Washington Autism Alliance & Advocacy (WAAA) and Nourishing Networks Central (NNC) have joined Redmond’s Together Center’s campus of human service agencies serving east King County.
WAAA works on policy issues at the state level and works one on one with families and school districts to ensure treatment is available for people with autism.
Founder and CEO Arzu Forough said, “Washington Autism Alliance and Advocacy was formed in 2007 to bridge the gap between policies and people. We know that policies exist to serve our children with ASD (autism spectrum disorder). We know that educators, politicians and medical providers want to support these policies. We also know that, in reality, this has not been happening effectively. The mission of WAAA is to ensure that our children have every opportunity to become productive members of society. Our programs fall under three main umbrellas: providing resources, enhancing community and advocating for implementation of legislation.”
NNC, a new nonprofit, is the backbone organization that supports the development and sustainability of local nourishing networks. This effort was a strategic initiative first launched by Hopelink to find new ways to inspire and engage the community to end poverty.
One of the co-founders and now new CEO and guardian Linda Benson said, “With Hopelink’s founding commitment and the subsequent support of the Center for Ethical Leadership to help launch and incubate the initial five Nourishing Networks, our community has developed a model of community engagement and action that is quickly demonstrating the power of community passion and the magic that is available when working in networks.
“NNC offers a new approach to mobilize the passion and untapped resources of a community,” Benson continued. “The founding networks are focusing on the issues of hunger in their communities, while others are considering this model for other challenges, such as domestic violence in one community and in another: better tapping the richness of their diverse city. The model is available for passionate citizens from cross sector networks to address gaps for any issue that is challenging.”
To access services at WAAA, call (425) 894-7231 or email info@washingtonautismadvocacy.org.
To contact NNC, email Benson at linda@nourishingnetworks.net, or Emily O’Brien, NNC’s Americorps VISTA member at emily@nourishingnetworks.net.
For more information on Together Center, contact Pam Mauk at (425) 869-6699 or visit www.togethercenter.org or the center’s social media on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
