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Seattle Human Services news and events

City of Seattle Recognizes October as “Domestic Violence Awareness Month” to Raise Awareness and Support for Victims and Survivors of Abuse

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Seattle – (October 1, 2020) – The Office of Labor Standards (OLS) and the Human Services Department (HSD) mark the month of October as a time to remember victims and survivors of abuse and exploitation; to raise awareness about violence and its effect on families and communities; and acknowledge and highlight those working to end gender-based violence. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen an increase in domestic violence reports, as we have had to separate from our families and friends to stop the spread of this deadly pandemic. While physical distancing can keep communities safe from the virus, it has also kept domestic violence survivors shut in with their offenders. We can still be a lifeline during this unprecedented time, remember to check in on your neighbors who may be suffering abuse in silence. Now more than ever, it’s crucial that we help those who may be suffering by raising our voices and awareness.

Mayor Jenny A. Durkan

In addition to sick leave, Seattle’s Paid Sick and Safe Time (PSST) Ordinance provides workers with paid leave for absences that result from critical safety issues arising from domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. New PSST COVID-19 amendments also require employers with employees in Seattle to provide paid leave when their family member’s school or place of care has been closed.

We all have a responsibility to take steps to end gender-based violence. Our workplaces play an important role in a survivor’s physical safety and financial security when they ensure access to paid safe leave for absences related to domestic violence and sexual assault. This month, we take this moment to increase awareness about resources and legal protections, like Paid Sick and Safe Time, that enable survivors to seek the assistance they need.

OLS Interim Director Jeneé Jahn

In Washington State, 41 percent of women and 32 percent of men report experiencing violence from an intimate partner. The City of Seattle invests more than $10 million annually in community-based programing focused on gender-based violence outreach and education, prevention and advocacy, therapeutic services and counseling, shelter and housing, and offender accountability programming. Through these investments, HSD and partners support more than 10,000 survivors each year.

While domestic violence does not discriminate, language barriers, lack of culturally relevant services, threats of deportation, and fear of isolation put marginalized communities at an increased risk of experiencing gender-based violence. Women of color and Native women are two-to-three times more likely to experience a gender-based, violence-related fatality than their white counterparts.  

Domestic violence impacts individuals from all genders, races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Seattle Human Services is proud to partner with more than 30 diverse service providers to increase access for all survivors with the “no wrong door” approach to advocacy.

Lan Pham, HSD Mayor’s Office on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Manger

Join the City of Seattle in honoring the victims and survivors of domestic violence by wearing purple every Thursday during October. During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Seattle City Hall lights and the Columbia Center office building downtown will go purple to recognize #PurpleThursday.

The issue of domestic violence is widespread and thrives when we are silent. With so many of us working or supporting community from home this year, OLS and HSD’s Mayor’s Office on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault are inviting everyone to wear purple on Thursday, October 22, in solidarity with survivors of domestic violence. Post a photo, hold a sign, or share a personal story if you are comfortable, and use the social media hashtag #PugetSoundPurpleThursday.

For more ideas and action steps that you can take to end domestic violence, visit: https://endgv.org/ or https://wscadv.org/dvam/.

Please visit the OLS website for more information on the PSST Ordinance or call 206-256-5297. And, visit the Seattle Human Services Department for more on supportive victim services.

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City of Seattle’s Mobile Integrated Health Partnership Wins National Award

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Health One, High Utilizer Program, Vulnerable Adult Program round out successful models of Seattle Fire and Human Services partnership

On September 22, Aging and Disability Services, a division of the Seattle Human Services Department (HSD), received a 2020 n4a Aging Innovation Award from the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a) for their involvement in the City of Seattle’s Mobile Integrated Health partnership. The award was presented on the second day of the n4a’s four-day virtual national 2020 conference.

Aging and Disability Services (ADS) is the Area Agency on Aging for Seattle and King County—one of 600+ “AAAs” in the country authorized by the federal Older Americans Act and recognized by the federal Administration on Community Living and state DSHS Aging and Long-Term Support Administration.

For four years, HSD has partnered with the Seattle Fire Department through programs focused on high utilizers and vulnerable adults. In 2019, Health One—a dedicated, dispatched response model that links individuals with appropriate healthcare, behavioral health, and social service providers—was born, rounding out the city’s Mobile Integrated Health partnership.

“As one of the fastest growing cities in the nation, our ability to respond to non-emergency 911 calls has been tested,” said Mayor Jenny A. Durkan. “Our Mobile Integrated Health partnership, including Health One and the High Utilizer and Vulnerable Adult programs, has resulted in significant reductions in 911 calls as well as unnecessary trips to emergency rooms. With these resources our community can receive the care and service they need while ensuring our first responders are available for true emergencies.”

In 2019, about 44 percent of nearly 73,000 medical calls received by Seattle’s 911 dispatch center were non-life-threatening, including behavioral health and addiction issues and calls from people with chronic conditions. Less than eight percent of those calls required paramedic transport. To address non-emergency requests, the City pioneered Health One, a program that includes a dedicated vehicle staffed with two firefighters (who are also emergency medical technicians) and an HSD social worker with experience serving people with diverse needs, including chronic conditions experienced by older people and individuals with disabilities.

“HSD social workers follow up with 911 callers whose complaints do not present immediate danger, and they help identify adults at risk for abuse and self-neglect,” said ADS division director Cathy Knight. “Our staff has provided training and resources for high-utilizing locations like shelters and assisted living facilities. Through Health One, our social workers are involved in triage, assessment, referrals, transport, and warm handoffs to other providers. They provide on-scene resources that address the root causes of distress.”

The MIH also collaborates with law enforcement, Adult Protective Services, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Public Health—Seattle & King County, and area hospitals to improve identification of at-risk adults, connect them with resources needed for stability, increase care coordination, provide feedback to reporting agencies, and improve health outcomes.

In March 2020, the Mobile Integrated Healthcare partnership adapted protocols to respond to the COVID pandemic. Initially, firefighters continued to go out on the Health One rig and ADS case managers helped remotely, either at SFD headquarters or from telecommuting sites. Once adequate safety protocols were established, ADS case managers returned to riding the rig with the firefighters.

Initially, Health One focused on serving people in the downtown core, Pioneer Square, Belltown, and Capitol Hill. As part of COVID response, service was expanded to SODO, Mount Baker, Rainier Valley, the University District, Ballard, and West Seattle. Citywide, any Seattle Fire unit can refer a client experiencing secondary impacts of the virus or quarantine.

Seattle’s Mobile Integrated Health partnership has been an innovative and critical lifeline for those in need, with the demands of quarantine, isolation, and social distancing further impacting already vulnerable people. Disconnection from healthcare, social services, and behavioral networks have increasingly taken a toll on our community. Our social workers are highly skilled in connecting vulnerable individuals with services and supports they need for stability. Kudos to HSD and Seattle Fire staff for their incredible work.

Jason Johnson, Seattle Human Services Director

“Our Mobile Integrated Health partnership had already increased efficiency and effectiveness of our emergency response system when COVID hit,” said Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins, who helps lead the City’s COVID response efforts. “Meeting the medical and social needs of low acuity and socially vulnerable patients—housed or not, in shelters, apartments, supported housing, camps and RVs—means that more people are able to complete the recommended period of quarantine or isolation, and will be better served in the future.”

Screen capture from the virtual awards ceremony

For more information about Seattle’s Mobile Integrated Health program, visit www.seattle.gov/mobileintegratedhealth; about Aging and Disability Services, visit www.agingkingcounty.org; and about n4a’s 2020 Innovation and Achievement Awards, visit www.n4a.org/Files/2020%20AIA%20FINAL.pdf.

New Healthy Air Center to Open for People Experiencing Homelessness

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**Update: September 14: Our emergency smoke relief shelter created last Friday to bring people experiencing homelessness inside will remain open until Wednesday morning as continuing wildfire smoke continues to choke the Puget Sound region.

The City of Seattle and King County are opening a temporary shelter to provide respite from unhealthy air conditions. King County is providing the building (1045 6th Ave South in SoDo) and the City’s Human Services Department (HSD) will support services via a partnership with Salvation Army. The shelter will serve people experiencing homelessness and living unsheltered. Salvation Army and King County Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) will staff the shelter.

The doors will open today at 3:00 pm on Friday, September 11, and are scheduled to remain open until 8:00 am on Monday, September 14th. The days and time of operation may change based on environmental conditions.

Click here or on the image above to view larger or download the PDF. Also available in Amharic, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.

In previous years, the region’s smoke and unhealthy air quality response has relied on people minimizing time outdoors and informing people of available facilities that have air filtration. Public Health – Seattle & King County has advised that agencies should open facilities only if they possess high-quality air filtration systems and if they can comply with public health guidance as it relates to temperature, screening, social distancing, capacity restrictions, face coverings, and other health and hygiene measures. The SoDo facility is in compliance with these dual smoke and COVID-19 public health requirements and available to be set up and staffed quickly.

Other City facilities either do not have the proper air filtration systems or are not available due to other uses such as childcare programming.

The City of Seattle currently operates two other shelters that possess the air filtration system necessary to comply with smoke and COVID-19 public health protocols. Those shelters are Fisher Pavilion, which has capacity for 80 people, and Exhibition Hall, which has capacity for 130 people.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is this facility and who owns it?

This site was set-up by King County as an Assessment and Recovery Center (AC/RC) for emergency COVID response, particularly to respond to a surge in COVID infection and the need for emergency space for groups of people in need. Nursing stations are located throughout, as well as no-touch hand washing stations.

The City of Seattle is providing services to the site through the Salvation Army, which is a contracted service provider of HSD.

Why open this site now?

As a region, we have been successful in keeping our rates of infection sufficiently low so as not to need this site, yet, for its intended purpose: an assessment and recovery center for people sick with COVID-19. It has not opened and we have saved the cost of staffing the site 24/7 because it has not been needed up to now. We have seen in other countries like Italy and other states like New York how quickly hospitals can be overwhelmed in a surge of cases, and we have been resolved to maintain enough emergency COVID capacity to avoid swamping our local hospitals if possible.

Varying levels of smoke have been present in the air over the past week, and a forecast for additional smoke starting on Friday afternoon presents an elevated hazard for unsheltered persons. Cumulative recent smoke exposure and new elevated level of smoke led to Public Health advising opening a smoke shelter for use by unsheltered persons from Friday afternoon through Monday morning.

What is the purpose of the site?

To provide an environment offering reduced smoke exposure while also implementing AC/RC lessons learned to reduce likelihood of COVID-19 transmission. Masks and PPE will be provided to reduce risk of harm from COVID transmission while staff and guests are onsite. We will help guests meet basic needs while onsite, but recognize that the facility is not an intense services site because it will only be in operation while the risk of smoke is elevated (48 to 60 hours). If few people utilize the facility, we will reduce staffing proportionately. Use of this site is voluntary. Target audience for smoke shelter use is unsheltered persons, particularly unsheltered persons at elevated risk due to prolonged smoke exposure.

How will people get there?

HSD, DCHS and Public Health will work with their partners and the homeless shelter service system to get the word out about the availability of indoor space and respite from the smoke. King County Metro will assist with transportation from outlying areas as needed.

Is there a staffing plan and security on site?

King County will arrange onsite security 24/7. The Salvation Army and county staff will also be on site throughout the duration of the emergency use. Under a contract with the City of Seattle, Salvation Army will provide two operators onsite 24/7. Public Health Reserve Corps will provide operational staff and a nurse onsite from 8 AM to 6 PM each day of operation. Facilities will provide onsite security and facility support services. DCHS will provide a site director, onsite support, and material support as needed, including water and nutrition and other supplies. Metro will assist with transportation to the smoke shelter from outlying County locations as needed. King County Office of Emergency Management is standing by to assist with any larger scale material support as needed.

How long will this smoke shelter operate?

King County and the City are exercising an emergency deployment of this resource in light of the emergency situation Seattle is experiencing due to dangerous air quality conditions. That emergency action is for a period of approximately three days. Should we decide to change the intended use of the building from emergency COVID response to a different use for a longer-term period, we would do so in discussion with the local area businesses and residents in advance of taking action.

Residents should regularly check Puget Sound Clean Air Agency for updates on air quality.

Seattle Human Services Releases 2019 Annual Report

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With this Labor Day weekend, we say goodbye to yet another summer – although this is one we will not soon forget. As masking up and maintaining social distancing have become normal enough for celebrities to sport fashionable designs and award shows to find unique ways to present drive-in concerts and socially-distanced backup dancers, our staff at the Seattle Human Services Department are trying to get caught back up on the non-emergency tasks that would normally face us each year.

As we begin the return to some non-emergency tasks we regularly address as a department, one “routine” item to check off on our task list is complete just a couple months later than last time. I am pleased to share our just-released HSD 2019 Annual Report with you, highlighting some of the incredible work we accomplished together—and with our City and community partners:

Click above to view the report

Preparing Youth for Success: The Seattle Youth Employment Program (SYEP) launched a new school-year program, providing increased access for youth to grow as community leaders and prepare for future work and career opportunities. By engaging in an academic year curriculum to build job-readiness skills as part of a cohort of youth, interns are better prepared to participate in the summer internship program at its conclusion.

Supporting Affordability and Livability: HSD partnered with the Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment and Department of Education and Early Learning to support the Fresh Bucks To Go food bag pilot, an offshoot of the City of Seattle’s Fresh Bucks program, which delivers healthy, local produce and online convenience directly to families through the Seattle Public Preschool Program and before- and after-school programs serving low-income children and families in Seattle.

Addressing Homelessness: Our ongoing strategic investments in homelessness helped shelter and house more people in 2019 than any other year previous.

Promoting Public Health: The Seattle Fire Department expanded its Mobile Integrated Health program by partnering with HSD to provide case management services on more calls, including a new ride-along program called Health One.

Responding to Gender-Based Violence: HSD’s Mayor’s Office on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (MODVSA) increased education and awareness through a series of events, including: a #DenimDay educational panel to amplify voices of indigenous women as part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April); hosting speakers and a discussion on the importance of addressing racism and bringing communities together to protect African American women and girls (September); and expanding recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month (October) by recruiting City staff and the Columbia Center to participate in #PurpleThursday.

Promoting Healthy Aging: Every four years, Area Agencies on Aging around the country develop an Area Plan, which charts the course we will follow as we seek to create an age-friendly community. The plan describes the function of Aging and Disability Services as the local Area Agency on Aging, presents relevant demographic trends, and outlines the major goals and objectives to be achieved over the course of four years. The final draft Area Plan 2020–2023 for Seattle and King County, Washington, was submitted October 4, 2019, as a result of countless engagements with staff, partners, and the community, including reviews of both local and national research in conjunction with DPE to best address the needs of Seattle’s older adults.

Turn the pages of this report to learn more and view all the highlights from across our six investment impact areas. While not all-inclusive of the hard work of HSD staff over 12 months, it demonstrates the breadth of our work as we collaborate and perform services each day that deserve recognition.

A big thank you to all our staff and our community partners for your work that makes our community stronger and Seattle a better place to live!

HSD Releases Data Reports on Homelessness Services

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The Human Services Department (HSD) has recently released data reports on the City’s Homelessness Response Blog showing the performance of programs that receive City funding and the work of the Navigation Team’s outreach in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Q2 (April – June). 

This week, HSD released the fourth quarter (Q4) performance data for programs that receive City funding to serve people experiencing homelessness. Mid-year data for 2019 was last published in September 2019. The finalization and release of Q4 data was significantly delayed due to the onset of COVID-19, which required HSD staffing resources to be diverted to pandemic response. 

The Q4 data affirms that the 2017 Homelessness Investments RFP, which realigned HSD’s homelessness response portfolio to focus more on throughput and permanent housing outcomes, continues to achieve these outcomes, with more unsheltered people served and moved into housing. After reviewing three full years of data performance, HSD believes the metrics have stabilized and remains steady with programs such as tiny house villages and enhanced shelters continuing to show success in moving people into housing.  

The full report and more details can be found in this blog post.

The Navigation Team also recently submitted its latest report to City Council providing a snapshot of the team’s significant outreach in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Q2 (April – June). 

In response to COVID-19, the Navigation Team has focused its efforts to outreach and litter/debris removal. This refocusing in Q2 resulted in 373 site visits for outreach, 624 litter and debris mitigation operations, and 408 referrals to shelter citywide.

Since the beginning of the outbreak in March through Q2, the team has had over 4,700 conversations about COVID-19 with people experiencing homelessness, provided over 2,500 hygiene kits, distributed over 2,300 COVID-19 and hepatitis A related public health flyers, handed out over 1,100 boxed meals, and supplied 400 masks to individuals living unsheltered.

Engagements by the team’s System Navigators (which are the team’s outreach workers) in Q2 led to increases in the number of engagements, referrals to shelter, and actual enrollments into shelter. 

The team’s Field Coordinators, front line workers who assess the needs of hundreds of encampment sites citywide, completed 1,061 site inspections in Q2, a 92% quarter over quarter increase. These site inspections provide “eyes on the ground” and are essential for the Navigation Team to effectively allocate outreach and encampment mitigation resources. 

A link to the full report, details on the increased success of outreach efforts, and the launch of NavApp 2.0 can be found in this blog post.

Age Friendly Seattle Virtual Events

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Graphic image showing Age Friendly Seattle logo on a laptop sitting ona desktop with a cup of steaming hot beverage next to it

Age Friendly Seattle virtual events—Civic Coffee Hours and a new series, Close to Home: Stories of Health, Tech and Resilience—offer older adults in the greater Seattle area a weekly opportunity to stay connected. You’ll learn how local government, nonprofit organizations, and community members cope with the “new normal” of COVID-19 and a wealth of other topics. Join us to get this valuable information, ask questions, and get answers!

All events start at 10:30 a.m. Pacific Time and are accessible by visiting our Virtual Events hub that has everything you’ll need to participate online (use the blue “Join Event Now” button) or by phone (use the green “Get Instructions” button). If you join on your computer, you’ll have a choice of closed captioning in Arabic, Chinese, English, Korean, Russian, Spanish or Vietnamese.

Close to Home program logo

Close to Home: Stories of Health, Tech and Resilience is a new series of programs that stream live on the first, second, and fourth Thursday of every month, featuring information and resources for older people, caregivers, and their families. Presenters include government, nonprofit, and community representatives.

Age Friendly Seattle’s popular Civic Coffee Hours now stream live on the third Thursday of each month (except December), continuing to provide a platform for community elders to interact with government decision makers. A broad range of issues have been discussed over the years (see previous events at the bottom of the Virtual Events page). 

If you cannot attend the live virtual events on Thursday mornings, you can find previously streamed episodes in the Virtual Events playlist on our YouTube channel—with captions in all seven languages. When you visit, please Subscribe (and click the bell to be notified) of new episodes as soon as they are uploaded.

Detailed instructions are also provided on Age Friendly Seattle’s Facebook page and Twitter feed. We look forward to connecting with you soon!

Free summer meal program for youth starts July 6th

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Seattle children ages 1 through 18 years will enjoy free breakfasts, lunches, and snacks once again this summer through the Seattle Human Services Department’s (HSD) Summer Food Service Program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. From July 6 through August 21, 2020, free meals will be made available at no charge to children across the City.

“Children and youth need access to healthy, nutritious food year-round to help them learn, play, and grow including the summer when school year resources are not available. The Summer Food Service Program meets this critical need and allows us to partner with community organizations across Seattle in pursuing HSD’s mission to support Healthy Communities, Healthy Families.”

Jason Johnson, Interim Department Director
Sign board announcing free summer meals

Meals open to public: Nearly all City-sponsored meal sites will be open to the public, meaning any child 18 and under can come to receive a meal. Open public sites serve all youth regardless of their household income, race, national origin, citizenship/immigration status, gender identity/presentation, sexual orientation, religion, disability, and all other protected classes.

Meals for children enrolled in programs: The six sites listed here will serve only children enrolled in specific programs, providing free meals to all children enrolled in those activities. Summer Food Service Program sites will operate with precautions in place* to minimize risk while serving meals to the community. Sanitation and distancing practices will be followed in accordance with CDC and local health department guidelines. Meals will be served in a more flexible manner** than typical summers to allow for community safety.

Site Name and AddressInclusive DatesMeals/TimesContact/Phone
El Centro de la Raza 2524 16th Ave S, Seattle, 981447/6-8/6Lunch 12:30-1:30
Snack 3:00-4:00		Liz Huizar
951-329-2355
Mercy Housing – Magnuson Place, 7110 62nd Ave NE, Seattle, 981157/6-8/21Lunch 12-1:30
Snack 3:45-4:15		Brittney Friend 206-584-2778
North Seattle Boys & Girls Club, 8635 Fremont Ave N, Seattle, 981037/6-8/21Lunch 11:30-12:30
Snack 3:00-4:00		Elodie Adjibly 206-436-1855
Rainier Vista Boys & Girls Club, 4520 Martin Luther King Jr Wy S, 981087/6-8/21Lunch 12:00-1:00
Snack 3:30-4:30		Patrice Freeman
206-436-2000
Solid Ground, 1501 N 45th St, Seattle, 981037/6-8/21Breakfast 8:30-9:30
Lunch 12:00-1:00		Charlisse Hammon
206-753-4827
YWCA @ Willows, 3800 S Myrtle St, Seattle, 981887/14-8/21Breakfast 9:30-10:30
Lunch 12:00-1:00		Isaac Hale
206-886-2610


*All sites will be given guidance on best practices and will be required to submit a Meal Distribution Plan that outlines how they will implement those best practices at their sites. We will keep these forms on file and our monitors will be looking for them to be followed when they visit each site.

**Open sites will be using a USDA waiver to allow for meals to be taken off-site rather than eaten in a congregate meal setting at the site. It also allows for meals to be picked up by parents for youth who are not present. Some sites might also follow a waiver guideline that lets them hand out more than one day’s meals at a time to minimize the number of visits a family has to make to the site; however, closed sites are less likely to follow this guideline since they are serving meals only to youth who are in attendance at a regular daily program.

# # #

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; fax: (202) 690-7442; or email: program.intake@usda.gov.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

Free Citywide Testing for COVID-19

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The City of Seattle, King County, and the UW Medicine are now offering free COVID-19 testing at two drive-up sites across Seattle. Testing is available regardless of your citizenship/immigration status. But, you must first register online or over the phone. (Read more in English below…)

City of Seattle, King County, UWMedicine ስያትል ውስጥ በተዘረጉ 2 ጣብያዎች ነፃ የ #COVID19 ምርመራ እየሰጡ ነው። ምርመራው ዲሁም የስደተኝነት (ኢሚግረሽን) ደረጃ ግምት ውስጥ የማያስገባ ለሁሉም ክፍት ነው። በኦንላይን ይመዝገቡ፥ http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—amharic?lang=am

City of Seattle，King County 和 UW Medicine 目前在西雅圖二個地點提供免費的COVID-19檢測。無論您的公民或移民身份如何，均可進行檢測。可以“駕車直通”進行檢測，但您必須預先通過線上或電話報名。http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—chinese-(traditional)?lang=zh-TW

City of Seattle, King County 과 UW Medicine 교는 현재 시애틀 전역의 두 곳에서 무료 COVID-19 검사를 제공하고 있습니다. 시민권이나 이민 신분에 상관없이 검사를 받을 수 있습니다. 그러나 온라인 또는 전화로 먼저 등록해야만 합니다. http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—korean?lang=ko

City of Seattle, King County, UW Medicine hada ku bixinayan baaritaano balaash ah #COVID19 laba goobood oo ku yaal magaalada #Seattle. Baariisto waa la heli karaa iyadoon loo eegin sharcigaaga muhaajirnimo. Laakin wa inaad marka hore is diiwaangelisid http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—somali?lang=so

La City of Seattle, King County & UW Medicine ya están ofreciendo pruebas gratuitas del #COVID19 en 2 sitios a través de #Seattle. Las pruebas están a su disposición independientemente de su ciudadanía o estado migratorio. Pero primero debe inscribirse: http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—spanish?lang=es

City of Seattle, King County, UW Medicine hiện đang cung cấp xét nghiệm #COVID19 miễn phí tại 2 địa điểm trên khắp #Seattle. Quý vị có thể thực hiện xét nghiệm bất kể tình trạng nhập cư. Trước tiên quý vị phải đăng ký: http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/covid-19/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing—vietnamese?lang=vi

If you live, work, or regularly visit Seattle, the City is urging anyone with symptoms or with 15 minutes or longer exposure to someone with COVID-19 within the past two weeks.

COVID-19 symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, sore throat, loss of smell, chills, body aches, headache, fatigue, diarrhea, runny nose, and congestion.

If you want to be tested, please register online at www.seattle.gov/covid-19-testing. If you need help with registration, call (206) 684-2489. Phone lines are open Monday through Friday, 8:30AM to 5:00PM and Saturday, 10:00AM to 3:00PM. If you need in-language assistance, please tell us in English the language you need, we will then connect you with an interpreter.

After registration, you will be able to drive-thru the testing site at your scheduled time. With preregistration the process can take less than 10 minutes. Wear your face covering when visiting the site.

If you have medical questions related to COVID-19, contact your medical provider or the King County COVID-19 call center between 8 AM to 7 PM PST at 206-477-3977.

Learn more about COVID-19 testing here: seattle.gov/covid-19-testing.

Where to get the most up-to-date public health information 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), DOH, and PHSKC have issued specific guidance to help communities and businesses prepare. You can find guidance for the general public, schools, workplaces and employers, travelers and health care professionals as well as a more detailed Q&A here.   

HSD Announces Results of 2020 Reentry/Rerooting Indigenous Community Healing RFP

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*Updated 6/1/2020

The Seattle Human Services Department (HSD) is pleased to announce the results of the 2020 Reentry/Rerooting Indigenous Community Healing Request for Proposal (RFP) that closed on April 14.

This RFP was implemented in partnership with the Seattle Office for Civil Rights (OCR), and was developed from the City of Seattle’s Reentry Workgroup. OCR’s vision is to liberate people in communities where systems of racism, oppression, and colonization historically held and/or continue to hold power and thrive.

A group of indigenous women perform a drum circle during a Denim Day event in Seattle City Hall on April 24, 2019.

“Many of the incarcerated have no sense of purpose or hope when they are released from prison. Yet they often are seeking a return to their culture. Studies have shown that when prisoners are reunited with their culture they gain a sense of belonging, of community and spiritual rebirth that lowers the rates of recidivism,” Pamela Stearns, a member of the Tlingit tribe (Alaska Native) and Co-Chair of the Tlingit and Haida Violence Against Women Task Force, stated for the Workgroup’s Report (p22). “It is vital for the City and County to sponsor a cultural welcoming home ceremony for men and women who are returning from incarceration that includes our traditions, so that our people feel a part of something and their soul begins the rebuilding process that is so necessary after prison.”

Applicants were invited to provide Native/Indigenous-led community healing practices for individuals re-entering community when returning from prison. Native/Indigenous-led healing practices may include cultural spiritual, and/or ceremonial activities such as drumming circles, sweat lodges, canoe journey, woodcarving, and other practices that focus on healing, building connection and trust, and providing a sense of community. $250,000 is available from July 1, 2020 through December 31, 2022.

HSD received four eligible applications that were reviewed and rated by a diverse review committee that (per self-identification) included all people of color—including two Native/Indigenous individuals—and at least two raters with lived experience of the criminal legal system.

The committee recommended two agencies for funding, with the monies to be divided equally between them for the 2.5 years:

  • Chief Seattle Club
  • Unkitawa

All funded applicants will be required to participate in a learning cohort that will meet regularly to develop partnerships and share resources to support community best and promising practices to address issues related to reentry/rerooting; and identify lessons learned that will inform future investments around reentry/rerooting and the criminal legal system.

“Many of the men and women who go to prison have never really done
anything ‘Indian’ before, such as singing or dancing. But those types of
things can be necessary for people to grow their identity and get grounded in their culture. Drumming and singing are given alongside values and principles. The indigenous community shares an oral tradition and it is through singing, dancing, drumming that this oral tradition gets passed on, and that folks are weaved into their community. When a person feels like they belong to their community, they are stronger and healthier and supported.”

George Farrell, a Reentry Workgroup member, member of the Standing Rock Lakota tribe (p23).

Located in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square district, Chief Seattle Club is “a native-led human services agency” that provides a safe and sacred place to rest, revive, and nurture the spirit of urban Native people in need. They are proud to serve Native adults 18 years and over, offering two hot meals a day; health and wellness services; housing case management; an art room; computer, internet, and phone access; and personal hygiene resources, all with support of traditional and cultural practices for stability and support.

Now working with Unkitawa, George Farrell witnesses the challenges faced by Indigenous individuals living unhoused on Seattle streets. “If someone enters prison when they are a youth or young adult and leaves prison decades later, there is significant work that needs to be done to help shape a healthy identity, foster a sense of belonging, and develop a connection to a supportive community,” George explains, sharing his own experience leaving prison after long-term incarceration. “Currently, there are not many services in Seattle that provide this, and the City should invest in developing organizations that can do this work (p23&24).”

Unkítawa (uhn-kéy-tawa) “is the Lakota word that embodies the concept that what belongs to each of us individually, equally belongs to all living things.” One of their organization’s key goals is an educational outreach program that sponsors “cultural, spiritual, and ceremonial activities that build and strengthen the Native American / Indigenous Peoples’ community.”

Video Update: Food Access Programs Help Older Adults and People Experiencing Homelessness

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image of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

COVID-19 has left 1.6 million people in Washington state struggling to put food on the table. The need is especially high in parts of Seattle and South King County.

For many communities facing food insecurity, their situation has been made even more challenging with meal and food bank programs impacted by the crisis. A number of food banks have reduced hours or their volunteers are not able to come in to help like they did before. Other programs face shortages of food resources.

This month, we began re-deploying HSD employees to support shifts ranging from food preparation and cooking, to assembling bags and packaging meals, to line management and delivering food directly to vulnerable clients in their homes. We recently gathered photos and reflections from some of their recent work with South Park Senior Center’s senior meal program.

Various city departments including Human Services and the Office of Sustainability & Environment have funded food access and nutrition for older adults and people experiencing homelessness. A grocery voucher program is now helping 9,000 Seattle families. Seattle senior centers are making meals for delivery. And philanthropic organizations, businesses, and nonprofits, like FareStart and Villa Comunitaria, are also assisting in the community-wide effort to battle hunger.

THANK YOU to Seattle Channel for their help with this video, highlighting the community organizations, City staff, and everyone who has stepped up to fight hunger during this public health crisis!

Image of the Food Resources Map

To help the public locate food resources available during this public health emergency, an interactive map has been developed by HSD staff. The map shows the locations of Food Banks, Meals, and Student To-Go Meals. Click here to enter your address or use your device’s location to find the resources closest to you! 

If you are in need of help or want more information, please email CovidFoodResponse@Seattle.gov.