LYNNWOOD—Volunteers of America of Western Washington held its sixth annual Hope is Brewing fundraising event at the Lynnwood Event Center Friday, September 26, with the goal of raising the $160,000 to support ongoing operations. The fundraising event was the nonprofit’s largest to-date and far surpassed its goal, raising $192,184.
The event was sponsored by Boeing, Fusiontek, Puget Sound Energy, Coastal Community Bank, Gallagher, and Ogden Murphy Wallace.
The morning began with a catered breakfast and coffee, provided by the Lynnwood Event Center, before Jessica Moore, VP of Development for VOA shared some opening remarks and invocations.
Building Community Together
VOAWW President and CEO Brian Smith then took the stage to recognize VOA’s Board of Directors, and the elected officials, first responders, and military service members in the room.
Just some of the elected officials in attendance included: Snohomish County Council member Megan Dunn, Lynnwood City Councilman David Parshall, Mountlake Terrace City Council Member Dr. Steve Woodard (also VP of Community Engagement for VOA), Snohomish County Sheriff Susanna Johnson, Edmonds College President Dr. Amit Singh, and Snohomish County PUD Commissioner Dr. Julieta Altamirano-Crosby, among others.
Smith then recognized those who have volunteers their time for VOA. Just last year more than 600 VOA volunteers donated more than 28,000 hours in service to their neighbors in need.
Smith also reported that in 2024 alone the VOAWW responded to more than 511,000 requests for help from their community members.
“That’s more than half a million times a door was open, a call was answered, a meal was served, or a hand was held,” said Smith. “At Volunteers of America our mission to empower people in strengthening their communities is more than just words, it’s what we live every day.”
Also last year the VOA supported more than 6,400 seniors at its community centers – the Carl Gibson Center in Everett and the Sky Valley center in Sultan. VOAWW supplied more than 89,000 hours of care for these individuals.
This year’s VOA Hope is Brewing event’s theme was “We Are Building Community” and Smith added that’s not just a phrase: it’s a promise.
Ripples of Hope
After a brief video John Ng, Chief Financial Officer for VOAWW, then took the stage to ask attendees for donations to support their programs.
“At Volunteers of America we know that building strong families and communities starts at meeting basic needs. A safe place to sleep, enough to eat, and support when life gets hard. That’s what we mean when we say we are building community,” said Ng.
Last year VOAWW’s housing program helped more than 2,800 families with a warm, safe, place to sleep preventing homelessness through programs like eviction prevention. Each of these households, Ng said Friday, represent hope, with neighbors sleeping a little easier knowing they have a place to call home.
During colder months, VOAWW’s cold weather shelters, with the help of local churches and several volunteers, served hot meals and handed out essentials like hygiene kits, socks, and sleeping bags.
Last year VOWW helped more than 1,400 families and individuals find peace and resolution and – at its community resource centers – provided assistance to over 4,000 people (in 2024) with rent, utilities, groceries, and other essentials. This is all in addition to free showers, peer support, and job readiness skills.
Lastly, through VOA’s food banks in Everett and Sultan, the food panties on Casino Road, and the food distribution center in Arlington, the nonprofit distributed 10.6 million pounds of food last year. Ng said Friday that VOA has been experiencing record-breaking numbers at its food banks with more than 9,600 individuals being served within a single month – the highest in 25 years, which was surpassed in July of this year surpassing 10,000.
“That’s what building a community is all about,” said Ng.
Building Brighter Futures
VOA then showed a short video of a woman, named Svetlana – a Ukrainian immigrant who was disabled when a motorist collided with her while she was walking on a crosswalk. Her injury left her unable to work, and by extension struggled to pay her bills. She began attending VOA’s food bank and returned years later to give back as a volunteer.
Levi Van Dyke, Chief Behavioral Health Officer for VOA, said he “cannot help but be inspired by the human spirit” adding that Svetlana’s experience is inspiring and uplifting.
“Building community means showing up in life’s hardest moments,” said Van Dyke. “That’s the heart of our behavioral health and crises services.”
In 2024 Van Dyke’s team answered more than 290,000 calls, chats, and texts, from people reaching out for help. Each one of these calls, Van Dyke said, represents a moment of courage. Someone saying “I can’t do this on my own” and someone on the other end reminded them they are not alone.
At VOA’s early education and assistance program it served 120 preschoolers in Everett, Sultan, and Monroe. VOA also launched its Early Learning Center in Sultan providing high quality school and childcare in a community where options are limited.
In 2026 VOA will be welcoming 80 additional children at its new Lynnwood Neighborhood Center, expanding access to quality learning even further.
But VOA’s services go beyond education, it includes wraparound services including food, clothing, and transportation so kids can show up to school ready to learn and families can focus on building a better future.
At VOA’s Sky Valley Youth Coalition, youths are leading peer mentorship, community cleanup efforts, and tackling bullying, substance abuse, and hunger.
Nurturing Potential
Kristi Meyers, VOA’s Chief Operations Officer, followed Van Dyke with an example of a woman named Kailey, who came to VOA when her and her family were homeless living in a tent in the woods in Sultan. What she at the Sky Valley Youth Coalition was a community.
Today, Kailey is an Assistant Teacher working at VOA’s Early Learning Center in Sultan where she helps in the development of some of the region’s earliest learners.
Kailey’s story is just one example of those who have turned to VOA for its services only later to return to give back.
“These stories reflect what I get to see over and over, individuals who come to us in times of crises who then go on to help other sin return,” said Meyers. “This is how we build community, one interaction, one service, one length at a time.”
Meyers invited attendees to write an uplifting message to someone who may be struggling on cards which would then be shard at the Sky Valley Youth Coalition, the Teen Parent program, cold weather shelters, and seniors who may be feeling isolated.
Resilience in Action
Gabriel Quesada then shared his own personal story. Just three years ago Quesada was hit by a car while walking and was pronounced dead.
Quesada was in a coma for 10 months. Doctors told his mother every day that he wasn’t going to make it.
He was revived but with broken ribs, a punctured lung, a punctured kidney, ten broken bones, a paralyzed left arm, and a traumatic brain injury.
Before the accident Quesada said his life was already broken. He was homeless, addicted to meth and alcohol, and suicidal.
“I was tormented every day by demons. I was living the wrong way for a very long time,” said Quesada.
Quesada had to have his leg amputated but that didn’t keep him down. Because of his near-death experience he decided to get sober. He spent the next two years supporting his mother while she battled cancer before passing.
“Even in the midst of my pain I knew God was going to work everything out,” said Quesada.
After his mother passed, Quesada decided to go to school and obtain a law degree to help others in need. When he took his first class at Edmonds College, he had dropped out of school during 8th grade and did not know how to write a single paragraph.
Outside of school, Quesada struggled financially and didn’t know where to turn. He found himself needed help. He called 211 who, in turn, connected him to VOA.
VOA helped him catch up on his rent so that he could continue his education. While working on his associate’s degree VOA assisted him with gas so that he could travel to-and-from school.
Today Quesada is a student at the University of Washington Bothell pursuing his degree in Communications with Law School to follow.
“God is amazing. He has brought me so far. He has taken me from being a man lost in addiction, talking to the sky, to standing here today as a testimony of his power. And now I get to demonstrate God’s love full circle,” said Quesada.
In Quesada’s free time he volunteers at VOA’s food bank in Everett to give back to his community.
What’s next for VOA?
Volunteers of America Western Washington is currently ambitiously undertaking three major capital projects: the Sky Valley Haven, Ballington Flats, and the Lynnwood Neighborhood Center.
The Sky Valley Haven, which opens next month in Sultan, will be the home of a brand-new youth coalition designed to be an inviting and welcoming space for teens to thrive and give back to their community.
This five-years in the making project will provide emergency sheltering for up to six youths (ages 13-17) a night with wraparound services throughout the day.
“That’s six lives that can be transformed, not just with a place to stay but with a place to feel safe, supported, and valued,” said VOAWW CEO Brian Smith.
Ballington Flats will be an affordable housing community in Skagit County with 42 rental units for low-income families. 12 of these units will be reserved for chronically homeless veterans.
The property includes five residential buildings with green spaces, a playground, and a community building with a common room.
“With Ballington Flats we are quite literally building community,” said Smith.
Lastly, the Lynnwood Neighborhood Center, which becomes fully operational in January, and will serve up to 20,000 community members annually, from the most vulnerable needing support to at-risk children and youth.
The Lynnwood Neighborhood Center (LNC) will be a 40,000 square-foot Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified facility on 2.13 acres of land in central Lynnwood – sharing a parking lot with nearby Trinity Lutheran Church, one of the project’s partners.
Located at 6330 195th Street Southwest in Lynnwood, the Lynnwood Neighborhood Center will also serve as a vibrant hub where neighbors can meet, learn, and serve, building, and sustaining, safe, stable, and healthy communities for generations to come.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
