Putting Children first while honoring Fathers and Mothers

It is said that being a parent is the most difficult job in the world and the one that most parents will tell you they love the best. Much research and attention has been devoted over many years to motherhood and its vital role in the rearing of children. Deaconess Children’s Services wholeheartedly acknowledges and supports this research. However, we all know that mothers cannot and should not be solely responsible for rearing the next generation of our society.

The statistics are staggering. Almost 24 million American children grow up in a home without a father and nearly half of those children have not seen their father in the previous year! To create a climate for men to remain involved with their children and be committed to providing financial support even if their adult relationship is no longer intact, fathers must believe their role is vital and that they have value themselves. Mothers must believe that fathers will step up to a shared parenting role, that their children benefit greatly from involvement with their fathers and encourage them to spend time with their children even when the adult relationship is over.

Children who have close relationships with their fathers have higher self-esteem, better academic performance, more positive social behaviors and fewer behavioral issues during adolescence. This even holds true with children involved in the child welfare system. Studies of these children show that those who have contact with even a non-custodial father within the past year were 46% less likely to enter foster care. Deaconess works with parents for the sake of vulnerable children for this very reason.

At Deaconess, we feel it’s important to recognize the vital role that mothers and fathers play not only in their children’s lives, but also in our community. On October 1, 2010, Deaconess Children's Services will celebrate 113 years of putting children first by hosting the 6th Annual Father and Mother of the Year Awards ceremony at Forest Park in Everett, WA. It's going to be a great night including beautiful desserts, a wine auction, a raffle with fabulous big ticket items, including a 50” Plasma TV donated by Panasonic Avionics Corporation, our trademark fashion show for the moms, inspirational speakers for the fathers, and much, much more!

So…mark your calendars for October 1st, pick your favorite bottle of wine to donate to our wine auction, program your GPS for Forest Park and join us for this free event!

Event Specifics:

Who: Deaconess Children’s Services
What: Father and Mother of the Year Awards
When: 6:00pm-8:00 pm on October 1st, 2010
Where: Floral Hall, Forest Park @ 802 E. Mukilteo Blvd. Everett, WA 98203

Please RSVP with Stacey Pfeiffer at 425-259-0146 or spfeiffer@deaconesschildren.org

We look forward to celebrating with you!

Two Words...oops

I'd first like to say thank you to everyone who took the time to read yesterday's article, "Two Words." It's gratifying for us to have the community acknowledge other members of the community supporting our children.

It seems we were remiss in thanking one group, so now seems like a good time to correct that mistake.

Gary Rhodes and the Road Kill Crew didn't just donate 10 pounds of prime rib. They also donated the full use of the banquet facility at the Marysville Masonic Center, meal preparation, and 80 pounds of Angus Rib Roast (Prime Rib), plus all other components of the dinner.

Thank you again to Gary, the Road Kill Crew and all the other volunteers and donors to the event. You made it successful and you allow Deaconess Children's Services to continue putting children first and transforming the lives of children by breaking the cycle of child abuse and neglect.

Two Words...

There are two words that, when spoken, have the most unfathomable power to completely change your life…THANK YOU.

Recently, a Hot August Nights fundraising event was held in Marysville, Washington to raise funds for some of our programs. Deaconess would like to say Thank You to everyone who helped make it such a huge success!

First, to our dedicated Deaconess volunteers and their families/friends who continue to offer their time and energy whenever asked:

*Deborah Bivens – serving the wine and singing for the guests
*Rebecca Fernandez – set up and clean up volunteer
*Sandy Fletcher – car show and clean up volunteer
*Bill Kehle – clean up volunteer
*Melissa Lewis – clean up volunteer
*Matt McMiller – set up and clean up volunteer
*Peggy McMiller – set up and clean up volunteer
*Holly Murphy – event coordinator and all around magician
*Jim Murphy – car show volunteer
*Shawna Murphy – car show volunteer
*Tricia Murphy – car show volunteer
*Mollie Ragland – set up and clean up volunteer
*Al Warren – set up and clean up volunteer
*Jed Wheeler – clean up volunteer

The following business and individuals also contributed items or time in support of The Deaconess Child at the Hot August Nights event:

* David George Jazz Quartet, Seattle, WA for delighting us with their great music for the evening;
* Chateau Ste. Michelle for contributing for 2 cases of wine;
* The Vintage Chevrolet Club of America and other classic car owners for donating their time and vehicles to support our event;
* Blockbuster on 20th & Broadway for the “Night in at the movies”;
* Governor Christine Gregoire for designing the beautiful handmade purse;
* Smokey Point Massage for donating 2 massages;
* Gary Rhodes for donating his huge 27 pound freshly caught king salmon;
* Caryl Estes & the Estes Group for the Flameless Candle Collection;
* Holiday Inn of Everett for the Overnight Stay;
* O’Reilly’s Auto Supply for hosting the car show site;
* J.L. Scott Realty for hosting the car show site;
* Antonville Winery for donating 16 bottles of wine;
* Gary Rhodes and the Road Kill Crew for donation of 10 pounds of cooked prime rib;
* Boy Scouts of America – Marysville Troop 84 for their help in serving dinner; and
* Job’s Daughters – Bethel 50 who also graciously served our guests dinner and throughout the evening.

The following grocery store bakeries donated desserts for our Dessert Dash:

* Central Market-Mill Creek: Jim Huffman, Manager, Debra, Megan and your Bakery Team
* Safeway-75th and Evergreen Way: Tom Novak, Store Manager and your Bakery Team
* Albertsons-Madison and Evergreen Way: Joe, Store Manager, Dawn and Bakery Team
* QFC-Claremont: Linda Scholl, Store Manager, Judy, Bookkeeper, and the Bakery Team
* Safeway-41st and Rucker: Gwynn, Store Manager, Linda, Cat and your Bakery Team
* Albertsons-Marysville (4th and State): Sherry, Store Manager and Bakery Team

We’d also like to recognize some of our local representatives and personalities that contributed to the success of the event:

* John McCoy, Washington State Representative for District 38;
* Mike Sells, Washington State Representative for District 38;
* Mark Roe, Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney and his wife, Lisa Paul;
* Shahram Hadiam, Candidate for State Representative; and
* Marlee Ginter, KOMO 4 News Reporter, for graciously emcee-ing our event.

A huge Thank Youto each one of you for your support of the Deaconess Child. We can’t thank you enough.