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Palmer Care Packages

Palmer Scholars

In a speech he delivered at our graduation celebration in 2018, Mt. Tahoma graduate Jesse recounted his first day moving into the dorms of his new school. “As I toted the bedding I brought from home, others were unloading brand new TVs. I had never felt so out of place.”

Jesse’s story isn’t uncommon.

Many college freshmen and their families take for granted the back-to-school shopping trip, loading their cart with brand new, brand name dorm accessories.

As an organization, we knew we couldn’t send our Scholars to their new colleges and universities only to have their first experience be one of otherness. Many college freshmen and their families take for granted the back-to-school shopping trip, loading their cart with brand new, brand name dorm accessories. We know a sense of belonging significantly increases our Scholars’ rate of persisting through graduation. In 2018, Palmer Cares was born.


In its inaugural year, Palmer Cares provided each of our rising college freshmen with a fully stocked dorm room kit, valued at $500. Our kits included bedding, school supplies, and even an Amazon tablet to help many of our Scholars take notes for their classes. We saw the weight lift from our Scholars’ shoulders. Many had been working all summer long just to afford the necessities for their dorm.


This year, we wanted to go one step further. Our Scholars deserve the opportunity to choose bedding based on their unique style just like their peers. Instead of pre-packaging dorm room kits, Palmer Cares packages included a backpack, school supplies, a laptop, and a $150 gift certificate for our Scholars to shop with their mentor or families.


As special as we know all of our Scholars are, we are excited for them to step onto their campus feeling “just like everyone else.”

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 SUPPORT OUR MISSION TODAY!

Palmer Scholars acknowledges that our work is carried out on, and our office space is located within, occupied Coast Salish land, specifically that of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians. We pay respect to Coast Salish Elders past and present and extend that respect to their descendants and to all Indigenous peoples. To acknowledge this land is to recognize its longer history and our place in that history; it is to recognize these lands and waters and their significance for the peoples who lived and continue to live in this region, whose practices and spiritualties were and are tied to the land and the water, and whose lives continue to enrich and develop in relationship to the land, waters, and other inhabitants today.

 

We also pause to recognize and acknowledge the labor upon which our country, state, and institutions are built.

We remember that our country is built on the labor of enslaved people who were kidnapped and brought to the U.S. from the African continent and recognize the continued contribution of their survivors. We also acknowledge all immigrant labor, including voluntary, involuntary, trafficked, forced, and undocumented peoples who contributed to the building of the country and continue to serve within our labor force. We acknowledge all unpaid care-giving labor.

 

To the people who contributed this immeasurable work and their descendants, we acknowledge our/their indelible mark on the spaces in which we operate today. It is our collective responsibility to critically interrogate these histories, to repair harm, and to honor, protect, and sustain this land.

Physical Address - 

4500 Steilacoom Blvd SW BLDG 16

Lakewood WA 98499-4004

Mailing Address - 

PO Box 7119, Tacoma, WA 98417

Email - info@palmerscholars.org

To contact someone directly visit our staff page here: Our Team

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