Aug 2023 Newsletter

*|MC_PREVIEW_TEXT|*

View this email in your browser   FOCS Newsletter August 2023 Enjoy the last days of summer! Upcoming programs and events (scroll below for more details) August Park Day, 8/20 at Judkins Park, 11am - 2pm  September Park Day and 10th Anniversary Celebration, 9/24 at Jefferson Park Announcing Fall 2023 Parent Groups! Stroller Days at Gates Foundation Discovery Center, Thursdays 11am - 12pm Funding News: Starbucks Foundation Neighborhood Grant! City of Seattle awards FOCS funds for Family Support Services! FOCS receives grant from ECA Thrift Shop for Parent Groups! World Breastfeeding Month, links to resources below FOCS Updates Upcoming Programs and Events THIS SUNDAY! August 20, 11am - 2pm Judkins Park, 2150 S Norman St, Seattle, WA 98144 (See photo of map. We will be at Picnic Area 1.) FREE | GAMES | SNACKS | WATER SPRAY FEATURE (BRING SWIMSUITS AND TOWELS) 🤸‍♀️⛹️‍♂️🤹‍♀️ All families of color and all ages welcome! July Park Day was so much fun, with so many families coming through! Come join us for our August Park Day! This event is open to all FOCS families. Come meet other families, play games, and chat with FOCS Staff about future programming. FOCS will provide light refreshment and cold beverages. Masks and hand sanitizer will also be on hand. For the safety of our community and its most vulnerable members, please stay home if you or your family members are ill or not feeling well, and observe respectful hygiene practices, e.g. clean hands, covered mouths when coughing, etc. Those of you who have joined us before know: there's nothing better than summer in the PNW, connecting with with other families of color, making new friends and seeing long-time friends. ⛱ See you there! To help us organize, please register below. (Also know that your family can come through even if you don't register! Come anyway...we want to see you all there!)   8/20 Park Day: Sign Up Here Save the Date! September 24: 10th Anniversary Celebration It's time for a FOCS family reunion, where friends old and new gather to celebrate a decade of connection! Can you believe it? 2023 marks the 10th Anniversary of Families of Color Seattle (FOCS)! Together, we have built a vibrant community of families of color and cultivated a vision of children born into a loving community that is racially and economically just. September's Park Day (9/24) will be extra special: Complimentary food and desserts Children's activities (including sensory-friendly options) Cultural performances and demonstrations A chance to reconnect with FOCS families and friends. The event is FREE to all FOCS families. We always welcome any donations in support of our work together. Click button below to register in advance. As an organization created by and for BIPOC families that is 100% BIPOC-staffed, Black-led, and Black and Native-governed, we are thrilled to celebrate such an incredible milestone! 10th Anniversary Park Day: Register Now Announcing Fall 2023 Parent Groups In many ways, FOCS Parent Groups are the heart of our community. It is often the way that families connect and stay connected. Friendships formed in parent sometimes last for years and decades. As people have shared, "It takes a village. This is my village." Parent groups are FREE facilitated gatherings to increase parenting skills and provide a space to discuss identity and race. Gatherings are eight to ten weekly, two-hour sessions. FOCS curriculum includes dialogue on racism, identity, and the tools to best support raising strong and compassionate children of color. Facilitators are parents themselves with lived experience specific to the group. Connect with your village!   Learn More and Register Free Tours at Gates Foundation Discovery Center! Stroller Days are still on: Thursday 11am - 12noon! In partnership with Gates Foundation Discovery Center, please join Families of Color Seattle (FOCS) for a FREE stroller-friendly tour through the Discovery Center's newest exhibition, "Designing Motherhood: Things That Make and Break Our Births." This exhibition explores the arc of human reproduction through the lens of art and design. The exhibition examines the evolution of rights and societal norms connected to contraception, pregnancy, birth, and postpartum experiences over the last 150 years, highlighting that birth—and the culture that surrounds it—impacts every living person. While being born is a universal human experience, the designs that shape it are not. "Designing Motherhood" invites you to consider why and how we have developed designs to facilitate reproductive health. Featuring over 200 objects, this exhibition brings together a unique collection of contemporary artists and designers whose work helps us ponder the political, economic, and social implications of how we all relate to repoduction, juxtaposing photography with product design, innovations in material and newborn health, maternity fashion, and much more. RSVP: https://airtable.com/shrXMSKMQVBjuAzCn Info about the exhibit at discovergates.org Funding News! We are thrilled to share the following opportunities and offer our thanks to these organizations for sharing our vision and serving our communities together.  We’re proud to be selected for The Starbucks Foundation Neighborhood Grants,  thanks to local Starbucks partners (employees) in our community. The City of Seattle awards FOCS funding for services that are focused on learning, healing, and fostering connections. Eastside Community Aid Thrift Shop gave FOCS a grant to support Eastside Parent Groups. Click on images and links below for more information! ​​Week 1 (August 1-7): World Breastfeeding Week           Theme: Enabling Breastfeeding: Making a difference for working parents ​Week 2 (August 8-14): Indigenous Milk Medicine Week Theme: From the Stars to a Sustainable Future Week 3 (August 15-21): Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Breastfeeding Week Theme: Telling Our Stories, Elevating Our Voices! ​Week 4 (August 25-31): Black Breastfeeding Week Theme: We Outside!: Celebrating Connection & Our Communities New Week 5 (September 5-11): Semana de La Lactancia Latina  Thank you to our Donors! Your donation helps foster community amongst BIPOC Parents in the Seattle area and ensures that we can continue to offer parent groups and family programming free of charge to families of color.   Thank you for supporting BIPOC family connections and community building! Become a Monthly FOCS Donor Resources   Resources for Parents B.I.PoC. Provider Directory- developed and maintained by Deconstructing The Mental Health System (DMHS), a group for Mental Health Professionals who are actively increasing access to mental health & wellness services for the BIPOC community. Global Perinatal Services- Birth Doulas services are free to low-income, immigrant, and refugee families living in King County. Services are available in various languages including Somali, Arabic, Hindi, and more. 4 Tomorrow- Latino and Youth-focused organization offering support & coordination to households in King County. Services include Mental Health Services (Coordination, Referrals, Education, Events & Gap Therapy) as well as Life Services (resource navigation, Financial assistance, Goal Planning, Racism, hate and bias reporting, Systems navigation) and Basic Needs Services (housing stability, basic needs, education, public benefits, immigration, healthcare, life obstacles and more).  UTOPIA WA- basic needs, support groups, and advocacy for the LGBTQIA+ community Y-WE (Young Women Empowered)- Mentorship-based empowerment programs serving diverse young women ages 13-26 DMHS: Deconstructing the Mental Health System- 250+ Mental Health & Cultural Wellness Professionals who are Black, Black Indigenous, Indigenous, People of Color, and QTPOC & LGBTQIA+ & Affirming Providers serving our communities   Community Resources Alternatives to calling 911 Seattle Green Book- Seattle’s Black business directory. Free and open to Black-owned and co-owned businesses and people holding space for the Black community around Puget Sound. Northwest Vipassana Center- Free 10-day Meditation Retreats for individuals. Affinity courses including Black Heritage Course, and Bilingual/Thai and Spanish courses.  COVID & Monkeypox Resources Current COVID Guidance in King County Current Information about Monkeypox Resources for Families Impacted by COVID Eviction Assistance  City, County, State & Federal Resources Small Business Support Free Internet Access and Hotspots  Free and low cost internet access for low-income families More Ways to Stay Connected! Become a Monthly Donor! Host a Race Equity Workshop Join the Facebook Community Group Follow us on Facebook! Find us on Instagram! Stay connected on LinkedIn! Learn more on our Website! Copyright © 2023, Families of Color Seattle, All rights reserved. Our email address is: info@focseattle.org  Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.