Home Organ Lady Story Meet the Board FAQs Teachers / Customers / Media Connections Contact Us / Rates
Classes Offered Donate News Our Audiences Nonprofit Information Kids Corner Teen Tools
News- Diary of a Nonprofit
Recent News
JANUARY 29, 2012: Grants for 2012 have been received from the Nysether Family Foundation, Everett Clinic Employee Giving Fund, and the Tulalip Tribe Charitable Fund to provide services to 16 low income, high risk schools, in Snohomish County. Contact Colleen to schedule as the free presentation days will go quickly! The "organ lady" will be available on some Mondays and Fridays this quarter and will have two days per week available in Spring quarter. Colleen will graduate from the University of Washington Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program on June 8, 2012.
JANUARY 10, 2012: Nurse Week Magazine features a story about Choice & Consequence.
SEPTEMBER 21, 2011: CC provided "The Real Inside Story"™ (TRIS-grades 4-12) and "Body Buddy"™ (grades K-3) programs to over 19,000 youth and their families at an average cost of $3.00 per participant. Funding for low income schools was received from the Tulalip Tribe, Everett Clinic Employee Giving Fund, and the Nysether Family Foundation for the last school year. Colleen Williams, MS, RN, the "organ lady" will limit availability to Thursday and Friday for speaking in schools this quarter due to her University of Washington schedule so don't delay getting on the schedule! Grant proposals for low income schools for 2011/12 are pending so check back here frequently for updates.
February 14, 2011: CC launched the new K-3 Body Buddy™ program designed for grades K-3. The program was developed by Colleen Williams with the assistance of Nikki Klinger, elementary school teacher at Mountain View Elementary School in Mount Vernon, WA. It was created to better address the problems associated with the developmental levels of this age group. Click here to view the KING 5 Jean Enersen Children's Health Link segment about the launch.
JANUARY 3, 2011: CC has been awarded funding for 16 low income schools in Snohomish County. Schools must have a free or reduced price lunch rate of greater than 50% to qualify. These funding slots will go quickly and are first-come, first-served, so don't delay. Click here to reserve your spot or call 360-422-5704 to speak with Colleen.
AUGUST 6, 2010: Colleen Williams has been admitted to the University of Washington School of Nursing to pursue her Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner degree and certification. She will work for Choice & Consequence while attending school.
JUNE 1, 2010: Choice & Consequence board of directors temporarily laid off all employees while funding is secured. Colleen will be back for the start of the school year and will volunteer time to write for grants. Kathy will be working for the hospital again due to the funding cuts. Due to the economy and lower expenses the TRIS price will be $400 for a half day (1=2), and $700 for a full day (3-5) for the 2010/11 school year.
JANUARY 12, 2010: Choice & Consequence has received a grant of $12,000 from the Providence General Children’s Association to deliver TRIS to schools mainly in Sultan, Gold Bar & Monroe School Districts. Teachers can schedule now!
OCTOBER 8, 2009: Choice & Consequence has received $5,000 from the Everett Clinic Foundation Employee Giving Fund. This donation will enable over 1,300 Snohomish County youth to experience TRIS this year.
OCTOBER 7, 2009: Choice & Consequence has received Better Business Bureau accreditation for the Charity Seal Program. This means that CC meets the bureau’s twenty standards for charity accountability. You can click on their logo to go directly to the BBB report on Choice & Consequence.
APRIL 20,2009: The Coastal Community Bank at the Greater Everett Community Foundation has awarded a grant of $1200 for the Darrington High School.
APRIL 11, 2009: The Providence General Foundation has made a grant of $10,000 for Snohomish County Schools for the 2009/2010 school year. The Tulalip Tribe also made a grant of $10,000 for Snohomish County schools. The Tulalip Tobacco Prevention Program has entered in to a partnership arrangement with Choice & Consequence to help reduce the smoking rate among Native Americans in the dedicated amount of $10,000. CC has lost major funding for the 2009/2010 school year and is pursuing corporate sponsorships and personal donations to help make up the difference. Click here to make a personal
donation using your credit or debit card and help us continue to educate kids with TRIS.
DECEMBER 4, 2008: Kathy Ketchum and Colleen Williams were both nominated for the March of Dimes Nurse of the Year Award. Neither nurse won but we are proud that they were nominated just the same!
SEPTEMBER 6, 2008: The Seattle Foundation has made a grant to the Choice & Consequence™ organization in the amount of $2500 through a special request from Lynn Ryder Gross for Kamiak High School. The Seattle Foundation Youth Grant Making Board also provided funds of $5000 for four Title 1 schools in King County. Our nurses spoke to over 41,000 students during the last school year. We could not do our jobs without the community support we get!
APRIL 2, 2008: Choice & Consequence™ has received grant funding for the 2008/09 school year for Snohomish County teachers. The Everett Clinic Foundation Employee Giving Fund gave $18,000, the Providence General Foundation $15,000, and the Tulalip Tribe $5,000. We could not do our jobs without them and are thankful for their unwavering faith and the trust they place in the organization. These funds will allow our presenters to speak at 32 Snohomish County schools at no charge. The 32 schools are booked on a first-come, first-served basis and it is expected that these grant slots will go quickly. After the funding runs out, the cost for schools in 2008/09 will be $1200. The organization has held
the cost at $900 for the last two years and it was a difficult decision. Our goal is to provide services at no charge to schools and we are actively pursuing leads for other grant funding for other counties.
FEBRUARY 20, 2008: The Choice & Consequence™ Board of Directors voted to close the office located in downtown Arlington today. The office, where no services were provided to youth, became just an expensive storage room. It was decided to locate a home office in each of the two current presenters and future employees as well. "It is so much more convenient to have everything I need all in the same place", stated Kathy Ketchum, RN. The occupancy expenses can now be put toward our mission of educating youth.
MARCH 25, 2007: Choice & Consequence has received grant funding for Snohomish County Schools for the 2007/08 school year. The Everett Clinic has given $18,000 from their employee giving fund. The Tulalip Tribe has provided $10,000 and the Providence General Foundation has given $8,000. This will allow us to reduce the cost from $900 to $450 for about 80 schools in Snohomish County. These 80 reduced price slots will go quickly so don't delay in getting your students set up to see
"The Real Inside Story™" soon.
AUGUST 31, 2006: The findings of the Gilmore Research Group Evaluation of TRIS were inconclusive. The study was designed to have 100 students in the control group and 100 students in the experimental group with both groups comprised of both sixth and seventh grade students. Unfortunately, due to a scheduling issue that precluded sixth grade students from participating in the TRIS Program this year, only the 7th grade students are included in the study results. The study, therefore, is prone to a high degree of error caused by the small sample of subjects. As sample sizes become smaller, sampling error becomes larger. It is important to point out that many questions in the survey have very small subgroups of respondents. When the base number of respondents falls below 50 results should be interpreted with a high degree of caution.
JULY 19, 2006: "The Real Inside Story™" will be featured at the upcoming National Night Out Against Crime events in Monroe and Everett on August 1, 2006. The events are open to the public. You can find out more about this important event by clicking
here.
JUNE 13, 2003: The Choice & Consequence™ organization has received their IRS Letter of Determination, giving them a 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. Donations made to the organization are tax-deductible.
Older News
JUNE 21, 2006: Snohomish County teachers are encouraged to call and schedule for the 2006/07 school year. Grants will be in the amount of $450 for sixty-eight Snohomish County schools on a first-come first-served basis. Grant slots will go quickly so don't delay setting up your date for the next school year!
MARCH 22, 2006: The Tulalip Tribe has given the Choice & Consequence™ organization a $7,500 grant. The Everett Clinic Foundation has given the organization an $18,000 grant for Snohomish County Schools. The Providence General Foundation has also made a $5,000 grant for Snohomish County Schools in the 2006/07 school year. The Squaxin Island Tribe has provided a $2,000 grant for tribal schools in the Shelton area for the next school year. We have started reserving dates for next school year, so don't delay! The cost for next year is going up to $900 for schools that do not get a grant. We hope informing you of the increase in cost now will enable you to plan for it so you and your students are not disappointed. The Board of Directors
will make a decision about the process for schools to receive TRIS at the May 17, 2006 meeting.
JANUARY 15, 2006: Pre-testing has been completed at two Snohomish County Middle Schools by the Gilmore Research Group. The study will be completed by the end of June.
OCTOBER 17, 2005: Snohomish County Human Services Alcohol and Other Drugs Prevention has awarded a $10,000 research grant to the Choice & Consequence organization to study the unique teaching methods the registered nurses use with youth in schools. The Gilmore Research group has been hired to design and evaluate the method.
SEPTEMBER 14, 2005: Please come to our open house on Friday, September 23, 2005. Join us for fun and the demo of "The Real Inside Story™" (TRIS) substance abuse prevention presentation. The event will run from 6-8 pm. Arlington Mayor, Margaret Larson, will be presenting certificates of appreciation at 6 pm and the TRIS demo will start at 7 pm.
AUGUST 7, 2005: Choice & Consequence™ is moving to a new location at 425 N. Olympic Ave., Arlington, WA 98223! We will be having an open house to celebrate sometime in August or September. If you would like an invitation, please call (office) 360-435-7250 or (cell) 360-631-2673 to have one mailed to you. The office will be closed from August 11-19 while we make our move. You can reach us on the cell phone if you are trying to schedule a presentation for your school or have other questions.
JULY 23, 2005: The Choice & Consequence™ organization has received a $5000 grant from the Providence General Foundation for schools in Snohomish County. Teachers, please review grant guidelines and submit your request as soon as possible. The CC organization has been accepted in to the Combined Fund Campaign for federal workplace giving, the Snohomish County / PUD Fund Drive, the Washington State Combined Fund Drive, and the King County Fund Drive. If you wish to donate to CC, you may do so through your workplace giving campaign, United Way, and/or by writing a check.
JUNE 23, 2005: The Choice & Consequence™ organization has received three grants this past week. The Stanwood-Camano Island Area Foundation awarded a $900 grant to use for Stanwood and Port Susan Middle Schools. The Coastal Community Bank Foundation provided an $1800 grant to use for schools in Monroe and Sultan. The Everett Clinic Foundation donated an $18,000 grant for schools in Snohomish County. Teachers may now apply for full or partial funding from the organization for the 2005/06 school year. Click on the applications button at the top of the page for an application for your school or youth event and read the grant guidelines.
MAY 2, 2005: Grant applications are now available for the 2005/06 school year. The first step in requesting funds from Choice & Consequence™ for your school, youth or community event is to call the office at 360-435-7250 and find out if funding has been secured.
APRIL 28, 2005: The Choice & Consequence™ organization was featured on King 5 "Evening Magazine" this evening.
APRIL 1, 2005: Rebecca Rose has resigned and is no longer affiliated with the Choice & Consequence™ organization. We wish her well. Kathy and Colleen continue to be very busy and are reaching thousands of youth.
FEBRUARY 2, 2005: The Choice & Consequence™ organization has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Tulalip Tribe Charitable Fund. This grant will allow the group to deliver "The Real Inside Story™", a substance abuse prevention presentation using human organs, to twenty alternative schools, schools serving tribal communities, and low income schools in Snohomish County.
JANUARY 19, 2005: Teen Advisory Board Applications available now. Click here to get one!
JANUARY 19, 2005: Qualitative and quantitative study completed and shows encouraging results.
DECEMBER 15, 2004: Mark Lee joins the Board of Directors for CC for a two year term.
NOVEMBER 22, 2004: The 2005-2007 Board of Directors have been elected. Follow the link to learn all about them!
OCTOBER 7, 2004: "The Organ Lady™" will be presenting at the Cascade Valley Hospital Community Health Fair on Saturday, October 16, 2004. The fair is open to the public and will be held in the new Arlington High School at 18821 Crownridge Blvd. from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.
AUGUST 6, 2004: Our supporters across the United States can now call the Choice & Consequence™ organization toll free at 1-866-ORGANS 3 to schedule a health education program in their area. This number will begin service on August 10, 2004.
JULY 1, 2004: The Snohomish County Business Journal features a story about the Choice & Consequence™ organization. You can see the article, "Group gives kids eyeful about smoking, drinking" on page 24 of the July issue.
MAY 13, 2004: The Choice & Consequence™ organization has had their application for inclusion in the Combined Federal Campaign accepted! This means that people in Federal workplaces will be able to specify the organization as the recipient of donations through the workplace giving campaigns for Puget Sound and North Puget Sound for 2004.
DECEMBER 15, 2003: Nurse Kathy Ketchum from Providence Everett Medical Center in Everett, WA developed a unique teaching method in 1989 designed to help youth see for real what happens to the inside of their bodies when they make unhealthy lifestyle choices.
Since that time the program has evolved and "The Real Inside Story™" has been seen by thousands of youth, primarily in Snohomish County.
We are proud to announce that Providence Everett Medical Center has agreed to transition the program to the Choice & Consequence™ organization, effective January 1, 2004. The plan is to expand and reach even more youth across the entire State of Washington and beyond.
WEBMASTER: Colleen Williams Revised: September 21, 2011 Registered 2002 [Choice & Consequence™] All rights reserved. "The Organ Lady" ™, "The Organ Ladies" ™, Organ Guy™& "The Real Inside Story"™, and “Body Buddy™” are registered trade names for Choice & Consequence™. Please notify Webmaster of broken links or other problems with this web site.