PHOTO: Tacoma Pierce County Health Department recommends washing your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds to help protect yourself from COVID-19 (image via Canva)

COVID-19 and the necessary public health measures to address it are disrupting the normal operations of nonprofits and community service providers in Pierce County. From fundraising events to vital support for communities in need, these disruptions reveal where social systems are not supporting or addressing needs in a sustainable, inclusive, and equitable way.

These challenges show how fragile the social safety net is, and the limitations of current service providers to continue meeting needs during times of crisis.
GTCF is committed to supporting a thriving Pierce County during this time by providing connections for nonprofits and community service providers to share the disruptions to their regular work due to COVID-19, solutions they're developing, needs that are surfacing, misinformation that needs correction, and examples of inequities exacerbated by the disruptions.

GTCF will also be aligning with donors, fundholders, and other funders to resource responses which can mitigate disruptions to normal operations and foster sustained connections during this time of social distancing.

GTCF'S COVID-19 RESOURCES:

1. GTCF is monitoring and following the guidance of Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department for recommendations and direction. 

2. GTCF launched a COVID-19 blog where nonprofits and community service providers can stay connected about community service impacts related to COVID-19. Updates can be sent to info@gtcf.org 

3. During this time, GTCF encourages donors to increase support to their causes and organizations and contribute even if planned fundraising events are cancelled or postponed.
GTCF is donating the ticket price of any cancelled or postponed events GTCF already committed to attend and will double the donation GTCF intended to make at the event.

4. GTCF is available to support donors with information about directing contributions to areas of greatest need.

5. GTCF is connected to local and regional funders to align any resources and will post opportunities on its website and social media as soon as they are available.


PHOTO: The Puyallup Tribe of Indians Complete Count Committee - Robert Barandon, Andrew Strobel, Jennifer Keating, Eugena Buena-Douglas, Tara Reynon, Jennifer LaPointe, Michael Thompson, and Kimberly Ward.


When communities are undercounted in the census, residents don't receive the services, funding, or political voice they need. However, for communities like the Puyallup Tribe, historical trauma and distrust for the government are real barriers to participation. 

In an effort to ensure each of their members, and all residents of Pierce County, are informed, engaged, and valued in the census process, the Puyallup tribe has partnered with numerous other government, nonprofit and community leaders in the Pierce County Complete 2020 Census Complete Count Committee. 


PHOTO: Parents Codi Scharry and Danielle Bryant hand out treats to Vision Step Team members

Research shows that when students feel like they belong and are valued by the adults who work with them they engage more fully in learning, have fewer behavior problems, and are more likely to persevere in the face of difficulty.

Parents like Codi Scharry and Danielle Bryant, who both have daughters on the Vision Step team at Edison Elementary, have seen the positive impact a caring adult can have on their kids. From Danielle's perspective, "it's like a breath of fresh air to have someone who cares for your kids the same way you do." 
  


PHOTO: Wayne Williams with students and mentors from The Tacoma Urban League's Male Involvement Program

In our latest annual book of Pierce County Partners, we share stories and insights from individuals and organizations who are making a difference in Pierce County. In their own words, they speak about the dreams and lessons that fuel their work in the community.

Inspired by his own experience which led him from  being one of only a handful of African American students in the MBA program at the Wharton School of Business to a career as a product innovator at the Xerox Corporation and a teacher at Tacoma Community College, Wayne Williams established his Lifting Lives Legacy fund to "help young people of color discover, like I did, the best parts of themselves and to share it with others."



 
Postponed Fundraisers

COVID-19 and the necessary public health measures to address it are disrupting nonprofit fundraising events. The events listed below have been postponed in support of the community wide effort to slow the outbreak of COVID-19.



During this time, GTCF encourages donors to increase support to their causes and organizations and contribute even if planned fundraising events are cancelled. 

GTCF is donating the ticket price of any cancelled events GTCF already committed to attend and will double the donation GTCF intended to make at the event.


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