Delivering promise from the House

Good things continue to come from Auburn’s Neighborhood House.

The multicultural and multi-service agency, which features programs in basic needs, education and youth leadership, stands committed to the cause. Its mission is to help diverse communities of people with limited resources attain their goals for self-sufficiency, financial independence, health and community building.

“We enjoy this program. We have tangible goals and we see them reach those goals,” said Kimberly Macias-Shell, career developer for youth at Neighborhood House, a nonprofit organization founded more than 100 years ago. “We help get them job ready. … We also help them find internships.”

Neighborhood House, which operates several centers in public-housing communities in King County, provides educational and employment support and other services for the region’s immigrants, refugees and low-income people. Programs are designed to help local residents overcome economic, educational and employment challenges.

Neighborhood House programs are located in public housing communities, such as Auburn’s Burndale Homes apartments, where case managers and other staff work wonders for those in need.

Case workers, teachers, volunteers and tutors – many of whom are bilingual – work in neighborhoods across King County. They provide tutoring, citizenship classes, Head Start and Early Head Start programs, job training, case management, community health programs and transportation to more than 11,000 low-income people each year.

There are many success stories to tell.

Becky was a young mother at 17 when she entered the Auburn Neighborhood House program. She had never worked before, but case workers helped connect her to a clerical internship at MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving). After her internship, Becky and the career developer met diligently for job search and interview preparation.

“After learning the ins and outs of office work, she had more skills and was more employable in that field,” said Jenna Park, youth education/employment case manager for the Neighborhood House.

Becky applied and ultimately found clerical work to support her daughter. She has also attained her General Equivalency Diploma and plans to enroll in a nursing program.

David also found hope. At 16, he entered the program without prior work experience. But with assistance, he was able to earn an internship at Auburn Worksource where he perfected his customer service skills and received glowing references.

David went on to earn his GED and driver’s license. And through his experience at Worksource and Safeway and with the help of the career developer, David found employment at ACS Auburn as a customer service representative. He plans to attend Green River Community College.

Neighborhood House’s SEEC (Success in Employment, Education and Careers) programs work in partnership with several businesses in the Auburn community to help those find their way.

Keller Williams Realty is one of those significant employee partners who support the Neighborhood House’s youth intern programs.

“The Lisa Serratos Team at Keller Williams in Auburn are an amazing bunch of people with great big hearts,” Macias-Shell said.

Serratos and her staff are glad to assist.

“We have enjoyed offering several of the Neighborhood House interns the opportunity to work alongside our team in the real estate business,” Serratos said. “Our commitment is to mentor each intern in as many areas of fundamental business practices as possible. It’s great to see them finish the internship with such a sense of accomplishment, and it’s our reward to have them keep in touch with us after the internship is over.”

The Neighborhood House provides many programs, including community health, early childhood education, employment and adult education, family and social services and youth education.

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To learn more about Neighborhood House, visit www.nhwa.org.

Contact Auburn Reporter Editor Mark Klaas at mklaas@auburn-reporter.com or 253-833-0218, ext. 5050.

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