King County Executive Ron Sims was the keynote speaker at a community celebration and open house held on April 26, 2005, attended by about 150 members of the mental health community, CPC and White Center residents.

In his remarks, Executive Sims praised the work of CPC to create this much-needed housing for women with co-occurring mental illness and chemical dependency, noting the importance of linking housing to treatment and supportive services for high risk and chronic populations. As he spoke about the recently approved "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness in King County", Executive Sims called the Willows the first big step in ending homelessness and a model for future collaboration.

"King County is pleased to be a partner in this extraordinary project that creates housing for homeless women and their children, as well as vital connections to treatment services and other supports that will help both the mothers and their children build more stable and healthier lives for the future," said Executive Sims. "With the Willows, we see the incredible power of partnerships - exactly what we will need to achieve our goal of ending homelessness in King County."

King County provided over $1 million in Housing Opportunity Fund (HOF) and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to support this project, joining nine other capital and service funders, including the Washington State Housing Trust Fund, King County Housing Authority, Gates Foundation Sound Families Initiative, Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, Medina Foundation, The Nesholm Family Foundation, The Seattle Foundation, Northwest Children’s Fund, and The Stocker Foundation. The project also represents a strong collaboration with the University of Washington Parent-Child Assistance Program, which will identify and refer appropriate families to the project and also provide advocacy and case management services.

In addition to housing, residents of the Willows can receive ongoing mental health and substance abuse treatment, parenting education, vocational training, daycare services, and other supports. For more information about the Willows, please contact Andrea Stephens at CPC at 206 461-3614.