Washington gets $23 million to combat fentanyl crisis
In response to an increase in drug overdoses, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded $23 million last week to Washington communities.
The grants to King and Snohomish counties, along with one to the Washington State Department of Health, are directly aimed at addressing the drug overdose crisis, developing new methods of monitoring data on drug overdoses, increasing harm reduction services and reducing health disparities.
Fentanyl remains the primary cause of overdose deaths in the state. Last year, the lethal drug was responsible for 90% of opioid overdose deaths in Washington and 65% of all overdose deaths, according to researchers at the University of Washington.
"As I travel the state listening to Washingtonians on the front lines of the fentanyl crisis, one thing has been loud and clear — our communities need more resources to tackle substance abuse and drug overdoses,” United States Senator Maria Cantwell said in a statement.
In all, HHS provided grants to 13 different state entities, totaling $23,102,580.
Artists sought for public works projects
Seattle’s Office of Labor Standards (OLS) and King County’s 4Culture are currently seeking artists.
OLS is requesting quotes from visual artists to create large-format art panels that will be exhibited in the Seattle Center Armory to promote awareness of Seattle’s labor ordinances protecting gig-economy workers and independent contractors. Anyone interested can submit their bid on Seattle.gov; search for “art for labor standards” and click on the first result. The submission deadline is Sept. 5.
For people of letters, 4Culture is currently taking submissions for its Poetry in Public program. Poems submitted to the program must be 50 words or fewer and touch on the theme of Places of Landing. Selected poems will be featured on King County and Sound Transit buses, trains and stations in 2024. Aspiring poets can get more information by searching for Poetry in Public at 4culture.org. The submission deadline is Oct. 30.
5-year-old Seattleite’s lemonade stand raises $17,000 for Maui wildfire survivors
In further evidence that the youth might just indeed save us, 5-year-old Seattleite Edison (Eddie) Juel raised $17,000 for people impacted by the Maui wildfires.
After watching a news story about the devastation, Eddie decided to set up a lemonade stand in his neighborhood on Aug 25. The stand operated for eight hours, with Eddie selling yellow lemonade, candy and some of his toys, according to his mother, Ami.
In total, Eddie’s stand made more than $17,000 from sales and donations, with all proceeds going to victims. n
Read more of the Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2023 issue.