For those of us committed to ending poverty in our community, these are truly challenging times. While the current economic downturn affects all of us, its impact on low-income people is devastating. We are also seeing more and more middle-income people who have lost their jobs and their homes and now find themselves in need of our services.

Here at Solid Ground, we are doing more than we ever have to address homelessness, hunger, and other aspects of poverty. Among the leaders in our community’s 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, Solid Ground is on the brink of developing over 100 units of new housing for homeless families at Sand Point. At the same time we have expanded our services for families who are domestic violence survivors, and offer a wider range of shelter and transitional housing options than ever before, in order to meet the needs of as many families as possible. Recognizing that institutional racism is a major cause of poverty, we also work to address institutional practices and policies that prevent the full participation of people of color in our society.

When the agency began in 1974 (as the Fremont Public Association), a neighborhood food bank was our core service. Although we no longer run a food bank, fighting hunger remains a central and expanding component of our work. We are the largest provider of organic produce to Seattle food banks and the backbone of area food bank efforts to serve families with young children. We also provide grocery delivery to seniors and people living with disabilities in public housing whose isolation and limited mobility compromise their nutritional well-being. And we are having great success in our efforts to fight childhood obesity through our Apple Corps program.

From our early days, we’ve always helped low-income families and individuals get back to the solid ground of stable housing, sustainable nutrition and freedom from discrimination. In 2007, we took the name Solid Ground to better describe the vast scope of our work throughout King County. An important aspect of this new identity is the opportunity it provides to reestablish our connection to the broader community. This website is one part of our effort to do a better job describing our work and involving more community members in our mission. As you visit us here, please ask yourself: What can I do to help work for a just and caring community free from poverty, prejudice and neglect? We look forward to hearing from you!