Seattle Parks and Recreation will offer Summer of Safety (SOS), a free program that provides structured activities and a safe space for young people not connected to other supervised programs over the summer. The program is geared towards serving diverse groups of tweens and teens from low-income families.
“Seattle Parks and Recreation offers a wide variety of programs and activities that play an important role in helping to keep our communities engaged, active, and safe”, said Jesús Aguirre, Superintendent. “Summer of Safety is a crucial program during a critical time when youth are out of school and looking for activities to participate in. Our Summer of Safety program provides structured activities, a safe space for youth to interact, and meals at no cost to support diverse groups of students over the summer months. This is especially important for those who might not otherwise have access to safe, supportive and supervised environments outside of school.”
Thanks to a donation by Amazon of $250,000 to the Alliance for Education, we have been able to expand the program this year to help serve an additional 100 youth per day throughout the summer, as well as increase staffing and incorporate youth employment and a program for older teens.
SOS will operate at five community center locations on various days throughout summer (see schedule below). Most sites will provide a free lunch through the City’s Summer Food Service Program. Regular SOS activities will include field trips, arts and craft, as well as sports and athletics. The program will operate rain or shine and no sign up is required; youth can drop in on any day and at any time during the program’s regular hours.
In addition to the schedule below, we will also be offering an SOS program for older teens Tuesday-Saturday from 3 to 7 p.m. primarily at Yesler Community Center and Garfield Teen Life Center. More information coming soon; please visit https://parkways.seattle.gov/ for updates.
SOS provides low-income Seattle youth with a “summer safety net”, a safe and supportive place to go during summer break. Participants get the chance to visit new parks, learn new skills in art and fitness, and increase their social and cultural awareness by interacting with a diverse group of participants and staff.
For more information or questions, please contact Kiesha Cannon at 206-684-4181
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