SCOUT Program: How embedded social workers and law enforcement are tackling homelessness
Homelessness affects every community, from large urban metros to small rural towns and everything in between. Many factors can lead to individuals living on the streets, including but not limited to mental health challenges and substance abuse. What we’ve learned over years of working on this issue is that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to […]
Washington State Library Launches New Certification Portal for Library Cardholders
OLYMPIA — The Washington State Library (WSL), part of the Office of the Secretary of State, launched the Washington State Certification Portal early last month. The new online platform gives library cardholders across the state free access to professional certifications and workforce learning tools and was made available Oct. 1, 2025. The portal is available […]
Larsen releases report on Veterans in Northwest Washington
Today, Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) published ‘Listening to Veterans in Northwest Washington,’ a report capturing local veterans’ most pressing challenges and outlining policy recommendations for Congress and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to address these concerns. “The stories and perspectives shared by veterans in Washington state’s Second District underscore both the progress the federal […]
John Braun commentary: The continuing insanity of the homelessness ‘emergency’
The line about “insanity” being defined as doing the same things over and over, and expecting a different result, is sometimes attributed to Albert Einstein. An online search indicates the saying more likely originated in a Narcotics Anonymous publication many years ago about the difficulty of overcoming a drug addiction. If so, insanity is an […]
FDA takes steps to ease fears over hormone therapy for menopause
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Monday, November 10, a series of measures aimed at updating guidance on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for menopausal women, including the removal of longstanding “black box” warnings from certain products. “Today, we are standing up for […]
Nourishing Network breaks record in students served, volunteers and donors needed more than ever
EDMONDS—When Nourishing Network, a Foundation for Edmonds School District program, first launched in 2014 they served 80 food-insecure kids meals on weekends, over the course of the schoolyear. It was a pipedream, at the time, to eventually grow the program into serving up to 300 students long term – an ambitious vision the team struggled […]
Federal funding passes first hurdle, contains provision gutting hemp-derived products
WASHINGTON, D.C—The United States Senate voted 60-40, in a first step, to approve H.R. 5371, the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2026, which funds the government through early 2026. The resolution now heads to a floor vote on Monday. If the bill passes with no changes to the House’s Bill, then the bill moves to […]
Lenny Wilkens, Basketball icon and Hall of Famer, dies at 88
SEATTLE—Lenny Wilkens, a towering figure in basketball whose career spanned five decades as one of the game’s premier point guards, innovative coaches and a champion of youth development, died on November 9, 2025, surrounded by family. He was 88. Born Leonard Randolph Wilkens on October 28, 1937, in Brooklyn, New York, Wilkens grew up in […]
Lynnwood PD suspends Flock camera system amid concerns over ICE access
LYNNWOOD—The Lynnwood Police Department (LPD) has temporarily paused use of its Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) system, known as Flock Cameras, to address community concerns about data privacy and system access. “Flock cameras have already proven to be an invaluable investigative tool in solving crimes and keeping our community safe,” said Police Chief Cole Langdon. […]
19-y/o from WA arrested as 6th suspect in foiled ISIS Halloween plot
KENT—Saed Ali Mirreh,19, of Kent, Washington, has been arrested and charged with conspiring to provide material support to ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization, in connection to a foiled Halloween terrorism plot in Michigan. “Update on the alleged foiled terrorist attack out of Michigan last week – earlier this week the FBI and partners arrested […]
