WENATCHEE — A growing turnout gathered at the Wenatchee Convention Center on Oct. 22 for Thriving Together NCW’s Thriving Together Toward Tomorrow Summit, an opportunity for regional organizations to focus on meeting the essential needs of Washingtonians in their respective areas through networking and collaboration. 

“I think we had just over 180 people there,” said Thriving Together NCW Senior Director of Programs Wendy Brzezny. “I think we only had 150 last year, and the opportunity for networking was the biggest feedback that we received from the participants — that they all appreciated being able to talk to each other versus being talked at.”  

Brzezny said the format for the summit allowed attendees to get to know one another and identify common challenges and examine solutions for them. The conference focused on the vital conditions people need to thrive, including food, shelter, health care, safety, learning opportunities, meaningful work, a sustaining income and opportunities to enjoy nature. It was also an opportunity to announce grant recipient selections and celebrate the organization’s first annual awards.  

All told, Thriving Together NCW awarded about $495,000 to 80 organizations from throughout North Central Washington. Among the grant recipients were the Quincy Partnership for Youth, Ephrata Forward, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, among others. The top awardees received grants of up to $40,000.  

The organization also issued two newly established awards to nonprofit leaders in North Central Washington. Maria Hines, founder and director of Blue Sky Minds, a nonprofit focused on eliminating hunger by ensuring everyone has access to locally grown, culturally relevant and nutritious food. The organization supports farmers and farmworkers in Okanogan County and on the Colville Reservation. Hines received the Weaving Impact Award, earned by bringing people together, analyzing data and implementing solutions to problems in the communities Blue Sky serves.  

NCW Tech Alliance CEO Sue Kane received the Heart of Belonging Award, for fostering belonging and providing the tools, knowledge and opportunities people need. NCW Tech Alliance is a nonprofit that focuses on ensuring everyone has access to the technology they need and the training to utilize it.  

The conference also included breakout sessions that focused on leveraging the media for nonprofits, having a meaningful impact, housing and long-term solutions, how housing contributes to community wellbeing, distributed leadership, advocating for positive change, growing a regional food system and stewarding the natural world.  

Brzezny said a large part of the event was simply trying to get people to communicate and have meaningful dialogue.  

“We’re trying to create community where people can have consistent good days, because the conditions that we live in are so strengthened that we’re not having to worry about our housing and our transportation and all of those vital conditions that are necessary for us to have good days or to thrive,” Brzezny said.  

It’s about getting out of the echo chambers on social media and in our social groups, she said, and communicating with others to bring out ideas to strengthen communities and each other.  

Brzezny encourages those interested in helping nonprofits to visit Thriving Together NCW’s website to see what the group is about and sign up for their newsletter. By doing so, she said people can find ways to contribute to the health of local communities.  

It’s about working to solve problems on a broad scale, she said. That’s done by everyone pooling mental, physical, financial and emotional resources to solve common problems. 

“We come together from a regional perspective,” Brzezny said.  

    A summit participant laughs during a tabletop exercise at the Thriving Together Toward Tomorrow summit. Many of the attendees said they felt the ability to network with others at the conference was highly valuable and would allow them to collaborate more effectively.
  

    Thriving Together NCW Director of Network Development Veronica Farias poses with an awardee for one of several grants issued by the organization during their summit. Among the awardees were Indigenous groups, arts organizations, youth organizations and others focused on helping build community.
  

    SUE KANE
  

    MARIA HINES