November | VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER | 2025

International Volunteer Day on December 5 is a global celebration of the people—like YOU, our incredible Literacy Source volunteers—who power community change and make our mission possible every day. Join the spirit of the day through simple acts of appreciation and connection: thank-you notes, kindness, and community support.

As we head into the holiday, we want to wish each of you a very happy Thanksgiving. We’ll be closed on both Thursday and Friday of next week, and we hope you’re able to rest, connect with loved ones, and enjoy some well-deserved downtime. We also want to acknowledge that the day after Thanksgiving is Native American Heritage Day, a time to honor the deep contributions, histories, and living cultures of Indigenous peoples. For many Native communities, this week is also a time of reflection and mourning, recognizing the lasting impacts of colonization.

Last month, our staff and board gathered for our annual retreat, which included another session in our ongoing DEI journey—this time grounded in the “Hustle to Flow” pivot from The Four Pivots book that we are reading together as a staff this year. We also spent time thinking about Literacy Source’s growth in the coming years and how to ensure that the values at the heart of our organization remain steady as we expand. While the planning work is still in progress, we’re excited about the direction ahead and grateful to have a community that helps anchor these conversations.

As always, we are profoundly thankful for each of you. The welcoming classrooms, individualized support, and steady encouragement our learners experience every day are possible because of your time, commitment, and care. Thank you for helping Literacy Source remain a place where adults can build skills, reach goals, and shape new opportunities for themselves and their families. We’re grateful for YOU.

In community,

Liz Wurster

Communications Coordinator

“Every generation finds their own voice."

This reminder, shared in a video explaining the history of the Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center, echoes the heart of our staff’s Land Acknowledgement practice: an intentional space where we learn, listen, and deepen our awareness of the histories, peoples, and cultures of this land. This month, we lift up the story of Bernie Whitebear whose leadership, vision, and courage helped reclaim a place for Indigenous community life in Seattle. His work to create Daybreak Star emerged from a long legacy of cultural erasure, and from a resilient insistence that Native people deserve places where their histories, art, stories, and connections can thrive.

Bernie’s voice grew from witnessing the struggles of Native people in urban Seattle and refusing to accept a future shaped by exclusion. In 1970, he joined other Native activists in occupying Fort Lawton to assert treaty rights and reclaim land for a cultural home. That bold act of civil disobedience, carried out by community members who were, in Bernie’s words, “planting a tree” they might never sit beneath, led to the creation of a 20-acre site where Native families could reconnect with culture, identity, health, education, and belonging. Today, Daybreak Star continues to serve as a place of healing and opportunity for Indigenous people across generations.

For Literacy Source, this story is not just history, it’s a powerful reminder of why our work matters. Our classrooms are spaces where adults reclaim voice, agency, and confidence after experiences that may have silenced them, whether through displacement, interrupted schooling, discrimination, or systemic barriers. Native American Heritage Month calls us to recognize the hard truths of cultural genocide and also the hope in stories like Bernie’s: when people feel seen, supported, and connected to their own strengths, they can speak, act, and build futures that honor who they are and where they come from.

Center Tutoring Spaces:

We are excited that so many students are getting matched with tutors this term, both in-person and online! Tuesday and Thursday mornings are getting especially busy at the center. Available spaces include: any room labeled Community Space, the high or round table at the back of the office, the library/kitchen areas, and the classrooms if they are not in use. Admin offices are also available if not in use, check with a staff member first. 

Snow Policy:

It's that time of year again! Literacy Source follows Seattle Public Schools. If Seattle Public Schools are closed: Literacy Source Office is closed. All classes are on Zoom. If Seattle Public Schools are delayed 2 hours: Literacy Source Office opens at 10:30am. Here is a link to the slide with our snow policy.

The Importance of Academic Mindset

We think about many things when we are teaching or tutoring a student. For example, we focus on the objectives of the lesson and how to accomplish them. We create engaging activities for the student to work on. We make lesson plans with timed segments and reflect on what worked and what didn’t work after the class. Among these many tasks, do we remember to think about our student’s academic mindset, and how that impacts their learning?

According to education researcher and consultant Zaretta Hammond, nurturing a student’s academic mindset is at the core of culturally responsive teaching. A student’s academic mindset is their attitude and mental readiness to learn.

She outlines 4 key components of a positive academic mindset...

You can read the entire teaching tip here.

by Megan Dalton, RTW Lead Instructor 

New Student Registration 

We will be registering students for the winter term soon. New students will be coming to the center for the first time and a friendly face greeting them and helping them find their way up to the 3rd floor would be so welcoming. Can you help?  

Times:  

• Monday 12/15 - 10:30am – 12:15pm 
• Monday 12/15 - 4:30 – 5:45pm 
• Tuesday 12/16 - 8:30 – 10:15pm 

Please email Caroline if you can help.

Congratulations and thank you to these volunteers who have achieved a year of service! We are so appreciative of all your hard work and dedication to Literacy Source.

• Stacey Glyde, ESOL Tutor 

Our theme this month is Native American Heritage Month, so we are featuring books written by Native Americans or centering Native American voices.

Wandering Stars

Staff: Shira Rosen

Red Paint: The Ancestral Autobiography of a Coast Salish Punk

Staff: Allie Azersky

Neither Wolf Nor Dog: On Forgotten Roads with an Indian Elder

Staff: Caroline Socha

Hemlock and Sage: A Compass & Coyote Novel

Staff: Darlene Lytle

Braiding Sweetgrass

Staff: Laura Kalmanson

Firekeeper's Daughter

Staff: Liz Wurster

United Nations for All Tribes Native Art Markets

November 22-23 & December 20-21, 10am-5pm, (Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center, FREE)

The Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center proudly presents its Native Art Market, a curated exhibition and marketplace featuring authentic Indigenous artisans and their masterworks. This sophisticated showcase spans diverse artistic traditions from numerous tribal nations, encompassing meticulously crafted apparel, artisanal jewelry, traditional woodcraft, ceremonial drums, limited edition prints, and an array of other distinctive pieces.

The Native Art Market exemplifies the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation’s comprehensive initiative to empower and elevate Indigenous communities throughout the Puget Sound region and beyond. Our organization steadfastly upholds The Indian Arts and Crafts Act, ensuring the authenticity and cultural integrity of all works presented.

Duwamish Art Market

November 28-30, 10am-5pm (Duwamish Longhouse Cultural Center, FREE)

FREE ENTRY + FREE PARKING+ GIFTS + NATIVE CRAFTS+ FOOD

Black Thoughts

Monday, December 1, 7:30pm (The Great Hall, 119 Eighth Avenue, $10-35)

Three voices at the intersections of art, education, and social critique come together for an evening of readings and conversation. Jesse Hagopian will share from his forthcoming book Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education, while Martellus Bennett (MR. TOMONOSHi) and Michael Bennett will read from their own works, including Black Thoughts and Things That Make White People Uncomfortable. Together, they’ll engage in a wide-ranging conversation on race, creativity, justice, and liberation, offering perspectives that draw from literature, design, sport, and activism.

Snowflake Lane

Nightly at 7pm from November 28 - December 24 (Bellevue Way between NE 4th & NE 8th, FREE)

Experience the wonder of falling snow, dazzling lights, festive music, toy drummers, and dancers in this complimentary nightly parade of holiday floats. Join us between Bellevue Square and Lincoln Square from NE 4th to NE 8th Streets every night at 7 pm. Park in any of our free parking garages at The Bellevue Collection and choose your favorite spot along the parade route.

Our next New Volunteer Orientation (via Zoom) will be on December 3 at either 1pm or 7pm. 

Potential volunteers are invited to register online here. 

Miss any of our past volunteer newsletters? You can access archived newsletters at the bottom of the Volunteer Page of our webpage.