Join Us for a Jam-Packed January and Beyond
At United Way of King County, we’re hitting the ground running in 2025.
We have volunteer opportunities, lunch and learns, and events to advance racial equity lined up for you in the coming weeks. Please lend a helping hand, join the conversation, or both!
We hope to see you soon, and from all of us at United Way of King County, Happy New Year.
MLK Jr. March for Equity
January 20, 2025, 11:45 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Seattle Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition holds an annual MLK Celebration to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy. The event includes a rally, march, internships, workshops, youth-led programming, and a job fair.
We will help by getting signs ready to distribute for the march right after the workshop and rally. Volunteers will be strategically dispersed throughout the Garfield High School parking lot to pass out signs. Handing out signs will begin at 11:45 am on January 20. You are welcome to come early to partake in additional activities in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.
This opportunity is hosted by Emerging Leaders 365, and all are welcome to volunteer.
Martin Luther King Jr. Lunch & Learn
January 23, 2025, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Breauna Dorelus is the chief consultant of Connecting the Cause, a volunteer engagement consultancy dedicated to centering the “why” in volunteerism.
Dorelus will guide us through exploring how volunteers can embody Dr. King’s legacy by shifting from acts of service to building solidarity with communities. You’ll also learn what it means to co-dream and collaborate with the communities we support and how we can amplify our neighbors’ vision and create lasting change.
Conversations for Change: Keeping People Housed
January 29, 2025, 11:45 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Conversations for Change is a United Way series that brings in a guest to discuss issues that impact our work. This quarter, we’re discussing how to approach Seattle’s homelessness issue.
Our guest, Michelle Merriweather, the president and CEO of Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, will speak with our president and CEO, Gordon McHenry Jr.
Together, we’ll learn more about what United Way and its partners across King County are doing to prevent homelessness before it even begins. You’ll leave with a deeper understanding of how community-driven solutions like housing stability support, eviction prevention, rental assistance, and tenant rights advocacy can keep families housed and contribute to progress.
Postsecondary Basic Needs Lobby Day in Olympia
February 5, 2025, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Show up. Speak out. Shape the future!
Rally with student advocates, state representatives, and coalition partners as we fight for essential student needs like college support services, housing, childcare, mental health, behavioral healthcare, and food security. You can connect with legislators to amplify the call for essential student support services.
You do not need experience lobbying – just passion!
Advancing Racial Equity: Building Generational Wealth
February 11, 2025, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Systemic inequity and discriminatory policy have cleaved a deep economic chasm between white families and families of color in the United States—one that continues to widen year over year.
White households held 80% of all wealth in the country in 2021 (compared to just 5% for Black households). At United Way of King County, we’ve watched this underlying wealth disparity drive poverty through generations right here in our community. It’s deeper than just salary.
Join us on February 11 as we host a panel discussion with Dr. Heather Hill (Director of the PhD Program in Public Policy at UW), Korbett Mosesly (Washington Department of Commerce), and Dana Frank (Author of trauma, disability, and generational wealth) to discuss the racial wealth gap and what we can do as a community to uproot systemic inequities that perpetuate it.
The event will include a panel moderated by United Way staff and a short reception with drinks and appetizers afterward.
All proceeds benefit our equity work.
Happy Hour and Hellos
February 27, 2025, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Emerging Leaders 365 is a United Way of King County group comprised of King County’s finest young leaders. These Emerging Leaders dedicate $1 per day to our work—or $365 per year—to support our housing security, food security, and education work.
To build community amongst the group, Emerging Leaders host a quarterly happy hour. It’s a time to come together to discuss change, network with local young professionals, and invest in our community.
The next Happy Hour and Hellos will be at The Collective in Seattle.
For additional information about United Way events and volunteerism, stay up to date with our calendar here.
Comments