Greetings!
We often think of volunteering as a way to give back to the community. And although that is certainly correct, what we often don't realize is that, when we volunteer, our lives are changed in ways we would not have imagined. Recent research has confirmed what many of us have know experientially for a long time -- that giving, money or time, gives us a deep sense of satisfaction, and is positively correlated with our psychological wellbeing. Many of the Sophia Way Companions have time and again shared with us, how their engagement with women in our program, has enhanced their lives. In this newsletter, we share a story from one of our Companions and how our Companion Program changed her life.
I am very sad to announce that our Client Services Director, Leslie Miller, will be leaving us in early March. However, I am thrilled for Leslie as she moves on to the City of Kirkland as the City's Human Services Coordinator. The experiences and opportunities of service and growth that Leslie is taking with her to her new role will, no doubt, help her excel in her sevice of the greater Eastside community. Our best wishes are with Leslie for all her future endeavors - she will be greatly missed!
We are two weeks away from our Annual Benefit Dinner and Auction. If you have not yet registered, take a few minutes to do so today. This is going to be an extraordinary event and I look forward to seeing you there.
Finally, I'm happy to share that we are extending the Eastside Emergency Winter Shelter for Women and Families with Children this season until the end of March. This is a great stride forward in our efforts to keep women and children warm, safe and sheltered. We will keep moving forward!
Thank you,
Katherine Jordan
Executive Director
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When I Met Sally
This piece was written by Maya Subramanian, a volunteer Companion at The Sophia Way.
I heard about and joined the Companion Program at The Sophia Way in Jan 2013; it is simply the best thing that has happened to me! That might sound cliché but there is just no better way to say it.
For a couple of years before learning about The Sophia Way, I felt a need, a strong need, to work with women. I was looking for more meaning in my life, and to me that meant getting out and giving more in any way that I could. And I wanted to do it in a way that would sustain and increase my energy and passion for giving for the rest of my life.
I wasn't sure beyond that. I tried going to digital conferences looking to see how I felt about educating young women about embracing technology. I tried reading about women's rights to see if I could do something in that space. I tried knocking on many doors - work place reformation, mentoring career women or teenagers, and so on. Either my knocking was not effective, or my heart really wasn't in it, I am not sure, but I believed that if I kept trying, I would find what I was looking for.
Then I bumped into my friend, who is a staff member of The Sophia Way, and learned about the organization. I was instantly excited, and over lunch the following week he told me all about The Sophia Way. I was very inspired by everything he shared. He connected me with Evelyn and Jan, coordinators of the Companion Program, who volunteer their services through WomanSpirit Center. A couple of months later, I join the Companion Program. It seemed to offer everything I was looking for and more. What do I mean by and more? I have mentors (like Jan and Evelyn) who train and support companions, the connection I now have with my fellow Companions, the once-a-month Companion meeting which is like a support group for volunteers, and the opportunity to have fun while giving. What I have learned about empathy, listening, and gratefulness has helped me become a better person at work and at home.
I am blessed to have a wonderful friend in Sally. I became her companion when she joined the Bellevue shelter. She is a smart, warm, intelligent person, and inspires me with her wisdom and kindness. She is a talented seamstress, and makes adorable doll clothes and accessories. She is a great cook. After she moved to her own place, Sally started making vegan meals especially for me, and brings them to our monthly companion dinners, so I don't have to eat just salad and fruit. I am used to salad and fruit - that is all I have to choose from, at many restaurants, as a paying customer! But to Sally, that just isn't acceptable! We have many common interests, and have had so many similar experiences in our lives, that we both believe we were always meant to be friends. She has taught me to look at the world and people in a more holistic way, to be more patient, and more balanced. In other words, I am growing up, and loving it. I am more real and more in touch with the real me, now more than ever in my life.
What I have learned is that for me, giving doesn't have to be serious or tedious, or it won't last long. For lifelong giving, givers need to be replenished. That is what I love about the program, it replenishes me. My fellow companions are the most gentle, wonderful people, and I want to be like them when I am older - actively volunteering, giving back, and caring. All this is what makes the Sophia Way program so beautiful thing, and I am glad I found my door. I am inside, and I see no Exit sign anywhere, and that is how it should be.
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Extending Our Winter Shelter
We are very excited to share that our Eastside Emergency Winter Shelter for Women and Families with Children will be extended to the end of March this year - this is the longest this resource has ever remained open! Everyone living in the greater Seattle region knows that the official end of Winter does not bring the harsh wintry conditions to an end; bitter cold and wet conditions often persist well into the month of May.
We have a limited number of beds at Sophia's Place, our year-round shelter. The Emergency Winter Shelter allows us to serve many more women and children in need whom we otherwise are not able to due to our limited resources. This is not just a lifeline for those out in the streets, it also often serves as a bridge for many women to come to our permenant shelter or to get other services.
Our ability to extend the Emergency Winter Shelter this year was, in part, made possible by a generous donation from Holy Family Catholic Church in Kirkland. We are grateful for this partnership and the extended opportunity to serve!
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The Sophia Way is Losing a Family Member
Leslie Miller was hired as a part-time shelter staff person when Sophia Way first started. She would work evening weekends, and so from the beginning was the "face of Sophia Way" to the many neighborhood churches that hosted the shelter on the nights we couldn't be at Bellevue First Congregational. She was also a steady presence in the lives of our very first clients, helping them adjust to the new surroundings.
It quickly became apparent that Leslie was a great talent for Sophia Way. She took her responsibility very seriously, not just to do the job assigned, but to figure out how we could deliver services better. She became an advocate for the clients and the agency. She sought out training opportunities, taking on more responsibility and becoming expert in anything she thought would benefit the program. When Sophia Way had the opportunity to partner with the Eastside cities to provide a winter shelter, Leslie took the lead. When our funding contracts required special reporting, Leslie took the lead. When we had opportunities to become engaged with the broader social services community, Leslie took the lead. When we moved from the 10-mat shelter to the new 21-cubicle space, Leslie oversaw every detail in making the daily life of our clients the best that it could be. When she was named Client Services Director of Sophia Way, it was a recognition of how she touched the lives of all our clients, how she shaped their experience of Sophia Way and how she led by example as she kept the focus on the women we serve.
It is with deep gratitude and respect that we now say goodbye to Leslie, as she takes on the new challenge and opportunity of working for the City of Kirkland. We look forward to all the wonderful work she will do and all the new lives she will touch in this exciting endeavor.

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The Sophia Way is supported by United Way of King County.
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