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It all started in Erika Thompson’s garage. Thompson, who has been a foster parent for a decade, remembers it well. Not long before, she welcomed the first of what would become many foster children into her home. Like many foster kids, the child arrived on Thompson’s doorstep in crisis and with almost nothing. The child was from King County, so Thompson was able to turn to a Seattle-based nonprofit that provides support and services for foster kids and their caregivers, including new and...

Please join us on Thursday, March 21st for a special virtual screening of Broken Places , the latest U.S. documentary on early childhood trauma and resilience. The film will be offered via a private Vimeo link with passcode to all registered members of ACEs Connection, for free, accessible in the United States and internationally. REGISTER TODAY: To register, please visit : https://goo.gl/forms/apdoINwgtQmydEXK2 The viewing portal for the film will open on Vimeo at 6am EST and close at 11pm...

This school year, an endeavor of the Franklin Pierce Hewins Early Learning Center (ELC) was to bring Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Resilience to the preschool families. What began as a broad idea soon turned into an exciting project: “Rise to Resilience & Hope”. Our ELC has had a Kids at Hope culture for many years – believing that all children are capable of success, with no exceptions. With Kids at Hope, the adults are Treasure Hunters, seeking out and recognizing the...

In Daidre Kimp's room, the walls are pink and white and there are family photos on a bulletin board. A stroller sits in a corner. It's early morning. Kimp grabs a diaper, a tiny shirt and pants and lifts her smiley, 8-month-old daughter, Stella, from her crib. They are getting ready for the day at the Washington Corrections Center for Women (WCCW) in Gig Harbor, about a one hour drive from Seattle. It's their home, at least until Kimp enters a work-release program next spring. She picks up...

It is no secret that parents today have a lot on their plates when it comes to raising their children. The modern world is constantly moving-moving-moving, and the amount of information being thrown at us all the time is enough to send anyone into serious overload. All the while, our precious wee ones are quite aware of what we’re doing with our cell phones, iPads and computers, with studies showing that too much screen time can change children’s brain structure, leading to depression,...

At Washington State Penitentiary, Tony McGuire talks to the inmates in his construction trades apprenticeship preparation (CTAP) class about ACEs, trauma and resilience every single day. Not only is he teaching the guys a trade, but he also teaches them how to be a healthy, happy and well-adjusted employee. Note: Becoming a healthy, happy, well-adjusted employee is way harder than basic carpentry, plumbing, electrical and HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning).

Sound Discipline offers a Building Resiliency series for educators, parents and anyone who works with youth. Our next workshop is March 18 - Building Resiliency 1: Strategies to Engage Youth Exposed to Trauma. Details and registration here. Building Resiliency 2: Firmness Tools is next offered May 6. Details and registration here. You can take these workshops in any order. We appreciate your referrals! Refer your colleagues and friends - we do a drawing each month for a Community Building...

Sidnee Petter knows how important it is for kids with disabilities to be able to move around easily, especially if they’re in a wheelchair. The senior at Bonney Lake High School works through her church with kids who are experiencing disabilities. “I work with a child that can only move one side — that’s the only side that works, everything else is limp,” Petter said in an interview with The Puyallup Herald on Thursday. “Seeing that kid grow, having the mobility of one side and being able to...

More than a third of Washington's foster kids become homeless after leaving care. But in Tennessee, there's a possible solution, and Washington is looking at copying it. MEMPHIS, Tennessee — Terrineka Maxwell is only 19, but she’s already had a lot of people come in and out of her life: 20 foster families since she was taken from her mom at 2, and at least seven caseworkers in the past seven years. But her newest caseworker, Cindy Walker, is supposed to be different. Unlike most previous...

Below is a brief update on our collective work being done since our annual poverty summit, From Poverty to Possibilities event, in November 2018. Advocacy – This is critical to address if we are to disrupt systems that are keeping people from getting ahead in life. Updates: Supported Project Child Success with their advocacy training and their Day on the Hill by informing poverty summit attendees about this opportunity to advocate for policies that will help reduce barriers to families...

Wilson High School for the first time is training staff to provide executive-style coaching to students with executive function challenges often experienced because of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) or trauma, attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and/or non-traditional learning styles. Wilson High School is the sixth school in the Tacoma School District to use a coaching program designed and administered by the non-profit Edge Foundation. Other Tacoma schools that are...

Try these techniques when you sit in traffic longer than you're used to during the closure of State Route 99 in Seattle. When traffic turns into a nightmare tempers flair and driver frustration turn into road rage.... ....... breathing techniques can help while you drive. The 4-7-8 technique is a common method: breathe for four seconds, hold it for seven seconds, and breathe out for eight seconds. Another way to relax is by momentarily tensing, and then relaxing. Just a few techniques for...