Greetings!
We here at Groundswell NW hope you are enjoying spring so far and are excited to relaunch our monthly newsletter with a greater emphasis on honoring and celebrating the wonderful people, natural resources, and history of our community. What better time for us to do so than the month of April, in which we celebrate both Earth Day and Arbor Day!
One thing we have been so grateful for when dealing with the trials of the past year is the beauty of our precious outdoor spaces. We hope to continue supporting our neighbors’ creative initiatives to activate and care for green space across northwest Seattle for years to come. Please consider making a donation to our GiveBIG campaign today through May 5, 2021 and thank you for everything you already do to steward the natural beauty in our community.
With gratitude,
The Groundswell NW Board
SPOTLIGHT ON ALICE BALL PARK
Groundswell NW is excited to announce the latest recipient of a Groundswell NW microgrant: Friends of Alice Ball Park! Located near the Greenwood Library, the park opened in June 2019. Once known as Library Park, a local third grader campaigned for the name Alice Ball Park after Seattle born chemist Alice Ball. Both Black History Month and Women’s History Month deserve so much more time and attention than a single month out of every calendar year, so we’d like to take this opportunity to share what we have recently learned about the legacy of this amazing Black woman with our readers who may not already know her incredible story.
Alice Ball was born in Seattle in 1892, graduated from the University of Washington in 1915, and became the first woman—and African American—to earn a Master’s degree from the University of Hawaii. She developed an injectable oil extract that was the most effective treatment for leprosy until the 1940s. Unfortunately, she died at age 24.* We encourage you to learn even more about Alice Ball in this article from KNKX.
Friends of Alice Ball Park plan to use their microgrant funds for seating, pollinator plants, and additions to the nature trail area. We hope you’ll visit this park and enjoy the results of our neighbors’ great work!
Do you also have an idea for an improvement in your neighborhood? Check out our easy microgrant application today!
*Source: https://www.phinneycenter.org/more-green-in-greenwood
SALMON BAY NATURAL AREA WORK PARTY
Come out and join the Salmon Bay Natural Area work party from 3:00 – 5:00 pm on April 25. Groundswell NW has created an online sign-up for small groups (1-2 households and no more than 15 people) to help clean up. We’ll be meeting up at the west end of The Canal parking lot, just south of NW 54th St. at 34th Ave NW. Let us know via the sign-up link if you will be participating!
For those who want to take part in the Salmon Bay Natural Area event, please bring your own water, work gloves plus wheelbarrows and favorite weeding or litter-picking tools, if you have them. We will provide safety vests and garbage bags, plus some gloves and tools. We will not be providing refreshments due to Covid-19 precautions.
If we have enough volunteers, some of you may be asked to pick up litter on adjacent stretches of our adopted streets that haven't been cleaned up!
Contact Dave Boyd for more info.
EDUCATORS: APPLY FOR A MICROGRANT TODAY!
Hello, Northwest Seattle School Teachers!
Groundswell NW, a small non-profit organization based in NW Seattle, is announcing our 2021 microgrant program. Thanks to generous donations, Groundswell NW will be awarding up to $500 each to support educational groups and classes that are starting projects which support Groundswell NW’s mission – creating community, parks, and habitat. Proposals for a new project in NW Seattle are preferred.
The simple application is found HERE and we anticipate awarding monies immediately. Funded projects would need to be started before the end of this academic year, but completion dates are flexible. We accept proposals year-round and review upon receipt. Please feel free to forward this invitation to teachers who might be doing something related to our mission.
For questions contact us at info@groundswell.org.
THE GROUNDSWELL NW BOARD IS GROWING!
Groundswell NW is actively looking for more board members. Are you passionate about parks, open space and habitat? Do you want to help Groundswell further their mission? We want you! Contact us here for more info!