Candice is the program manager of two Compass programs, Compass on Dexter (COD) and Cascade Women’s Program.
The Compass Blog
From Streets to Home — Compass is There Compass Housing Alliance works tirelessly to walk alongside people experiencing homelessness to help them find safe and stable housing, connect with resources, and overcome barriers to stability. Sometimes, we are able to provide a direct continuum of Compass services to a neighbor in need, from streets to … Continue reading Spring Into Action 2023
Compass Housing Alliance is honored to recognize Armando Mejia as the first recipient of our inaugural Outstanding Community Partner Award. This award serves as a recognition that we all achieve more when we work together.
Don’s Place is the first emergency housing program operated by Compass Housing Alliance. Working with King County’s Health Through Housing initiative, Compass has taken over the former Clarion Inn.
Connecting “heart” and “mission,” winery owner Stacy Bellew Thornton launched Coeur Cause® Wines with a passion to create world-class wines AND support vital charities with every bottle sold. Compass is proud to share that the winery’s inaugural Relume Red Blend is devoted solely to Compass Housing Alliance! 10% of every bottle sold is given as a direct donation to Compass Housing Alliance.
Local artist Tara Velan worked with us to revitalize and uplift the Compass Center with a mural. She created a beautiful mural at Nyer Urness House late last year. She jumped in when the opportunity came to work at our Compass Center location.
"When you are out there on the street you have to follow the rules, the code. It’s the only way to stay ‘safe.’ Now that I have been removed from the rules of the street, the laws really, with Compass and this housing, I've been able to break free.”
Eli, Jackie, Marc, Russell, and Rebecca are residents at Compass programs. We will be going into more detail about them as the "Our Story" campaign continues, but we thought it would be a good idea to introduce you to the folks you might have seen around town. Russ gives an update on his life Russ … Continue reading Meet Our People
We are pleased to announce that we have found our new Chief Operations Officer (COO) and it's Julie Howe, formerly our Director of Human Resources.
We believe that everyone deserves a home and this new program is another step in the right direction. We need an all-of-the-above approach to combat homelessness - with housing as the centralized focus.
Our Ronald Commons program provides affordable housing with on-site supports in the Shoreline community. Individuals and families with children live in 60 units, all of them have experienced homelessness or were at risk of losing their housing. It is a joyful, family-orientated community. Program Manager Corinne McKisson and her staff set the tone and are … Continue reading A Pacific Northwest mural at Ronald Commons
Help our neighbors survive the heat
Karen Wilson and Sam Townsend have both joined the Advancement Team in the last couple of months and they’ve already made an impact. Karen will be building relationships with corporations as the Corporate Relations Manager while Sam as the new Community Engagement Manager will be managing our in-kind program, volunteer program, and engaging community in … Continue reading Meet Karen and Sam
“You get such a reward when you help people get to where they want to go. Not everyone has a support system, and we can help them build a foundation.”
April Aiken is the Program Manager of Nyer Urness and the Compass on Dexter programs. Nyer Urness is a Permanent Supportive Housing site and Dexter is permanent affordable housing with support services on site.
Russ Wilson is a Veteran who lives at the Renton Veterans Center (RVC). He found permanent housing at Compass with the help of the Salvation Army. He shared his story with us in an interview about his hopes for the future and the future of Compass Housing Alliance
Today, May 3, is our second annual Spring into Action day of giving! Last year we dedicated this day to our wonderful front-line staff and the work they do to help make a real difference. This year, we are highlighting our guests and residents by sharing a special story about Jerry.
Mary Steele introduces us to an Ambassador Councilmember, La'Quinia Chenault. La'Quinia is the third on the right in the top row. I’ve met a few professional football players during my time in Seattle. None of them have been as strong, as resilient, or as driven as former Seattle Majestics star, La’Quinia Chenault. When I met … Continue reading “I went from living in my car to owning a house”
Bob Baker wrote about Compass Housing Alliance in the newsletter for West Seattle Lutheran after watching our special event with Gregg Colburn - Homelessness is a Housing Problem. We are reprinting it here with his permission
Anne Bailey, Program Manager at Broadview - one of our affordable housing programs, set up this amazing community event where residents got to meet with veterinarians from Seattle Humane Society and the University of Washington! Here's what Anne had to say. "Saturday, February 19, 2022, Compass Broadview hosted its first Mobile Veterinary Clinic in partnership … Continue reading Cats, dogs, veterinarians, and community at Broadview
There has been a growing movement in Nyer to add art or enhancements to warm up the community spaces and to create something uplifting and vibrant. This piece is visible from the street due to the floor-to-ceiling windows. We hope it will bring some cheer as people walk by and help build even more community at the same time.
“To me, Black History Month is just about pride,” said Shervin McCammon Program Manager of Pioneer Square Men’s Program and Day Services. “This is a month that we acknowledge the sacrifices and celebrate our aspirations and accomplishments. We’ve come so far.”
“Having someone come out here and help us care for our pets is just so wonderful. Lots of people don’t think about it, but our pets are so important to us.”
As this year draws to a close, we wanted to thank you for your steadfast support throughout this turbulent, start/stop, "just keep swimming" type of year.
Jon Perrino (Microsoft) the current Compass Housing Alliance Board Chair and former Board member Pastor Kevin Bates (Magnolia Lutheran Church) both share why they support Compass Housing Alliance.
Everyone deserves to have someone who sees their potential and wants the best for them.
We serve Veterans throughout all of our programs, but Evan Mack of Renton Veterans Center, and Shree Vigil of Shoreline Veterans Center, run programs exclusively for those who have served and their families. They share why they do the work they do.
As the holiday season continues, we are desperate for certain items for our guests and residents. We are behind our goal and we need your help over the next few days because we are starting to wrap gifts this weekend, December 11.
It’s that time of year when the weather starts getting colder, the holiday lights go up, and thieves start stealing packages, or in our case, breaking into our Compass on Dexter admin building.
Korey was one of the first guests to move into our Otto's Place enhanced shelter in Pioneer Square. He faced numerous challenges finding permanent housing and bounced around from shelter to shelter - until he found Compass.
“We needed this,” said Anne, program manager at Compass Broadview. “This has been such a challenging summer and this meal and supply drive is really good for this community.” More than 30 people showed up for the outdoor community potluck at Compass Broadview. Anne, her case managers, and a team of volunteers set up tables in … Continue reading Compass Broadview Back-To-School
A letter from our Community Engagement Manager, Jennifer Marquette As one of the few providers who kept their hygiene centers open since the beginning of the pandemic, Compass has worked hard to make sure that all our guests and clients have had all that they need while using our services. As we move into fall, … Continue reading We Need Your Help Restocking Our Shelves
“It was just like a big weight off my shoulders, when I heard about the unit here at Compass.”
At Compass Housing Alliance, we believe that everyone deserves a home, and we are invested in supporting solutions and strategies to addressing homelessness that are funded appropriately, inclusive in their design, and complement the current effort being made to unite the region in the fight to address homelessness. Compass is a member of the Seattle … Continue reading Concerns about “Compassion Seattle”
Veterans who are experiencing homelessness or housing instability need a distinct set of services from the general population. They also need people around them who are specifically skilled and trained to give them the care they need. That is exactly what they get at Compass Veterans Center: Shoreline known as SVC.
This month was Pride month, a month to celebrate and recognize the challenges and triumphs of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Our Centennial Celebration was an inspiring night of hope and you can catch it in its entirety on demand!
In honor of our Centennial Celebration, we’re introducing a new day of action to share about the amazing work of our team members and highlight ways that you can “Spring into Action” with us.
One of main reasons we can provide the services we do in such an efficient way is because we make the extra effort to ensure our staff and management positions are filled by the right people. Anne Jannetti, Carol Mizoguchi, and Ken Short are the right people.
“I wish that I lived in a place like Compass on Dexter, or Ronald Commons, or at Broadview as a kid,” said Tawnie Fransen Director of Housing Operations. “If I had, I wouldn’t have been embarrassed and I would have been able to do the normal kid things like have friends over afterschool. What we do at Compass for children and families is so important, we help them overcome barriers and break the cycle of poverty.”
While the 1960s were filled with civil unrest, countless murders and assassinations of civil rights activists, and changes on a global scale, Compass remained a constant in Pioneer Square. Additional recreational and job training activities were added to the daily activities to help give men things to keep busy. This list is of course a … Continue reading Compass in the 1960s
Our hearts are breaking as once again hatred and misogyny rear their ugly heads. Our thoughts go out to our Asian American brothers and sisters in this latest example of our country’s foundational problems of casual violence and racism.
The 1950s brought exciting new changes to the Compass Center building and helped us dramatically expand our services.
In 1941 the Compass Mission (that's one of our older names) purchased the building at 77-79 South Washington Street for $15,000.
Anthony Williams is a Program Coordinator who works at two of our affordable housing buildings, Dekko Place and the Karlstrom. He works with individuals and families in downtown Seattle and leads with his heart.
Our founder Otto Karlstrom believed strongly in the healing power of connecting with family and loved ones. Because of this, Compass has always been a place that people could send and receive mail. “Send Home” cards were just one of the many things the Compass Mission offered in its early days. This is a tradition … Continue reading The Healing Power of Connecting with Family
Over 100 years ago, Compass Housing Alliance was founded by Pastor Otto Karlstrom and his wife Alva. As we tell the stories and histories of Compass, we believe it’s important to start with the story of the Karlstrom family and their vision.
Ezekiel McShan has been with Compass as a Housing Navigator for the past 3.5 years. He believes in the impact that Compass has and the work that we do because “our numbers do not lie."
We are celebrating our 100 year anniversary with 100 Days of Celebration culminating with our virtual 100th Birthday Bash event on May 16th!
Black Coffee Northwest has been teaming up with our Ronald Commons affordable housing program over the past few months.
Lutheran Community Services Northwest (LCS Northwest) and Compass Housing Alliance (Compass) have signed a definitive agreement for Compass to become an affiliate of LCS Northwest. The agreement was approved by the Board of Directors for both organizations and is effective Jan. 1. 2021.
Before I got to Compass, I was at a different shelter in the city. I never felt respected there, it was like I was just taking up space, stuck. I was depressed and hopeless and just waking up and falling asleep. It wasn’t until a former guest of Compass at First Presbyterian (CFP) talked to me about what Compass had done for them that things started to change.
Otto’s Place was named in honor of Pastor Otto Karlstrom who founded Compass in Pioneer Square 100 years ago. He had a vision to care for those in need, and we are still carrying that vision forward today.
Compass Housing Alliance Board President Paul Hogle shares why he continues to support the work.
Today is Giving Tuesday, an opportunity for people around the world to use their individual power of generosity to remain connected and support their communities. It’s a day that encourages people to do good. For Compass employees, every day is a day to give. Sometimes, though, an individual staff member goes far beyond what we expect.
Compass Housing Alliance (Compass) is enhancing the Compass Center in Pioneer Square by bringing an emergency housing program over from a location we have at First Presbyterian Church downtown, restructuring three floors of the building, and putting in other structural changes to enhance safety.
We are proud to present our 2019 Impact Report. In this report, we reflect on the accomplishments that you have helped make possible.
Lutheran Community Services Northwest and Compass Housing Alliance Pursue Affiliation to Address the Region’s Growing Affordable Housing Needs
Join the Circle of Compassion with your monthly gift.
Cascade is a community. The program is located in the heart of South Lake Union, uses a shared community kitchen, and built around a suite-style of apartments.
A resident of our Ronald Commons program, James is currently taking his prerequisites to become a registered nurse after overcoming some significant life challenges. Thanks to Shoreline Covenant Church for awarding James with a scholarship to help him achieve his goals.
At Compass Housing Alliance, our programs are designed to meet people where they are in a trauma-informed way. The agency’s Program Directors are passionate about this service model.
Jan & Peter’s Place is an enhanced shelter in Rainier Valley. It is close to stores, shopping, mass transit, and other services, but it is also quiet, out of the way, and calm.
Compass Housing Alliance will be making a series of positive changes to our 24/7 enhanced emergency shelter programs over the next several months.
Nikkole is the Program Manager at Compass at First Presbyterian (CFP) shelter and had called a team meeting. The team wanted a potluck.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s new proposed rule allowing discrimination against trans people seeking shelter services is misguided and morally reprehensible.
During the Flu Pandemic of 1918, Seattle had to mask up. You may know that Compass Housing Alliance began in 1920 on the heels of the Spanish Flu pandemic which claimed the lives of over 1,500 people in Seattle. The effects of a pandemic on a community are all too familiar nowadays. As Seattle suffered … Continue reading Compass Centennial: 100 years of service
A message from our Interim Executive Director, Mary Steele.
The Office of the State Treasurer (OST) and the Compass Housing Alliance are partnering to provide a free ID Theft & Prevention Workshop at the Shoreline Veterans Center on Wednesday, May 31.
Mary Steele, Executive Director When I first began climbing mountains, women were seldom invited on Himalayan expeditions. No American woman had yet climbed Everest. Annapurna: A Woman’s Place, is the story of the first American and first women's expedition to climb Annapurna I, the tenth tallest peak on earth. The book first came out in … Continue reading Women’s History Month – Reflections and More
Mary Steele, Executive Director - Reflections I’m going to date myself by telling you that Black History Month was first recognized the year I graduated from high school. I loved studying history, yet nothing about the history I studied in school gave me any real understanding of the experience of Black Americans. In fact, until … Continue reading Black History Month – Reflections and More
Be uplifted by stories of supporters like you who share their passion for Compass’s mission! And click here to get back to the main Legacy Giving page. Barbara and David Swartling Steve & Cynthia Holmberg John H Sullivan Barbara and David Swartling Barbara and David Swartling have an estate plan that includes Compass Housing Alliance. … Continue reading Legacy Givers share their passion for Compass’s Mission