News Release
Building Better Futures
P.O. Box 1571, Kent, Washington 98035-1571
A consortium comprised of the King County Housing
Authority, Puget Sound Educational Service District, Kent Youth and
Family Services and Center
for Career Alternatives
For more information, contact:
Mike Heinisch, Executive Director, Kent Youth and Family Services, (253) 859-0300; Rhonda Rosenberg, Communications
Director, King County Housing Authority, (206) 574-1185; or Michele Campbell,
Director of Development
and Public Relations, Kent Youth and Family Services, (253) 859-0300
April 29, 2005
KENT FAMILY CENTER CAPITAL CAMPAIGN SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED
Building Better Futures has successfully concluded its fundraising drive for the Kent Family Center, a $4.2 million, 20,400 square-foot facility created to provide health and life-long learning to low-income children and families in Kent and Covington. The Family Center, which is located on the East Hill of Kent, at the entrance of the Springwood Apartments, a 333-unit public housing development owned and managed by the King County Housing Authority, celebrated its grand opening in May 2004.
“It’s been a long race, but we’ve finally crossed the finish line,” said Building Better Futures Capital Campaign Chair Jim Berrios. “More than 100 partners stepped forward to support this crucial community resource. In these tough economic times, it’s been gratifying to see nonprofit agencies, the philanthropic community, the local community and government working together to help improve the futures of many of our poorest families.”
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Kent Family Center |
Donations ranged from modest contributions by individuals to substantive donations from the likes of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Paul Allen Family Foundation, King County; the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Kent United Methodist Women, the Kiwanis Club of Kent, the Boeing Company and its employees, Food Services of America and the federal government, making this facility a true community building in every sense of the word.
The Family Center houses four permanent Head Start classrooms, an expanded Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program run by the Seattle-King County Health Department, an adult learning and jobs center and a public meeting space for East Hill residents. Located at the corner of 274th Street and 132nd Avenue Southeast, it serves about 2,000 people in three area public housing developments, as well as residents of the surrounding community.
To thank the many partners who contributed to make this project a reality, BBF will host a recognition celebration on May 26. A high point of the event will be the dedication of a donor wall placed prominently in the lobby of the Kent Family Center.
Building Better Futures is a nonprofit organization comprised of four agencies: Kent Youth and Family Services, King County Housing Authority, the Puget Sound Educational Service District and the Center for Career Alternatives.