Wellspring Family Services

💙 August Volunteer Impact at Wellspring Family Services

In August, we were grateful to welcome incredible volunteer groups who gave their time to assist families navigating housing instability and financial challenges. From supporting our Back-to-School efforts and Family Resource Fair to fulfilling Family Store orders and organizing essential supplies, every project helped strengthen the support available to families in our community.

Thanks to their dedication, here is the impact we saw in August:

• 27 volunteers
• 54 hours of service
• 31 family orders completed
• 55 children supported through Family Store orders
• 4 bicycles assembled for our Family Resource Fair
• Backpacks and school supplies sorted and distributed for students

Volunteers packed family orders, prepared and distributed backpacks and school supplies, assembled bicycles, organized clothing, shoes, diapers, and books, quality-checked donations, and stocked Family Store inventory. Their work helped ensure families could access high-quality essentials with dignity and care while helping our team prepare for and execute a successful Back-to-School season and Family Resource Fair.

To Whole Foods Market, JPMorganChase, Seattle International Christian Church, and Hudson Pacific Properties Inc: thank you for investing your time to help families build brighter futures. We are so grateful for your partnership. 💙

Interested in making an impact? Learn more about volunteering with Wellspring: https://wellspringfs.org/get-involved/volunteerism/

💛 Volunteer Spotlight: Sophie Egan 💛

Since October 2025, Sophie has been volunteering in Wellspring’s Family Store, helping support children and families in our community.

As a psychology student interested in working with children and families, Sophie was originally drawn to Wellspring as a way to gain experience in family services while giving back.

“Volunteering with Wellspring gives me a sense of fulfillment knowing that I am using my free time to help others!”

One of Sophie’s favorite memories is helping a group of student volunteers sort clothing donations in the Family Store and bonding over how cute all the baby clothes were. 💛

Outside of volunteering, Sophie loves paddle boarding, hiking, tennis, swimming, and trying new restaurants around Seattle (especially sushi!). She also speaks French and is currently learning Spanish.

We’re so grateful for you, Sophie. Thank you for sharing your time and energy with Wellspring and the families we serve!

This summer, we’ve been fortunate to have Amber Clark and Elias Jesse Yang bringing their time, talents, and perspectives to Wellspring through two incredible programs: YWCA Seattle King Snohomish Community Jobs and Teens In Public Service.

Amber joined Wellspring through YWCA Community Jobs and has become an important part of our Family Store community. She came to Wellspring with a personal connection to the challenges families can face and a desire to help others.

“I love being able to help people in a way that so deeply aligns with my own ideals... Being here has given me a confidence I didn’t know I was missing.”

That confidence has grown into leadership, too. Amber shared that being trusted to supervise groups and show others the ropes helped her realize she can step into leadership roles, something she once felt nervous about.

Elias joined us through Teens in Public Service (TIPS) with the goal of connecting with and making an impact in his community. After his very first day, he remembers looking at everything he had sorted and packed and realizing how rewarding the work could be.

“The feeling that the work I’m doing matters and will make a positive impact” is what keeps him coming back.

Programs like YWCA Community Jobs and TIPS create opportunities for people to build skills, discover their strengths, and contribute meaningfully to their communities, and Amber and Elias have certainly made their mark at Wellspring.

Thank you, Elias and Amber, for everything you’ve brought to our community. We’re so glad to have you as part of Wellspring! 💛

There’s still time to make a difference this school year!

Wellspring’s Back-to-School Drive ends September 21, and we’re making one final push to help ensure local children and families have the school supplies they need.

From backpacks and notebooks to pencils, calculators, and art supplies, every donation helps a student start the year feeling prepared and confident, while helping families stretch their budgets for other essentials.

Shop our Amazon Wishlist: https://a.co/04GvMkZy

Or drop off donations at: 1900 Rainier Ave. S., Seattle, WA

Help us finish the drive strong! 💛 Donations are accepted through September 21.

💛 Volunteer Spotlight: Rose Berg 💛

Since May 2024, Rose has been a thoughtful and dedicated volunteer at Wellspring, supporting both the Family Store and our knitting community by creating hats for children.

Rose shares, “I was looking for a volunteer opportunity that would enable me to support others that needed a helping hand. Initially, I was looking for something I could do from home, and when I found that Wellspring had a knitting community that made and donated hats for children, I was able to join in and use that skill. As my schedule opened up, and I realized what a great service Wellspring offers to people who are working so hard to keep a roof over their heads, I decided to volunteer in the Wellspring Store. It’s a great community to volunteer in, plus the staff is so nice and very supportive.”

She also shares what keeps her coming back: “It feels good to help others.”

Rose reflects that one of the most meaningful parts of volunteering is assembling requests for families.

Fun fact: Rose is preparing to walk the Camino de Santiago this spring, a 500 km pilgrimage across northern Spain with a history spanning over 1,000 years.

Outside of volunteering, she enjoys walking, hiking, knitting, painting, reading, gardening, traveling, and spending time with her family and friends, especially her grandson. 💛

Rose also shares a guiding belief: “I feel that we were put on this earth to look out for each other, and every day we should try to make someone's day brighter - even if it's just with a smile or a compliment to let them know that they matter.”

We’re so grateful for you, Rose. Thank you for bringing care, intention, and kindness into our community.

What an incredible Back-to-School Family Resource Fair!

This past Saturday, 530 community members came together for a day filled with resources, connection, food, and back-to-school support.

Together, we:

🎒 Provided 236 children from 107 families with backpacks filled with school supplies
✏️ Distributed more than 1,200 additional school supply items
🍼 Provided diapers and wipes to 97 families
🐠 Distributed 328 Seattle Aquarium tickets
🌮 Served 250 meals from Birrieria Pepe El Toro
💛 Connected families with additional community and housing resources

This day was made possible by an incredible community of partners, volunteers, and staff. The Seattle Public Library’s Bookmobile, Walgreens, Sound Transit, Mysti's Adult & Family Services, Denise Louie Education Center, BrightSpark Early Learning Services, Hodan Birth Care, Impact Public Schools, and Educare Seattle.

A special thank you to the Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness (SKCCH) and its Project Cool initiative for providing backpacks and school supplies, and to everyone who helped make sure families left the fair with the resources they needed to start the school year strong.

We’re so grateful to everyone who helped make this day possible! 💛

School is just around the corner, and our Back-to-School Donation Drive is still going strong!
Every child deserves to begin the school year with the supplies they need to learn with confidence. Through September 21, we're collecting new school supplies to help students and families prepare for a successful year.

Our most-needed items include:
✏️ Backpacks
📓 Notebooks, folders, and binders
🖍️ Crayons, markers, and colored pencils
🖊️ Pencils, pens, erasers, and glue sticks
📏 Rulers, calculators, scissors, pencil boxes, and more

You can drop off donations at 1900 Rainier Ave. S. or ship them directly through our Amazon Wish List.

Every donation helps students start the school year ready to learn. Thank you for supporting local families!

https://wellspringfs.org/donate-your-items/

Everyone deserves access to the resources they need to thrive.

That's why Wellspring hosts Family Resource Fairs, bringing together essential supplies, community resources, and caring volunteers to support families in one welcoming place.

We're looking for 30 volunteers to help make our next Family Resource Fair a success on Saturday, August 15 at 1900 Rainier Ave. S.

Shifts available:
10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m
11:45 a.m. – 3:00 p.m
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m

Whether you're welcoming families, distributing supplies, helping with children's activities, or assisting with setup and cleanup, your time helps create a warm, supportive experience for our community.

Sign up to volunteer: https://ow.ly/mVUx50Zuq3o

💛 Volunteer Spotlight: Ali Zuberi 💛

Since January 2023, Ali has been a dedicated volunteer at Wellspring’s Family Store, helping fulfill orders for families across our community.

Ali shares, “I think of service as a moral obligation - it's important when it comes to society's most vulnerable, especially children. I believe in Wellspring's approach of preventing homelessness and early intervention, and I wanted to be a part of that.”

He also reflects on what keeps him coming back: “I can help make a material difference to each family when I pack up an order. With so much out of our control, it feels really grounding to use my hands to put in some work for somebody.”

Through his time at Wellspring, Ali has supported families by helping fulfill Family Store orders with care and intention, ensuring households receive the essentials they need with dignity.

One of Ali’s favorite memories is the holiday gift drive. He shares, “Being able to give kids new unwrapped presents is so much fun. Especially if they ask for a toy I've never heard of, and then I can find it to give to them!”

Fun fact: Ali has lived all over the world, including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, multiple U.S. states, and now Seattle, where he’s lived the longest he ever has in one city! Outside of volunteering, he enjoys spending time with family, listening to music, playing guitar, chess, traveling, and trying his best at golf. 💛

He also leaves us with a quote he lives by: “Do all you can, with what you have, in the time you have, in the place where you are.” — Nkosi Johnson

We’re so grateful for you, Ali. Thank you for strengthening our community through your service and heart.

As Seattle's (and the world’s) historic summer of international soccer comes to a close, we're reflecting on what an unforgettable experience it was for the children and families we serve.

Through Seattle's landmark youth access initiative with support from the City of Seattle Government, local sports teams, businesses, and community leaders—more than 1,400 young people and their caregivers had the opportunity to attend matches in Seattle. We’re so grateful that young people in Wellspring’s programs were among them.

These experiences are about more than soccer. They create lasting memories, remove barriers to participation, and remind young people that they belong at the heart of our community's biggest moments.

⚽ What a tournament. What a summer. What a gift for our community!