Grassroot Projects

Mission

Grassroot Projects creates and supports equitable communities for immigrant and refugee children by removing barriers and empowering kids to reach their full potential as they enjoy their childhoods.

Description

Grassroot Projects works at the grassroots level with individual families with kids ages 0-18 years in King and Snohomish counties to understand their unique needs and help fulfill them. What sets us apart is:  1) the customization of our care packages to include exactly what each family needs, 2) that we continue to be a low barrier, no questions asked organization, and 3) that we deliver to the doorstep to cut across barriers to access for these families. Our motto is "Small Projects, Big Dreams." Every project is a hope given to the child to dream big, and we currently serve 5% of King County.

Children of immigrants and refugees and their parents face great challenges during their parents’ first few years in the U.S. For some, their limited education makes all but low-wage jobs unattainable. Federal regulations also limit access for recent immigrants to public assistance programs. Paradoxically, these regulations bar people from receiving assistance when they most need it — when they are new to the U.S. and facing the challenge of establishing themselves.  

Grassroot Projects aims to reduce the stress of this early stage of adjustment by providing immediate relief, so families are prevented from falling into vicious cycles that financial setbacks can cause. Providing the families with timely support can alleviate the cycle of setbacks, and families can continue to provide home environments where children thrive and experience enjoyable childhoods. We offer four main programs:

1. Care and Connect: We provide our immigrant and refugee families with customized care packages that fulfill the basic essentials needs like diapers, wipes, clothing, shoes, school supplies, and car seats for each child in the household. We understand that it takes a village to raise a child, and hence we also provide resources and connections to other organizations for holistic support. Families are provided with additional information on relevant community resources.  Last year, over 2,000 children received clothing and shoes with the support of our local partners and community drives, and almost 500 children received a car seat with safety instructions in their native languages.
2. Sponsor a Passion: We realize how important play is in the physical and mental well-being of a child. Equity starts in childhood by providing access to programs that build social skills, fitness and a sense of belonging in the community. This program helps provide scholarships for children to pursue extracurricular activities. All equipment and uniforms are also provided.  Over 100 children participated in our programs last year, with an additional 33 children and their families participating in family outings.
3. Early Literacy Program: We promote the joy of reading in children by providing books that reflect cultural diversity and emphasize core values like kindness, perseverance and grit. We delivered over 2,900 books last year to children.
4. Healthy Families: For families experiencing food insecurity, we provide grocery cards to help them access culturally relevant food items of their choice. In 2024, we provided grocery cards to 350 households.

Recognition

We have been supported by the Seattle Foundation, King County, Renton Community Foundation, King County Parks with grants for our programming. We are approved by Microsoft, Boeing, Adobe, AXA, Google, GE, PayPal etc. for company matching. Not only that, but we are thrilled to have been named a top 100 Nonprofit by the PepsiCo Foundation Community Impact Awards!