On October 10, the Mockingbird Society honored three community leaders at their annual fall fundraiser, stating that “Cultivating a community of hope has been a core value this year. Reinforcing that our work can only succeed in partnership with the communities closest to the issues, along with a multitude of invested stakeholders across all service systems impacting children, youth, and families.“
The organization honored two staff members of Partners for Our Children: Executive Director Emiko Tajima and Public Policy Director Laurie Lippold. The third honoree was Washington State Representative Tina Orwall.
From their about page: The Mockingbird Society is an advocacy organization founded in 2000 by Jim Theofelis to provide meaningful opportunities for youth across Washington state to participate in the social justice effort to improve the foster care system. Its first project was The Mockingbird Times, then a monthly newspaper written by young people who have experienced foster care that aims to have a positive impact on the public perception of young people experiencing foster care and/or homelessness. Since then, their work has expanded to include working with foster families and child-placing agencies to improve outcomes for both young people and their caregivers. Recognizing a clear link between experience in the child welfare system and homelessness, Mockingbird also began addressing issues around youth homelessness in 2013.
The fundraiser and honoring was held at the Northwest African American Museum.
Photo credit: Michael B. Maine