09/23/2026
Dear Friends of Ashley House,
One year ago this month, I stepped into the role of Executive Director at Ashley House. As I reflect on — and celebrate — this first year, I want to say thank you, share what I have learned, and offer a look at where we are headed.
Ashley House serves children and young adults whose medical needs are complex, with around-the-clock nursing. But what happens in our homes isn't clinical. It is a birthday celebrated in a living room instead of a hospital room. It is a caregiver who knows exactly which song settles a child at bedtime. It is a parent who gets to be a parent again, because someone else is holding the medical weight for a while.
I spent this year listening to our nurses and caregivers, to the families who entrust us with their children, to our hospital and payer partners, to our Board, and to the donors who have upheld this organization for years. And I learned that Ashley House isn't simply about policies or plans; it’s about people. The values we put on paper, our staff live out loud, every shift, in ways most of you will never see.
I am continually humbled by the dedication of our nurses, caregivers, clinical team members, administrative staff, maintenance professionals, and leaders, EVERYONE who contributes to creating homes where children and young adults with complex medical needs are known, valued, supported, and loved.
So much of what makes it work happens quietly and often unseen: Families welcomed and supported. Meals prepared and medications managed. Homes maintained and activities planned. Care provided through long nights.
Philanthropy here is not a line on a balance sheet. It is the margin that lets us say yes to a child whose needs exceed what any reimbursement rate contemplates. When you give to Ashley House, you are funding a nurse's steady hands at three in the morning and the countless small acts of kindness that make a daily difference in the lives of the children and their families.
I am grateful to the families who entrust us with the care of their children and remain such dedicated partners in every step of the journey. Thank you for your trust, your advocacy, your resilience, and the extraordinary love you bring into our homes.
Ashley House is also supported by a much wider community of hospital partners, donors, advisors, and friends who believe that children and young adults with complex medical needs deserve exceptional, loving, specialized care. We are deeply grateful for our partnerships with Seattle Children's, Mary Bridge Children's Hospital, UW Medicine, and Providence Sacred Heart Children's Hospital. Their shared commitment to the health and well-being of children and families in our region strengthen the continuum of care available to those we serve.
Today, we are being asked to reach further: more communities, more families, more children who have nowhere else to turn. We are approaching that growth deliberately, because expanding our reach can never come at the expense of the quality that earned us the invitation.
To our Board, thank you for extending trust before I earned it. To our donors and partners, thank you for believing in this work in the seasons when it is joyful and in the seasons when it is heavy. To our community, thank you for recognizing that a life measured in ordinary moments is worth every ounce of effort we can give. It has been my honor to spend this year alongside you.
With Deep Gratitude,
Jason Owens, Executive Director
