~Summer 2026~

Katie's Korner: A message from your PYC Coordinator

Dear early childhood community partners,

As we all juggle the fullness of this time of year, this will serve as your summer newsletter. Please let me know if there are any events, advocacy items, initiatives or pertinent information pieces that I may have missed and I will send them as ad hoc emails in the interim.

Stay warm and give yourself the kindness that you extend to others.

Warmly (or should I say cool-ly to beat the heat),

Katie

Partners for Young Children (PYC) is a coalition focused on improving the wellbeing of children and families in Island County.

Through PYC, Island County organizations and individuals come together to achieve the vision that all children thrive in nurturing relationships and healthy families. Together, partners are cultivating community action to strengthen Island County families.

PYC News & Updates

PYC Membership

Interested in becoming a member of Partners for Young Children Island County? It's simple! Find out more at the link below and simply complete our membership form.

Email Katie with any questions!

PYC Partners Shared Resources

Have flyers, information or resources to share? Drop in our SharePoint folder!

Join Our Slack Community

Sign up for our new PYC Slack Channel! You'll find it under the (also new) Whidbey Community Foundation Slack. Ask questions, share resources, and interact in real-time with other early learning partners in our community!

Last Month's PYC Programs Report

Help Me Grow Island County Updates & Supports

Email for real-time updates, to add your listing, for questions and to get outreach materials for your families!

Encourage families to Call Help Me Grow at 1(800) 322-2588.

Katie will be contacting resource partners annually for maintenance updates.

Help Me Grow - Island County is a dependable and interconnected system that puts families first – making sure resources are accessible to every child and every community.

PYC Supported Programs

Lantern Parenting Tips

Lantern tailors three to five weekly text messages to caregivers, providing evidence-based content on developmental milestones, brain growth, emotional health, nutrition, and resilience.

Does your organization have a community message to share with local parents? Submit your messages here and we will help get the word out!

Dolly Parton Imagination Library of Whidbey Island

Imagination Library of Whidbey Island—a local program partner of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, strives to send a new book every month to Whidbey Island children from birth to age five.

Katie has bookmarks and other outreach materials. Contact her here!

Help Spread the Word!

Follow and share with your networks!

Advocacy & Support Opportunities

Sno-Isle Libraries Ask for Levy Approval Votes

What do you need to know?

Library funding is revisited every several years

Deciding whether to restore the library levy is a normal part of long-term public funding. The last time voters restored the library levy was 2018.

The cap on library funding

Every year, the library levy is only allowed to grow by 1%. This cap helps keep your property taxes stable and predictable.

Rising costs and increased use

Since 2018, Sno-Isle Libraries has carefully managed our budget to serve our community. But costs and use have increased, and our budget can no longer keep up. The 2018 library levy is now at the end of its life.

What happens next?

Voters get to decide:

• Restore the library levy so Sno-Isle Libraries can keep offering the services our community wants

• Reject the proposal to restore the library levy, and Sno-Isle Libraries makes cuts to staff, services, and hours

Click below to read more and spread the word!

Island County Health Updates

Heat Advisory Information to Share

Click below for downloadable flyer to share and spread the word as we are entering the hot part of the season!

Healthier Washington Provides CHW Vaccination Confidence Toolkit

The Together for Health vaccine confidence toolkit supports CHWs like you in talking clearly and effectively about vaccines. The materials work together as a comprehensive guide, but you can also study each piece on its own based on your experience and interests. Use the toolkit on your own or practice with other CHWs, and share select resources with clients.

The toolkit materials were reviewed by funded community-based organization partners and are available in nine languages: Amharic, English, Marshallese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.

All toolkit pieces are available as print and digital options, and with or without the DOH logo on them.

Family & Caregiver Supports & Events

Island County School Districts Provide Summer Meal Programs

Island County school districts are helping to connect families with free meals this summer. Click the button below that applies to your residential area for more info on how to get free meals!

Island County Parent to Parent Provides Education & Supportive Events for Families

Healthy Island Youth Initiative Offers Activity Scholarships & Chum Run Event

Island County Public Health (lead agency) and South Whidbey Parks and Aquatics Foundation (fiscal sponsor) have partnered with South Whidbey Parks and Recreation District, Coupeville School District and North Whidbey Pool, Parks and Recreation District to provide scholarships to youths from families unable to afford the registration costs of organized physical activities. HIYI scholarships are now also available for music and art classes, or summer camps. 

Upcoming Sno-Isle Family Events

Summer reading has kicked off and this year the whole family can participate! Click below to find out how to track your reading and get your end of summer prize.

Storytimes & Family Fun at Oak Harbor Library!

Storytimes & Family Fun at Coupeville Library!

Storytimes for our south end libraries!

Click below for even more family friendly events!

Do you have updates or resources you'd like to share with the broader network?

Fun Reads & New Listens!

At-homish: Where We Belong

with Wil Johnson

Join Wil Johnson, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for Snohomish County, as he helps make you feel At-homish. Whether you are in your hometown or discovering a new one, there are ways we can help everyone belong and feel at-home. Wil breaks down the different perspectives and strategies on how to make everyone in your community feel like they belong. Come on in and make yourself At-homish.