We love being in community and sharing about our work for kids and families. Nicole Mazen, Amara’s Chief Program and Policy Officer, and Julie Hoffman, our Pierce County Early Childhood Court Program Coordinator, recently presented about our programs and impact in Pierce County to the Human Services Committee at the Pierce County Council. Amara and one of its community partners, Pierce County Juvenile Court, were invited to present by Jani Hitchen, chair of the Human Services Committee, so committee members could get a good understanding of the current state of child welfare in the county.
“We were honored to be invited to share about our programs and impact in Pierce County. We are committed to serving kids and families in the county and have recently opened our new Family Resource Center in the Midland area of Tacoma. Across our programs our ultimate goal is that families feel seen, listened to, supported, and have the resources they need,” Mazen said.
“We always enjoy sharing about our impact and how we, with our Pierce County Early Childhood Court program and our partner Zero to Three, have led the way in Washington for similar programs in other counties. We know that with additional support, families in the foster care system can and do reunify. When that’s not possible, we know that kinship, guardianship, and adoptive families also need support to help kids thrive,” Hoffman said.
All the committee members who attended the meeting expressed appreciation for our collective work supporting kids and families and asked great questions leading to a deeper understanding of our programs in Pierce County. You can watch a recording of the meeting here.