DEAR FRIENDS OF SOUND,

During the school year, children benefit greatly from the interactions and care provided by their teachers and adults. Many of our clients receive regular support from their SOUND counselors while at school. With schools closed for the summer, these benefits disappear, creating unique seasonal challenges for children, youth and families.

Not only can school closure feel isolating for our clients, but it also makes accessing our counseling services more difficult. Many of the kids we serve lack easy access to outdoor spaces and spend more time indoors, often relying heavily on screens. Most of our client families don’t have the means to pay for summer camp programs and supplemental activities.

At SOUND, our goal is to ensure that the summer break does not hinder our Child, Youth, and Family Services (CYFS) clients from receiving the behavioral health support they need. We have learned that creativity is key to achieving this goal. Thanks to a grant from King County, we have significantly expanded our summer programming. This summer, CYFS will be offering a variety of groups, outings, and activities designed to engage kids of all different ages, keep clients connected to our services, and encourage visits to our clinics.

To highlight these upcoming opportunities, last week we held a Summer Kick-Off BBQ for our CYFS clients, featuring a hot-dog truck and a comedian-magician. Both vendors noted that the atmosphere was exceptionally warm compared to other events they typically attend. We take pride in making even a simple summer BBQ a positive and welcoming event, ensuring that our clients feel SOUND is a safe and inviting place where staff care about everyone’s well-being.

As the season progresses our clinicians have created an exciting lineup of activities, from volunteering at an animal sanctuary to learning to rock climb. Additionally, CYFS is facilitating regularly scheduled groups throughout the summer that allow kids to try new things, experience success, interact with their peers and counselors, share experiences, and build confidence. These groups include somatics (movement and crafting), field trips, board games, chill & spill (self-care and connection), hiking and outdoor adventures (exploring the impact of nature on mental health), and more.

But it's not just the kids who are learning. Thanks to a generous grant from Providence Swedish, we are thrilled to offer a parenting program at five locations throughout King County. These classes, based on the evidence based First Approach Skills Training (FAST) behavioral health curriculum from Seattle Children’s Hospital, focus on enhancing parent child relationships. The series consists of eight to ten sessions, and all CYFS clinicians have been trained to facilitate. To ensure childcare is not a barrier, meals will be provided, along with concurrent programming for children.

The parenting program covers various topics, including recognizing and reinforcing positive behaviors, understanding the importance of quality 1:1 time, setting up plans for lingering problem behaviors, predicting and minimizing triggers, and establishing firm limits and consequences. As children grow older, the program also emphasizes involving them more in the consequence planning process. We’re very excited to work on these valuable parenting skills with our SOUND families.

If you've ever wondered what holistic behavioral health care means, our summer programming truly embodies comprehensive, community-based care. At SOUND, we go above and beyond to improve the lives of those we serve, and our summer programs are a shining example of this commitment. School may be out for summer but at SOUND we are just getting started.

Kind Regards,

Katrina Egner
SOUND President & CEO