Author: Joe Hunich
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Local Nonprofits Respond to Immigrant and Refugee Needs
Back in July, GTCF issued three responsive grants to provide immediate resources for legal services and ongoing individual supports for local immigrants. Tacoma Community House, Colectiva Legal del Pueblo, and the City of Tacoma Deportation Defense Fund, which has contracted with Northwest Immigrant Rights Project to act as a service provider, all received grants. Over > Continue Reading
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Local Girls Connect with Nature and Career Possibilities through Environmental Justice Camp
When T’wina Nobles walked into her office on a recent Monday morning, she couldn’t wait to tell her co-workers about the Environmental Justice Camp she hosted for a group of local girls over the weekend. “I was so excited, I was like, Oh you’ve got to see all the pictures!” The Environmental Justice Camp was > Continue Reading
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Chalk Art Builds Community on Thea Foss Waterway
“We didn’t even know all this was down here.” That’s the reaction Ian Wilkinson, General Manager of the Foss Harbor Marina, often hears when people first encounter the parks, restaurants, and other recreational activities available on the waterfront. “Maybe it’s because of how the waterfront is separated, as a result of the highway being here, there > Continue Reading
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‘In Our Backyard’ Event Activates Community Conversation on Homelessness
Every month, GTCF talks with organizers of events posted on our Community Calendar to find out what happened and what they learned. In this edition, Roni Chelben – City of Tacoma Artist in Residence shares her experience putting together In Our Backyard, a traveling series of community events that uses various arts and participatory experiences to > Continue Reading
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GTCF Planned Giving Webinar Series Provides Valuable Insights for Local Nonprofits
Planned giving can be a key source of sustainable funding for charities and nonprofits, but developing a strategy to pursue and maintain planned gifts can be challenging. It’s critical to start with an understanding of what motivates donors to make planned gifts, as well as a knowledge of the variety of vehicles donors can > Continue Reading
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Spark Grants: Creative Solutions from Grassroots Leaders
While volunteering with elementary school students in Tacoma’s Eastside neighborhood, Chelsea McElroy saw a lot of girls fighting and getting into trouble at school. Wanting to help, she brought the girls together to work out their issues peacefully. The problem was, when she got all the girls in a room together, nobody wanted to > Continue Reading
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Arts, Science, and Living History Draw Big Crowds at Community Events
Great things happen when community gathers together. Every month, GTCF talks with organizers of events posted on our Community Calendar to find out what happened and what they learned. In this edition, Rosemary Ponnekanti from Tacoma OceanFest and Chris Staudinger from Puyallup Meeker Days share their experiences putting on large-scale community festivals in June. Tacoma > Continue Reading
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Evaluating Organizational Approaches to Diversity
As community and nonprofit organizations work to build a stronger community, examining internal structures and policies for bias and institutional barriers to inclusion is an important step. In its commitment to ongoing professional development and organizational equity, GTCF has been gathering tools which support evaluation and transformation. Here are a few articles that we’ve been reading > Continue Reading
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Students Take Center Stage Thanks to Community Partnerships
On May 25th, Tacoma students performed on the Main Stage at the Northwest Folklife Festival in Seattle. The Ballet Folklórico and World Drumming programs at Roosevelt Elementary School and First Creek Middle School presented traditional songs and dance. Tacoma is one of the few districts in the Northwest with a year-round Ballet Folklórico program. “When I > Continue Reading
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Event Lessons from Healing History, Youth Voice, and Living Art
GTCF sees that great things happen when community gathers together. Every month, we talk with organizers of events who posted on our Community Calendar to find out what happened. Tamiko Nimura from Tacoma Japanese American History , Michael Haeflinger of Write 253, and Katherine Wimble Fox from Pacific Bonsai Museum share their vision and lessons from > Continue Reading