The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation has awarded a $200,000 grant to the White Center Community Development Association for a green jobs initiative that will take advantage of federal stimulus funding to train youth in the White Center and South Seattle in home weatherization as a foundation for additional education, training, and employment security.

The White Center Community Development Association was created in 2002 to engage White Center residents in planning and advocating for economic development, housing and neighborhood revitalization in their home community in southwest King County.

As part of its latest round of grants awarded in 2009, The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation announced $4.6 million in grants to nonprofit organizations. The Foundation awarded grants to 66 diverse non-profit organizations in the Pacific Northwest region, including 38 nonprofits in Washington, 18 in Oregon, four in Alaska, four in Idaho, and two in Montana.

This White Center Community Development grant was awarded under the Paul G. Allen "Building Family Assets" initiative, to specifically help fund staff to train young people in underfunded areas for jobs and to teach them how to access services.

“During one of the most dramatic economic downturns in history, we remain committed to helping our nonprofit partners and the communities they support respond and adapt to these growing challenges,” said Susan M. Coliton, vice president of The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. “Our latest grants will help people build the long-term social and economic assets they need for economic stability in these uncertain times.”

"We're in our 20th year of grant making, and most of our grants are made in this 5 state region, about 60- percent to the State of Washington, Paul Allan's home," Coliton told the West Seattle Herald.

"We have actively supported other organizations in the West Seattle area including ArtsWest, which received five grants over the last six years," she added. She said that others have included the Delridge Neighborhood Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, and the Greenbridge Early Learning Center's library building, in 2008.

"The three program areas in this grant cycle include art and culture, education, and helping to move people out of poverty," Bill Vesneski, foundation evaluation planning and research director, told the Herald.

"I think this project (at White Center Community Development Association) was compelling," he added. "We were impressed by their interest in green jobs and the fact that they are based in the community. Also, they patched into federal stimulus money which we see as important because we want them sustainable beyond our grant."

The stimulus money came through the United States Department of Labor's "Pathways out of Poverty" program.

"We're excited to be part of the Paul G. Allen grant," said Michael Woo, Got Green project director, who said the slogan is easy to remember like "Got Milk."

"Thanks to the Paul G. Allen grant we’ll now be able to deliver to members of our communities," he added. "The beauty of what we're doing is we're creating green jobs for our low-income community members. These young adults will train to install water saving devises, provide light plumbing, insulation, weather stripping of doors, wrapping hot water heaters, calking, and will instruct residents on using thermostats property.

Because these residents live in under-served, limited English-speaking communities, they might not have the authority to have major repairs done to their homes but will still benefit by simply saving on their utility bills when our workers provide minor retrofits. Then the property owners may take a look at doing more serious improvements. It's a win-win.

"We recruit mostly young adults," Woo said. "They represent the future. In this emerging green economy if young people are at the front end of it they're going to enjoy uipwardly mobile careers in the future."