council minutes [Eastside Interfaith Social Concerns Council]

P.O. Box 662, Bellevue, WA 98009-0662
Next Meeting: Tuesday, February 10, 2010, 12:00 noon 1:30 p.m.

PROGRAM:
Immigration Issues - Michael Ramos, Church Council of Greater Seattle &
Debbie Lacy of Eastside Refugee & Immigrant Coalition.

Location:
Bristol Hall, ST. Margaret's Epsicopal Church, 4228 Factoria Blvd. Bellevue (Across from Newport High School)

Call To Order:
The meeting was called to order and conducted by EISCC Co-President JoAnne Way.

Opening Prayer:
The meeting was opened with prayer offered by Elizabeth Maupin of the Issaquah-Sammamish Interfaith Coalition.

Minutes:
The minutes of the December 8, 2009 meeting were approved as circulated.

EISCC EASTSIDE EMERGENCY SERVICES FUND REPORT (July 1 through Dec 31, 2009): Gerald Wright, Hopelink, 425-943-7558.
Donations to the EISCC Emergency Services fund during this period totaled $16,001.19 and were received from the following EISCC Congregations:

Please note: These figures include only those donations specified for the EISCC Eastside Emergency Services Fund. Donations made to Hopelink's other programs and not reflected here. Please contact Gerald Wright at 425-943-7558 if your congregation intended to make donations to this fund.
Services provided with the fund:

Congregations For The Homeless Report:
Steve Roberts, Executive Director, (206) 295-7803 or stever@cfhomeless.org, reported that the program is coming off a great December. The dental van, the King County Library van, and stylists from Bellevue's 7 Salon all visited the shelter. The shelter is full and is currently at Redmond United Methodist Church.

Eight men moved into housing in December, four of them into a new program of Worksource called Rapid Re-housing.

CFH is still in need of blankets - men leaving the shelter for more permanent housing are encouraged to take them with them. If your congregation can help, please contact Steve.

THE SOPHIA WAY:
The Sophia Way has received a significant grant that will enable the program to help additional women find permanent homes of their own, but 2010 will be a tough year for the shelter as funds that will come available in 2011 are not yet available. The problem is that because the shelter program readies clients for a successful transition into housing, adequate funding of the shelter is the lynchpin of the program. Additional fundraising efforts are ongoing.

The Sophia Way's one-year anniversary created an opportunity for several mentions of the program in the local media. For links to some of these, please see their website at www.sophiaway.org

Nancy Amidei of the Civic Engagement Project (amidei@u.washington.edu) led a dynamic presentation on legislative advocacy.

Nancy gave an overview of the 2010 WA State Legislative session:
In 2008, Washington ended the year with a balanced budget and a surplus. Then the economy soured. By February 2009, the State was facing the need to plug a huge hole. So they cut about $3.6 billion and did not raise revenues.

Now they are facing $2.6 billion deficit. The Governor is required by law to send the legislature a balanced budget that does not include new revenues. (This is referred to as the "Book One"budget.) Right now the Governor is presenting a second budget that will include about one-third new revenues and two-thirds cuts.

The State's budget is some $33 billion, but only $10 billion is available to cut (the rest is protected). So the remainder, which is what funds so many health and human service projects, is what is on the table.

Cutting $2.6 billion of this $10 billion would undo decades of progress made in providing for our most vulnerable citizens.

In other words, the 2010 WA State Legislative Session will be largely about the budget. And it is only a 60 day session. Legislators do listen to their constituents, particularly to in person visits, phone calls, letters and emails. It is important to remember that the budget is not settled. (The executive proposes; the legislature disposes.) Contacting your legislator can make a real difference.
In this economy, raising revenues to continue funding important human services can seem like a tough thing to advocate for, but even though times are hard, it is the job of those who support such programs to make the case on behalf of those they serve so that legislators have good information and a more complete picture upon which to make the hard decisions.

Nancy offers five ideas for fitting advocacy into busy lives.
They spring from one simple fact:
ADVOCACY JUST MEANS SPEAKING UP.
click to open

Step 1: Sign up for good "Alerts."

Identify an advocacy group that works on issues you care most about Ask to get their "legislative alerts:" information about legislative actions likely to affect your priority issue/program. They will keep you informed, provide a sample "message," and help you know when your voice is needed most. (Many also offer advocacy trainings.)

Step 2. Use the TELEPHONE or WRITE

Washington has a TOLL-FREE hotline to the State Capitol: 1-800-562-6000. Operators will take your message and send it to your Senator, both your legislators, and the Governor (or just one of these). Most days it only takes about two minutes -because you can use the message provided in the "alert" you signed up for in Step # 1.
Or you can send a simple email message. Mention the bill number or issue in the subject line; state clearly what you want the legislator to do; and be sure to put your home address so they know that you live in their Legislative District. Keep it short, polite, and to the point.
Finding telephone numbers and/or email addresses is easy: just go to the website for the State Capitol - www.leg.wa.gov - and follow directions to look up your legislators. Or, contact the League of Women Voters; ask for copies of "They Represent You.

Employment:

The YWCA operates Eastside Employment Services which: o Assists homeless and low-income job seekers to secure livable wages o Provides individual coaching for resume building, job searching, and interviewing o Holds workshops and provides vocational/technical training referrals o Has a resource room with current job postings, reference materials, Internet and telephone access In addition Working Wardrobe provides free work and interview-appropriate clothing for low-income women.

Step 3. Help others to.

Make cardstock "telephones" with the Capitol website, telephone number, and the dates when the Legislature is in Session. Add your own logo, website, or agency name. Make up a supply, and give them to everyone you encounter: board members, staff, consumers, friends, neighbors, extended family.... You and they should pledge to make one toll-free call or email every week the legislature is in Session.

Set up a "TAKE FIVE" TABLE. Make it easy for others to write or call their elected officials. Bring a laptop and/or cell phone and use the handout headed "Take Five." You can also sign people up for your Network, or send messages about a budget item or issue.

Step 4. Advertise your issue. Not Nike.

Anytime you are around elected officials (e.g., at a City or County Council hearing, a Town Hall Meeting, in Olympia, etc.), wear or carry something (a conspicuous badge, a briefcase, or bag) that identifies you with your issue or agency. Bold lettering on a neon background will be seen even from a distance -e.g., FEED KIDS, or, SUPPORT the PTA. The politicians present will quickly realize those badges mean there's an organized group that cares about a particular issue, and has its members in the audience.

Write a slogan or the name of your group on the folder holding your "fact sheets" or handouts. Then carry the folder to Hearings or Candidate Forums so the slogan shows.

Step 5. Talk.

Mention key bills, issues, and budget items at every opportunity. Talk to anybody who will listen: at a meeting, in a grocery store line, waiting for the light to change, after services on Sunday.... Get your key issues on other voters' radar screens.

For the 9 weeks of the Legislative Session, consider having a meeting at a table after services to give your fellow congregation members information about specific bills, contact information for their legislators, and a chance to make their views known.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: (click to open)

EISCC members may share announcements pertaining to their congregations/agencies. If you wish these announcements to appear in the minutes, please provide them well in advance of any event that you are publicizing and to help ensure accuracy please provide them in writing to the recording secretary. Among the announcements at the January 12, 2010 meeting were:

2010 CENSUS
The City of Bellevue along with the US Census Bureau will be hosting a meeting for faith-based organizations about Raising Awareness of the Upcoming 2010 Census in Faith-based Communities on Thursday, January 28th, 2010 from 12 noon to 1:30 pm at Bellevue City Hall.

Representatives from the US Census Bureau and City staff will answer questions about the upcoming Census and provide information and materials on how your organization can be a strong voice in our community encouraging participation.

Over the past decade Bellevue's population has become increasingly diverse with more than 30 percent of our population having been born in a foreign county and an even higher percentage of our population speaking a language other than English at home. These factors combined with others make getting a complete count of our population a challenge. Your help is needed to alleviate people's concerns and encourage their participation in the 2010 Census

. Getting a complete count of everyone is essential to ensuring our community receives the federal funding and political representation it deserves. A complete count is also critical for helping us identify where funding is needed most to enhance community initiatives and programs. Census data also aid faith-based and non-profit organizations in applying for grants to support programs and activities that are invaluable to our community.

Please RSVP to Gwen Rousseau, City of Bellevue Demographer, by Email at grousseau@bellevuewa.gov or by phone 425.452.2743 if you plan to attend so that materials can be planned for accordingly.

2010 INTERFAITH ADVOCACY DAY:
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 is Interfaith Advocacy Day. Join people of faith from around Washington at the state capitol in Olympia to bring a message of justice and peace to our elected representatives.

A $25 registration fee includes an advocacy packet and a free continental breakfast. For more information visit the WA Association of Churches at http://thewac.org/.

EXPERIENCE SAMOA:
A concert of music and dance performed by the First Samoan Congregational Church of Tacoma will take place

Sunday, February 21, 2010 at
3:00 p.m. at
Bellevue First Congregational Church,
752 - 108th Ave NE.
A freewill offering will be taken to aid in the rebuilding of Samoa after last fall's devastating tsunami and to help the church replace their building that burned on Christmas Day.

IS THERE AN ISSUE AFFECTING THE EASTSIDE HUMAN SERVICE COMMUNITY YOU'D LIKE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT?
WHOU WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR FROM?
If you have a suggestion for a possible presentation at an upcoming EISCC meeting, please let us know.
Contact Brian Anderson, EISCC Secretary at brian@emergencyfeeding.org or (206) 329-0300.

CLOSING PRAYER: The meeting was closed with prayer by Betty Spohn of Newport Presbyterian Church.

Brian Anderson, EISCC Secretary