Collage of five photos showing a diverse group of community members posing together, smiling, and making snow cones at a local event.

Our Partners

The five primary organizations that make up the Burien Collaborative are Alimentando al Pueblo, BLKBRY, Lake Burien Presbyterian Church, Southwest Youth and Family Services, and The YES! Foundation of White Center. These organizations steer the work of the Collaborative.

Find more information about these five organizations, as well as their representative leadership within the Burien Collaborative below.

Alimentando al Pueblo (AAP) is a Burien-based nonprofit founded in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. AAP is an organization that focuses on the work of building Community and Culture. Our programs are rooted in a power-sharing model that develops leadership within our own Community. Together, we source and distribute culturally relevant foods, organize celebrations that promote social connections and healing, and center Latine art and traditions in every aspect of our work to cultivate joy, pride, and cultural preservation.

Roxana Pardo Garcia
Co-founder and Executive Director of AAP

Roxana Pardo Garcia aka La Roxay is a self-identifying Hood Intellectual Xingona and cultural worker who was born and raised on occupied Coast Salish Territory (Burien). She is a graduate of Highline High School, the University of Washington, and forever a student of these streets, life, and her Ancestors. In addition to receiving numerous awards and recognitions, her work and passion have been featured on Komo 4, Kiro 7, South Side Emerald, Univision Seattle, The Seattle Times, amongst many other publications and media outlets.

Why are you a part of the Burien Collaborative?
“The work of the Burien Collaborative is not only important for the present and future of the communities that AAP serves, but it’s also important for the larger ecosystem that we belong to. When we are well, everyone is well, and there is mutual benefit.”

BLKBRY is a culturally responsive, evidence based practice that intends to interrupt harm to Black people and their families by providing full spectrum, wraparound support, during the reproductive, prenatal, postpartum and lactation periods. We do this by building power and autonomy through relationships of trust, restoring a sense of community, and by providing holistic birthing knowledge.

Jazmin Williams
Founder and Executive Director of BLKBRY

Jazmin is the Founding Director of BLKBRY, and momma of two brilliant, outgoing, creative, and beautifully melanated kids. She is a full spectrum doula, as well as a lactation and feeding specialist. Jazmin believes that the difference in care received, and outcomes observed, improve when providers represent and reflect the clients' community, background, and cultural practices. Jazmin wants all Black folks to feel seen, heard, believed, and treated with the care and respect that they deserve.

Lake Burien Presbyterian Church is guided by the phrase, “The Gospel Fully Alive.” This reflects our belief that all people and all communities are intended to thrive in every aspect of life. This image of a thriving community guides the work we do each day and how we hope to show up in the world. We see ourselves as a physical and relational hub for our surrounding community. In addition to our own programming, we host 6 other non-profits and their connected programs on our campus: The YES! Foundation of White Center, Alimentando Al Pueblo, Choose 180, Lifted! Youth Gospel Choir, Hospitality House, Burien Collaborative.

Lina Thompson
Senior Pastor at LBPC

Lina Thompson has been a part of the Burien Community for the last thirteen years as part of the staff at Lake Burien Presbyterian Church. She believes that the faith community, when organized well, and grounded in the values of peace and justice, can help foster and contribute to a vision of well-being for all people—including those who are vulnerable and marginalized. Lina grew up in White Center and has been deeply formed by mentors, leaders, educators and community members who have invested in her. She loves spending time with her friends as well as days at the movie theater.

Why are you a part of the Burien Collaborative?
“I chose to be part of the Burien Collaborative because we share a vision to work more interdependently with others to share resources, strengths, and assets. We value mutuality, intentionally operate from a perspective of abundance, and center the joy and gifts of our community.”

Southwest Youth & Family Services has provided wrap-around community programming for the southwest King County region since 1979. We partner with youth and families to transform their futures with mental health support, education, and community health programs. Our work serves a diverse group of age ranges, from youth to elders, and we provide culturally relevant programming in a variety of different languages.

Norma Ortiz
Site Manager for New Futures Program

Norma grew up believing in the phrase, “Education is Power.” Working at Southwest Youth and Family Services and with the New Futures program has given her the opportunity to share this belief with others. She has had the privilege of working in her community for eighteen years. This is the community that she calls “home”—the place where she spends her days, the place where she feels known, the place where she sees the faces she loves.

Why are you a part of the Burien Collaborative?
“Organizations can accomplish much more when they support one another. Creating this network of support that shares a vision for the community is so important. A strong network can bring more opportunities and resources to the community we serve. The Burien Collaborative is giving me the opportunity to stay connected with others, to develop my own professional skills, and to build new relationships.”

Athena Moag
Site Manager for the New Futures Program, Arbor Heights

Athena believes that relationships are a key aspect to supporting youth and families in achieving their full potential. She’s had the honor of working alongside the New Futures families in White Center and Burien for the last eight years. Athena loves taking the kids on field trips, connecting families to resources, and creating chaotically fun learning opportunities. Outside of work, she can be found hanging out with her dog, Louie, yelling at soccer games on the TV, or searching for the best hot pot in Seattle.

Why are you part of the Burien Collaborative?
“The Burien community is really special to me—it’s where I’ve spent my entire professional career. Joining the Burien Collaborative has given me access to an even deeper support system for myself, and more resources to support our families. It is so easy to fall into a scarcity mindset in this line of work, and the Burien Collaborative is just one way that we can combat that point of view and work together to make sure our community thrives.”

The YES! Foundation of White Center serves children, youth and young adults through relationship based programs that foster self and social awareness, promote education, and repurpose power in a community that has been historically under-resourced.

Pat Thompson
Co-founder and Executive Director

Pat Thompson was born and raised in White Center. She has 25+ years of experience in urban youth ministry and in 2000, co-founded the YES! Foundation of White Center. Her love for and commitment to children and youth have led her into the hard work of community development and social justice. She is passionate about people and God, she loves a good story, she has more questions than answers, and one of her core values is laughter.

Why are you a part of the Burien Collaborative?
“The YES! Foundation has always seen itself as an organization that works with all kids in the Highline School District, not just White Center. Our desire to partner and work alongside other service providers is what drew us to the Burien Collaborative. The Burien Collaborative provides a space for us to build strong partnerships with other organizations, as well as a space to creatively think about how we leverage resources.”

Amy Mejia
Office Administrator for the YES! Foundation of White Center

Amy Mejia was born in Burien, Washington. Her dad was a firefighter in the Burien fire department for more than 20 years, so Amy was raised with a strong sense of community and grew up with a sense of pride in her community! Amy has been with the YES! Foundation since the very beginning. First as a volunteer leader, she invested in the lives of many White Center and Burien youth, then as a part of YES's founding board of directors and was the auction chair for many years! Amy worked in the Commercial Marine Insurance Industry for 20+ years but in 2022, joined the YES! Team as a staff member. In her spare time, Amy loves traveling, playing board games, hanging out with friends and most of all, raising her young daughter.