Winter is coming. Let’s talk flu vaccine.
Crossposted from Public Health Insider
It’s that time of year. The kids have been in school for a while and the germs are circulating. We sat down with Libby Page from our Immunizations Program to learn what our options are for flu vaccine this season.
Why is it important to get vaccinated now?
LP: Autumn is often the time when flu activity picks up and it can take at least two weeks from the date of vaccination for most people to generate vaccine induced immunity.
Also, children aged 6 months through 8 years who have not been vaccinated in previous years will need two doses of flu vaccine. To provide the best protection, it’s important that they get their first dose as soon as possible and get their second dose at least 4 weeks later.
Read more at Public Health Insider
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Pantsuit Tuesday celebrates accomplishments of professional women
About 40 women participated in Pantsuit Tuesday on November 8 to celebrate the accomplishments of professional women. This informal, non-partisan, non-political lunchtime event invited staff from multiple departments to “suit up” and enjoy the opportunity to network with each other and recognize the achievements of women here in King County and around the U.S.
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1 million trees: DNRP gets muddy and gets planting
Crossposted from King County Natural Resources and Parks Blog
Employees of the Department of Natural Resources and Parks recently volunteered to plant trees and other plants at a restoration site in Marymoor Park. We planted 500 native plants, including 170 trees in a wetland area near the Sammamish River.
Planting one million trees by 2020 is a goal set in King County’s 2015 Strategic Climate Action Plan, a road map for how King County will reduce carbon pollution, increase transit, protect open spaces, and prepare communities for the impacts of a changing climate.
Read more at King County Natural Resources and Parks Blog
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How to participate in the annual King County Holiday Food Drive
As the holidays approach, many of us are looking forward to good times and good food with our families and friends. However, there are people in our region who struggle to put food on the table, especially in the colder months. Please consider helping them out by contributing to the annual King County Holiday Food Drive.
Your generous donation of non-perishable, pre-packaged food will benefit Northwest Harvest, the main distribution point of goods for food banks all over our state. Through Northwest Harvest, we know that your donations will go to families in need at no cost to local food banks or their patrons.
Staff from the Facilities Management Division will be placing collection bins the week of November 7 in the downtown campus buildings (Administration, Chinook, Courthouse), Maleng Regional Justice Center, Youth Services Center, Public Health clinics, District Courts, and other outlying sites. The bins will stay in place until November 22. Last year, King County employees donated 6,723 pounds of food to Northwest Harvest, equivalent to more than 5,000 meals for a family of three. Let’s try to beat that this year!
If you have questions about the Holiday Food Drive, or need full bins emptied, please contact the FMD Work Order Desk at workorderdesk.fmd@kingcounty.gov or 206-477-9400. Thank you in advance for your support of this worthwhile project so that all of our friends and neighbors can enjoy this season of giving.
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A new tool to track landslide threats in King County
King County’s iMap software got a shoutout recently in Q13 Fox. The article mentioned how King County’s Department of Natural Resources reacted to the tragedy of the Oso mudslide by remapping the landslide threats throughout the county.
The iMap King County software allows users to view landslides data, relative to a specific address. Read more in the Q13 article, or view the video below.
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Peacemaking circle pilot shows new path for juvenile justice
Crossposted from King County Youth Justice
Rimon and his mother benefited from this new program.
King County Juvenile Court and the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office tried its first felony case through a peacemaking circle, which incorporated victim advocates, mentors, family members and community leaders through months of what became a transformative mediation. A moderator who led a peacemaking circle movement in Boston is growing the practice here in King County.
Rimon and his mother both invested in the first King County Juvenile Court felony case to be resolved through a peacemaking circle, a process inspired by Native American traditions.
A week before Rimon’s 16th birthday, his mother was busy in the kitchen when she heard her son heading out the door. “We have a dental appointment today,” Nura Sayed reminded him. “We need to leave soon.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back,” Rimon told her. Fifteen minutes later, he returned, and the two drove to the dental office, located in the building where Rimon’s family used to live in Seattle’s New Holly Park.
This new youth justice pilot was also featured in Governing Magazine, which also highlights several quotes from prosecutor, Jimmy Hung. Read more here.
Read more at King County Youth Justice
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Department of Permitting and Environmental Review employees make care kits for the homeless
Employees at the Department of Permitting and Environmental Review (DPER) put together care packets for the homeless as a community service project. For the last month DPER employees donated various items such as warm hats, dental kits, personal hygiene items and food items so they could make care packets to distribute to the homeless. This week, many volunteers in the department formed a sort of assembly line in our lunchroom and put together about 50 care kits. There were even some care packets that included treats, toys and food for dogs who may be companions to the homeless. DPER permits homeless shelters for unincorporated King County and the staff thought the care packets would give a little hope for those in need.
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Yesler Bridge Rehabilitation Project: Upcoming Fourth Ave S Lane Closures
Construction crews will close the left lane of northbound 4th Ave S between S Washington and Jefferson streets starting Monday, November 7, through early spring 2017.
During this period, crews will also typically close the center lane of 4th Ave S between S Washington and Jefferson streets on week days between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Travel lanes on the east side of the street will remain open during this work. Pedestrian, bicycle, vehicle, and bus detours will be placed around the lane closures, please use caution near the work zone. Due to these changes, please expect the following:
- Closure of the left lane on 4th Ave S between S Washington and Jefferson streets closed until early spring 2017.
- Center lane closure on 4th Ave S between S Washington and Jefferson streets between 9 a.m and 3 p.m, Monday through Friday.
- Pedestrian, bicycle, vehicle, and bus detours around lane closures.
The Yesler Way Bridge Rehabilitation Project, which will improve safety and reliability while preserving the bridge’s historical elements, will continue through fall of 2017. If you have any questions or would like to discuss the project further, please contact YeslerBridge@seattle.gov or 206-684-8684. To learn more about the project, visit the project website.
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King County Veterans Day Celebration on November 10
King County Regional Veterans Court invites you to the RVC Celebration and Graduation Ceremony. Celebrate the hard work and successes of Regional Veterans Court participants and graduates.
The ceremony will be held on Thursday, November 10, 2016 at 1 p.m. at the King County Courthouse, Room E-326, at 516 Third Avenue, Seattle, WA.
Light refreshments will be provided. Please RSVP to RVC Manager Callista Welbaum at Callista.welbaum@kingcounty.gov. We look forward to celebrating with you!
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Reaffirming our values and principles during change and transition
King County Executive Dow Constantine
Dear Fellow King County Employee,
In the wake of the most divisive presidential election of any of our lifetimes, I know that many of us are feeling anxious and uncertain about the future of our nation and our world. I cannot allay those concerns, but I can share with you my hopes for King County and our region and state.
In this moment of change and transition, we must reaffirm our values and principles.
We will keep our commitment – that all people here will have the opportunity to fulfill their potential.
We will keep our commitment – to combat climate change and the degradation of the natural environment we cherish.
We will keep our commitment – to continuously improve everything we do, fully engaging and supporting our employees.
We cannot make ourselves immune from what happens nationally. But we can continue to build our region as a competitor on the world stage of the 21st century – a peer to the other innovative, forward-looking, prosperous metropolitan regions of the world.
We will continue to strive for equity for all our residents through education, health care and transit. We will continue to protect our farms and forests. And we will continue our mission to make sure every child gets off to a good start, succeeds in school, and has access to full and genuine opportunity.
And we can and will continue to set an example of what a creative, forward-looking government can be. We will continue to offer a welcoming hand to all who would help create prosperous, equitable communities, and to all those from around the world and the nation who seek refuge and the opportunity to build a secure future for themselves and their families.
The tenor of this campaign has been toxic. It was fragmented and marginalized people. But King County is a place that values women, that values racial minorities and the disabled, that values immigrants and refugees, and people of every religion, or of no religion. Wherever you began your life, you are welcome here in our county.
To be sure, there is opportunity, tremendous temptation, to further separate our Cascadia region’s fortunes from those of our nation. But we will make certain our Northwest values continue to shape this next chapter of our nation’s history. We will not retreat into the past, but instead embrace the future with confidence in our convictions and our values. We can and must be a shining example – an alternative for other communities to emulate – an oasis of optimism and creativity, and a protector of the basic American ideals of democracy, civil and human rights, liberty, opportunity, and equality.
Then, come what may, we will be a stronger global competitor, a leader in our nation, and a beacon to people around the world seeking pluralism and prosperity.
Your work is what will make that possible. I look forward to the future we will build.
Sincerely,
Dow Constantine
King County Executive
Employee News 