11.04.2016
Seattle Center Monorail & DSA Host Treehouse Families
Foster kids and families move to the front of the line for annual “Ride Into the Holidays” event
WHAT: The Downtown Seattle Association and Seattle Monorail Services have come together to provide a unique holiday event for kids in foster care and their families. This year is the sixth annual event where Treehouse families are invited to gather on the Seattle Center Monorail platform for a holiday celebration (including treats, beverages, and entertainers), before boarding the Monorail Red Train for an exclusive Treehouse client-only ride to Westlake. Treehouse kids will be escorted from the Monorail to the VIP area of IKEA’s Holiday Carousel at Westlake Park for a front-row seat to the annual tree lighting ceremony. After the lighting, they’ll be invited to pick a horse on the carousel for the “first ride of the season.” 150 Treehouse kids and families are expected for the event. In addition, each family will receive prizes donated by community partners including the Pacific Science Center. Each family will receive a Pacific Science Center Youth Access Membership, to launch the new program that provides foster families a membership for free.
WHY: Understanding that the holidays can be an especially difficult time for kids in foster care, Seattle Monorail Services and the Downtown Seattle Association have joined forces to do something special for Treehouse kids. During the holiday season, kids in foster care are reminded of the family they have temporarily – or sometimes permanently – lost, and holiday activities are often cost-prohibitive for their caregivers. For many of the kids, this event will be their first experience riding the Monorail, riding a carousel, and possibly celebrating the holidays.
WHERE: The Seattle Center Monorail platform located at the Seattle Center, adjacent to the Space Needle and the EMP Museum.
WHEN: Friday, November 25 (day after Thanksgiving) 3:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Platform celebration will begin at 3:00 p.m.
The Red Train will depart for Westlake Center at 4:00 p.m.
The official tree lighting and Macy’s star lighting will occur after 5:00 p.m.
The Carousel “first ride” will take place shortly thereafter
About Treehouse Founded in 1988, Treehouse is Washington’s leading nonprofit organization addressing the essential education and enrichment needs of kids in foster care. Treehouse helps 7,000 kids in foster care each year through programs that help them succeed in school, fulfill key material needs, and provide important childhood experiences every child deserves. Treehouse has set an ambitious goal that foster youth in King County will graduate from high school at the same rate as their peers with a plan for their future by 2017. Learn more at treehouseforkids.org.
*Members of the media are invited to join the event on the Seattle Monorail Platform, and are free to record inside the Monorail Red Train
** A Treehouse spokesperson will be available for comment
*** For Televised Media: Due to confidentiality laws, faces of children in foster care cannot be filmed. We can accommodate alternative shots of participants, and arrange for on-site interviews with caregivers and youth participants who have been adopted out of care.
For more information contact:
Sarah Kurtzman
Associate Director, Marketing and Communications
206.267.5128
Subscribe to Our Blog
