June Newsletter

La Center United would like to thank everyone for a great year of events, partnerships, and connections. We would not be a successful coalition without the help of our community.

We are always looking to form new relationships and gather more volunteers to help us with our efforts. If you are interested in joining us please reach out -- there are so many different ways to get involved!

In partnership with La Center High School, The Loft was able to put on a special event for all students on the last day of school. Miss Kate led the students in icebreakers, team building exercises, and encouraged them to step outside of their comfort zone. Thank you to everyone for making it such a fun event!

In April, La Center United brought Dr. Amy Stoeber to talk about Adverse Childhood Experiences and Resiliency. The 2-hour talk gave insight on trauma and stress but also gave tools and techniques to use in your everyday life. Some major take aways:

1. Children require unconditional love.
2. Children regulate their behavior based on the expectations from the adults, experiences and environments that they are with or in.
3. Parents are the primary models for their children.
4. Build daily rituals into your routines; rituals and routines build confidence in children.
5. Play the "I'll love you NO MATTER WHAT" game.
6. Incorporate special time with each child; 10 minutes per day 3 times a week.
7. Listen with your whole body

Missed the event? Click here to access the powerpoint from the presentation.

Need more information or want to connect with Dr. Stoeber? Click here for her contact information.

La Center United recently held a Town hall event to connect and communicate with community members on what they are seeing in our community. We did a "hopes&concerns" exercise that helped us lay out what resources and positives already exist in our community, the concerns we have for youth and the behaviors they are engaging in, and what hopes we have for their future. The hopes section relied heavily on problem-solving and looking at the root causes for our concerns.

La Center United will use this information to help guide our efforts in impacting youth resiliency. Be on the look out for our year plan this fall!

Every June, with other coalitions from the SW Washington region, we host an appreciation picnic to celebrate the successes of the year and recognize coalition members for their dedication and hard work. This year we had the honor of awarding Kate Soske and Wyatt Manwell:

Kate is a paraprofessional at La Center High School and has been actively involved with La Center United for one year. In that year, she has volunteered every Wednesday at The Loft and has become instrumental to the success of the teen center. She effortlessly connects with our youth and brings joy and creativity to the space. In addition, she traveled to Washington D.C. to chaperone youth at the National Leadership Conference and Olympia, WA for Prevention Policy Day. Both events gave youth the opportunity to speak with their legislators and advocate for changes that are dear to them, including Tobacco 21 that was passed this year! Kate decided to dedicate more time to La Center United when she became an Executive Board member this April and continues to bring her best self to the table. Thank you, Kate, for everything you do!

Wyatt will be a sophomore this upcoming fall at La Center High School and has been involved with La Center United for one year. In that year, Wyatt has volunteered to help at several events, such as Drug Take Back events, completing an environmental scan of our local stores, Our Days, and more. In addition, Wyatt wanted to learn how to best use his voice and attended a youth advocacy training where he learned how to talk to his legislators. He used that knowledge later in the year when he attended the National Leadership Conference in Washington D.C. and had meetings with U.S. Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler and U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell. A few weeks later he attended Prevention Policy Day where he met with Representative Brandon Vick to advocate for Tobacco 21 legislation. Thank you, Wyatt!

Chalk the Walks

August 20, 2019

More Info to Come

Chalk the Walks (a project of The Joy Team) is all about spreading joy, optimism and inspiration through the magical power of sidewalk chalk.

Remember when you were a kid and you’d draw pictures and write happy thoughts with chalk in your driveway and down the sidewalks of your street? And the adults always smiled when they read the big, pastel-colored messages? This is just like that. Only we’re bigger now. And we don’t have to go in the house when the street lights go out.

The idea is as simple as it was in childhood: write happy messages, have fun doing it, spread some joy while you’re at it.

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Can't volunteer but want to make a difference? By enrolling in Fred Meyer's Community Rewards Program, every time you shop you are supporting La Center youth! How it works:

Fred Meyer donates $2 million per year to non-profits. The more people who choose La Center United as their Community Rewards Program, the more money La Center United gets to put towards youth programs. Bonus: you still get to earn your reward points, fuel points, and rebates!

Get enrolled today and you won't have to worry about it again. It's easy:

• Log into your Fred Meyer account @ fredmeyer.com
• Sign up for the Community Rewards Program (left-side of screen)
• Choose "La Center United" as your non-profit
• Shop and Support

Having problems? Let us help! Contact Angela Johnson at angela.johnson@esd112.org to assist in getting you set up.

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Our Mission:

• Inspiring our community to be safe, healthy and resilient
• Preventing destructive behavior through open access to education and environmental strategies
• supporting those in need, sharing ideas, and offering help

Our Vision:

A healthy and resilient community for youth and families

Email: lacenterunited@gmail.com
Website: https://www.lacenterunited.org
Location: 111 East 5th Street, La Center, WA, USA
Phone: 360-213-8385