Hourglass: United Way of King County

Hosted by Joe Burris, Director of Storytelling and Public Relations, United Way of King County

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Episodes

138

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

Got time? We’ve got conversations, stories, news and announcements. Hear how we spend our time making a difference in communities.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 12, 2026Episode 8536 min

#140: A Conversation with the WA Secretary of State!

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode is the first in a series about civic engagement leading up to this year’s midterm elections. Hourglass sat down with Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs and Amanda Sandoval, United Way director of Systems change and public policy, for a conversation on topics including what the Secretary of State’s office anticipates amid federal attempts to change the electoral process and how the work of United Way and the Office of Secretary of State intersect? We will also spotlight our new giving program United Circle, and an upcoming Happy Hour and Hellos event.

October 5, 2026Episode 8421 min

#139: Partnering to Provide Opportunities for Youth

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about a workforce development partnership for youth and young adults in South Seattle. United Way-supported grantees Reclaiming our Greatness and Glover EmpowerMentoring are teaming up to launch the GEM to Greatness Collaborative. The partnership will equip youth and young adults with the knowledge, skills, relationships, and support needed to build healthy and financially secure lives. We’ll chat with Reclaiming Our Greatness founder and director Marshaun Barber and Glover EmpowerMentoring founder and director Kendrick Glover about their partnership and each organization’s current work current work to support and empower communities in South Seattle. And we will spotlight our new giving program United Circle and our upcoming Conversations for Change virtual event, From Crisis to Community.

September 28, 2026Episode 8325 min

#138: The ULTIMATE in Competition, Community Building and Fun

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about the sport of ultimate frisbee with staff from All Girl Everything Ultimate Program (AGE-UP), a Seattle-based, United Way-supported organization that uses the sport to foster community, build leadership, and teach social justice. Hourglass sat down with AGE UP’s Co-Executive Director Ash Escobar and program manager Anthony “Zig” Ziegler to discuss the local origins, growth, and impact of ultimate frisbee. We will also chat with United Way director of Education Strategies, Joy Sebe, about AGE Up’s work as part of United Way’s Racial Equity Coalition, which delivers youth programming that promotes positive cultural identity and helps youth succeed in school. And we will spotlight our new giving program, United Circle, and our upcoming Conversations for Change virtual event, From Crisis to Community.

September 21, 2026Episode 8226 min

#137: Why United Way? Meet Brendlyon Linton!

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about our Engagement Coordinators and highlights Brendlyon Linton, who is stepping down from the role after 26 years in the role. United Way’s Engagement Coordinators help us strengthen relationships with our workplace partners, support campaigns and events, and connect more people to United Way’s work throughout King County. In this episode, we will chat with Brendlyon about topics including how she and other Engagement Coordinators inspire and challenge communities to do more to care for their neighbors in need. We will also chat with Magdalena Ruiz, United Way Engagement Manager, about Brendlyon’s impact as an Engagement Coordinator and the role’s importance at United Way. We will also discuss an upcoming in-person Happy Hour and Hellos event and our Conversations for Change virtual event, From Crisis to Community.

September 14, 2026Episode 8127 min

#136: From Our CEO: the State of Education

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode is our monthly commentary and perspective from United Way president and CEO Blair Taylor. This month, Blair will discuss his take on the state of American education from the perspectives of a parent, an adjunct professor, and the leader of a nonprofit organization. And he’ll also discuss how United Way of King County is working to make quality education affordable and accessible to young people in our county. We will also discuss an upcoming Happy Hour and Hellos event, and an event sponsored by United Way grantee FEEST. Thanks for tuning in.

September 7, 2026Episode 8024 min

#135 Sharing Best Practices

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. United Way of King County joined more than 350 attendees from other United Way agencies at the West Regional Conference in Portland, OR. Members of United Way of King County staff led discussions on many facets of our work, including our public-private partnerships that generate resources and support for community-based organizations running early learning programs. For this week’s episode, we sat down with our education strategies director, Joy Sebe, and community impact manager, Holly Lackey, for a conversation on topics including the importance of sharing best practices with like-minded organizations and ways we’ve built trust across sectors through our public/private partnerships. We will also discuss our Community Partnership Kit Offerings and an upcoming volunteer opportunity at United Way supported by grantee El Centro de la Raza.

August 31, 2026Episode 7920 min

#134: History and Future of the Seattle Indian Services Commission

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about the past and future of the Seattle Indian Services Commission. The United Way supported commission was launched in 1972 to provide housing and planning services and programs to address the needs of Indigenous residents in King County. For this episode, we’ll chat with Commission chair Iris Friday and its Development Manager Demarus Tevuk about the commission’s history and its plans for a Native Village and Gateway project that will provide affordable housing holistic family services, and economic opportunities for Indigenous people all while celebrating Indigenous Native cultures. We will also discuss our Community Partnership Kit Offerings and an upcoming volunteer opportunity at United Way supported grantee El Centro de la Raza.

August 24, 2026Episode 7811 min

#133: A Monthly Message From our President & CEO

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode is the first in a monthly series that will feature commentary and perspective from United Way president and CEO Blair Taylor. In July, Blair became United Way’s third president and CEO since 2000, and we’re excited to have Blair speak directly to our listeners on topics including his vision for our organization and the unique impact we can make to address concerns in our communities. We will also spotlight our Community Partnership Kit Offerings and an upcoming Seattle Storm game that will benefit United Way grantee Filipino Community of Seattle.

August 17, 2026Episode 7720 min

#132: The Power of Partnership with Puget Sound Energy!

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about our partnership with Puget Sound Energy, a Bellevue-based company that for more than 150 years has been synonymous with providing power to residents and businesses. We sat down with Carol Wallace, Puget Sound Energy’s director of customer operations, and Carrie Bates, United Way director of institutional philanthropy, for a discussion on topics including our partnership that helps customers save on their energy bills and Puget Sound Energy’s energy assistance programs that folks can take advantage of right now. We will also spotlight our Free Summer Meals program and our Community Partnership Kit Offerings.

August 10, 2026Episode 7642 min

#131: The Power of Storytelling

Send us Fan Mail Good news happens. This week's episode features a conversation about storytelling. We chatted with Loren Niemi, lifelong storyteller and founder of the Minneapolis-based American School of Storytelling, about topics including his four storytelling techniques for social change and whether those techniques have been used to address an issue our county has been grappling with for years—homelessness and housing. We also chatted with United Way chief impact officer Regina Malveaux, our Senior Director of Philanthropic Engagement, Gary Rubin, and marketing strategist Kayla Dunn about how our organization uses storytelling to convey the impact of our work beyond facts and figures. We will also spotlight our Free Summer Meals program and our Community Partnership Kit Offerings.