that all community members are adequately represented in population data is integral to informing how government resources get allocated across critical issues in areas where they’re needed most and how legislative seats are apportioned in the U.S. House of Representatives. The significance of the Decennial Census guided Seattle Foundation’s decision to play a leadership […]

N2N Spotlight: Black Dollar Days Task Force’s Clean Green Farms

Promoting health and self-sufficiency with Black and African American youth, one seed at a time. By: Aileen Balahadia, N2N Program Consultant Supporting Black Dollar Days Task Force (BDDTF) this year feels poignant, as we, Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N), continue celebrating our 30th anniversary. BDDTF received a grant in 1991, the year N2N was launched, and […]