.png)
When you meet Mary Powers, her compassion for others is palpable. Her path to joining SOUND’s Mobile Rapid Response Crisis Team (MRRCT) as a peer support specialist began with her own path to hope, healing, and recovery.
“I’ve had a lot of different jobs – doula, CNA, even ski patrol,” she says. “But after returning to the Pacific Northwest in 1999, that’s when my personal struggles really began.”
Mary was hospitalized for mental health crises on two occasions, using inpatient treatment to help her find a path forward. Over the years, she worked to rebuild her footing – running a small jewelry business, taking psychology courses, and leaning on family who “took care of me when I couldn’t take care of myself.”
“Through it all, I realized I wanted to help people in similar situations. That’s when I started asking to do ride-alongs with crisis teams. I knew that was the kind of work I wanted to do.”
With that goal in mind, Mary became certified as a peer support specialist and spent years volunteering, coaching, and honing her skills in empathy and active listening. “One of the best techniques I learned was to let my comments or questions pass – to truly listen,” she says.
After recovering from another crisis, Mary refocused her career goals on behavioral health, eventually discovering SOUND Behavioral Health in that process. “I saw the job posting, interviewed, and at orientation there was a computer and phone with my name on it. It felt meant to be,” she says. “The first month I was convinced I should quit – it was all so new, and I doubted myself. But my team kept encouraging me. They helped me believe I belonged.”
Today, Mary responds to crisis calls across the region alongside a clinician as part of SOUND’s MRRCT program. “We show up, listen, and meet people’s needs,” she says. “Even if we can’t fix everything, we try to give people hope. Many are simply relieved to know someone is here for them.”
For Mary, the work is deeply personal – and profoundly fulfilling. “I’ve grown more here than anywhere else,” she says. “My coworkers, the peers we serve, even the mistakes I’ve made – I’ve learned from all of it. SOUND has really been the cherry on top of this experience. I feel so fortunate to be here.”
SOUND’s impact extends far beyond any single story. Through programs like MRRCT, teams of clinicians and peer support specialists meet people in moments of crisis – offering compassion, connection, and hope when it matters most. For Mary and countless others, SOUND doesn’t just change lives. It helps people rediscover purpose, resilience, and the power of recovery.
At SOUND Behavioral Health, we are inspired when young people step up to make a difference in our community. A group of students from Mercer Island High School —Levi Jones, Ronan Buckley, and Connor Flume — have done just that with their initiative, 988 Find Your Peace.Through T-shirts and sweatshirts featuring the national Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 988, these students are helping normalize conversations about mental health and letting their peers know that support is always available. All profits from their apparel go directly to SOUND, helping us provide critical counseling, crisis intervention, housing support, and recovery services throughout King County.
Read more
When SOUND clinician Marlene Andrews began volunteering at the Sammamish Animal Sanctuary, she noticed something unexpected. The animals, many of them rescued or recovering from neglect, required patience and consistency to build trust – much like the people she supported in her work at SOUND Behavioral Health. That realization planted the seed for what would become SOUND’s Animal Sanctuary program. In partnership with the Sammamish Animal Sanctuary, SOUND’s program is now a thriving part of the organization’s Child and Family Services offerings.
Read more
Just a few short weeks ago, SOUND Behavioral Health welcomed more than 400 community members, partners, and supporters to Fremont Studios for the annual SOUND of Hope Gala — an evening dedicated to expanding access to mental health and substance use services across King County.
Read more
