OUR

GIRLS

State of Women and Children in Spokane County Report 2.0

...because her story
is our story.

Discover how you can help foster a brighter future for "Our Girls". Join the discussion sparked by this landmark report. #ourgirlsspokane

state of women and children in spokane county 2.0

From Conversations to Data: Understanding Our Community's Strengths and Concerns

SIX topics to explore:

What Does Our Community Look Like?

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Building a Healthy Foundation: Basic Needs and Supports

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Supporting Behavioral, Emotional, and Physical Well-being: Access to Care

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Ensuring a Safe Community: Community Violence and Safety

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Creating a Healthier Community: Change is Possible

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Opportunity Index: Policy Solutions

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"I don't know what it's like living in other areas. We have the haves and the have nots. The leap is so large, I don't know if I'll ever cross it. My life in Spokane has been a fight".
- "Our Girl" Willow

This report is for YOU!

Our collective dream is that this report will contribute to improving our lives, our community, and our world in ways large or small.

This report is dedicated in solidarity with all women who call Spokane County home. Together we are a community of “Our Girls” and we deserve opportunities to live our best lives.

We believe in collective collaboration between funders, researchers, and community organizations. A big thanks to these project funders:

Spokane County indicators tell us:

Girls are increasingly more likely than boys to consider suicide.

Social service programs help families build stable foundations.

Accidents, self-harm lead as causes of death for children and youth after the first year of life.

Gender gaps in income leave single moms and their children behind.

Transportation-related stress affected at least one in four hispanic and multicultural women.

A third of women- and half of young women- lived in an unstable housing situation in the last 5 years.

Older adults on Medicaid and those who spokane a language other than english were less likely to be able to access mental health care.

Four in ten mothers with poor mental health miss out on treatment.

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Examples, experiences, and “Our Girls” quotes, drawn from interviews with local women.

Bright spots highlighting innovative solutions and supports in our community.

Viewpoints sharing perspectives from literature or local providers.

"Our Girl" Isabella is a Latina mother devoted to her children, goal-driven, and determined to continue her own education.

The parks in the neighborhood where Isabella is raising her children always have a lot of trash, and there are frequently signs of drug dealing and prostitution around the bathrooms. First time we were there [at the park] someone stopped, made their way across to come to me and said ‘do not let your kids out of your sight. This is not a place for your kids to be, these people are here to hurt you.’ I was like, hell no, I’m not leaving my kids here. I had planned to drop them off. Next day I brought my lawn chair. Phone in hand and ready to alert [the police].”

Spokane Brightspot: Communities in Schools

This nonprofit surrounds students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life. They believe all students, regardless of race, gender, zip code, or socioeconomic background, should have what they need to realize their potential. They work with public schools to identify the unique needs of students and can provide basic needs, behavioral interventions, college and career prep, and family engagement and life skills training. Case-managed students in the program have shown an 87% increase in improved attendance and a 94% increase in improved behavior. What they do works!

“Our Girl” Jasmine is a multiracial mama and very proud of her lineage and family.

She shared her story that illustrates the stress she’s experienced living as a biracial person in a predominately White community. After moving into her home, the alarm system went off and the police showed up. She explained the differences between her reaction as a biracial woman, and her husband as a White man. Based on a history of abuse and trauma, and current examples highlighted in the media showcasing the abuse of people of color by police, her response was very different than her husband’s.

“I am upstairs hiding the kids in the bathroom. Everyone is screaming and I am trying to calm them down. The Spokane Police show up. There is no part of my White husband that thinks there’s any danger in this situation. He’s not worried about our safety. He does not think there’s any chance that this can go in a different direction…even though I’m light skinned and my children are extremely light skinned, there’s this bone memory. Fear of knowing and running through all scenarios of what could happen, how this could turn. Would it be different if it was just me in the house? Or if my dad [a Black man] was here? [These are] things that make [life] hard. Trying to navigate this life of being biracial and raising biracial children in Spokane.”

"Our Girl" Erika, a White woman, has lived and served as a medical provider in Spokane since 1999. Erika is a Christian and devoted wife and mother who has always understood her “why”—her passion and calling to care for babies.

Erika acknowledges that as a college-educated woman with a stable job, her quality of life is good, and Spokane can be a pretty great place to live. Erika also understands and shared that for women without means, quality of life is much harder to achieve.

“If you don’t have means, and [especially if] you have mental health challenges… I feel like there is a lot of effort being directed into it [helping women], but somehow, we are still missing what women need.”

Point of View: Hospital-Based Behavioral Health Nurse

A long-standing community member who serves as a nurse specializing in behavioral health described how the current “fee for service” health care model inhibits an upstream approach to addressing some of our community’s most intractable problems. She believes that our community is suffering, and the suffering starts early on in childhood as more and more children are experiencing challenges that increase their need for mental health care. She explained that as a society, we need to be more focused on getting “upstream” of the core issues our communities are facing, which would have a greater impact on changing intergenerational outcomes. In a population health model, helping a pregnant woman has a positive effect on her unborn child. And once that child is born, that positive effect extends across the child’s whole life.

"Our Girl" Jessie is an urban Native daughter, big sister, and future matriarch. She is proud of her culture and dedicated to her family.

In Jessie’s experience, our community’s Native youth experience worse mental health. Historical trauma passed through generations, loss of culture and language, changing technology and cyber bullying, alcohol and substance use, and societal expectations contribute to this problem, but Jessie has hope for her community as more young people find their way back to traditional language, roles, and culture.

“I continue to see with Native youth high suicide rates, high substance abuse, anxiety, depression, I still see all of that.… But I am seeing programs more often that offer trauma-informed care that is rooted in a foundation around Native culture because that’s what those particular youth need."

Spokane Brightspot: FailSafe for Life

FailSafe for Life is a local nonprofit working to end suicide in Spokane. Founded in 2016, this organization inspires action through education, instilling hope, and connecting communities. Free virtual QPR training has been made available for participants 16 and older thanks to generous donations from supporters and grant funding. QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer — the 3 simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help.
“We want to empower our community members to engage in proactive conversations about mental health and suicide, and to help those who are struggling know they are not alone, so together we can break the stigma and shame around these issues and create a more connected community.”

Point of View: Community Service Provider

A community service provider (also an “Our Girl” who experienced the challenges of single parenting) described how many of her clients walk on the razor thin edge of the benefit cliff, defined as “the sudden and often unexpected decrease in public benefits that can occur with a small increase in earnings.” There are many working parents in Spokane County that rely on public benefits to support their families with food, medical care, housing and child care. Since most public benefits are income based, even a marginal increase in income can have substantial impacts on the level of benefits received.

A family is at risk of losing benefits despite being able to sustain their family and households even with an increase in income. The benefit cliff can effectively discourage recipients from educational or career advancements since associated raises or pay increases are generally not enough to offset the benefits lost.

“Our Girl” Nadia is a mother of three children and an immigrant. A highly educated woman, she passionately cares for all children, and works to provide love, patience, and kindness to kids experiencing trauma.

Nadia talked about the hardships that she sees with other families in the child care setting where she works. She described that some of the kids she works with do not have sufficient clothing and that she sometimes brings clothes from her own home when she has extra, even though keeping her own growing kids in clothes is challenging. She talked about wanting the kids in her care to be safe and to protect them. She shared that some of the children in her care had challenging home lives, separated from their moms and dads. Her passion for children was apparent. We asked Nadia what she wants for her own future. She talked about wanting more experience and more education to better serve the children under her care.

“I want more experience with my work… more information. I want to know everything about the children. I care about them. They hurt… I want to keep working with children. [Be] patient and kind with them.”

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3 WAYS TO LEARN MORE

DIGITAL DASHBOARD

We partnered with Spokane Regional Health District to provide a dashboard that will be updated annually with new trends.

This complementary dashboard includes many of the indicators presented in this report as well as some additional information, particularly related to community violence

VIEW HERE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This summary provides a snapshot of some of the key issues included in the full report.

FULL REPORT

Each chapter of the full report draws on indicators (data), conversations with "Our Girls", and so much more!

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What else can our community do to ensure "Our Girls" can build stable foundations?

Ensure all families can afford basic needs and access vital resources.

Improve access to culturally centered mental health resources for all ages.

Support programs and policies that help children grow in resilient households.

Create opportunities to ensure everyone feels a sense of belonging and connectedness through shared decision making.

Build pathways to communities and resources that support wellness.

Opportunities to get involved!

Give your time or talent- Reach out to one of the many nonprofits and ask how you can give back. Visit www.volunteerspokane.org for a list!

Lend your voice- Many organizations are working to develop policies that make changes upstream of key issues. Subscribe to email updates from the WA Women's Commission at www.wswc.wa.gov.

Amplify your impact- Together we're growing a group of local, engaged, and strategic givers.

Whether you can give a little or a lot, it all adds up! Consider a monthly donation.
Giving Circles help democratize philanthropy, and we welcome people of all giving levels.
Through our process, donors build strong connections and increase their engagement in the community.

JOIN GIVING CIRCLE

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Our Girls The State of Women and Children in Spokane County (10).png

OUR

GIRLS

...because her story
is our story.

From Conversations to Data: Understanding Our Community's Strengths and Concerns