*Financial abuse is experienced in up to 99% of domestic violence cases, according to some estimates, and it occurs across all socio-economic, educational, racial and ethnic groups. Well over half of homeless women have lost housing because of violence committed against them, and over 80% of homeless mothers have experienced severe physical and/or sexual abuse.
We post employment opportunities here and on Facebook and Instagram. Most YWCA jobs are also posted on Indeed. For the most up-to-date information, please call our office at (509) 525-2570.
It is the policy of the YWCA to consider all applications for employment equally without regard to an applicant’s race, color, religion, disability, pregnancy, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, age, ethnicity, income, veteran status, marital status or any other basis prohibited by federal, state or local law. The YWCA does not accept unsolicited resumes or applications. All application materials for posted positions will be retained for one year from the date received.
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that YWCA employment practices are equitable, consistently applied, in compliance with Federal and State laws, and in compliance with any contractual obligations set forth by our funding agencies, so long as those obligations are not superseded by said law.
YWCA Walla Walla is seeking our next Executive Director — a visionary leader with the passion and commitment to guide us into the future. This is a unique opportunity to strengthen our impact and help build a safer, stronger community for survivors and families.
Do you know someone who would be a great fit? Please share this opportunity and help us spread the word!
The ED position is open until filled, with priority given to applications received by October 17, 2025. Applicants can read the comprehensive position profile at the button below, and apply below with a cover letter and resume (as one combined document). The search committee is asking applicants to please focus the content of the cover letter on these three questions:
Why are you interested in this role?
How do your experience and interests align with the mission of YWCA Walla Walla?
Why are you interested in an onsite role based in Walla Walla, Washington?
Learn more through our search partners at Valtas Group.
Every year at this luncheon, we honor someone who has exemplified the YWCA mission in their lives, with a focus on reaching out to, lifting up, and celebrating the lives and hopes of women, of children, and of diverse peoples.
Born in 1943 in St. Paul, Jean (better known as “Punkey”) Adams earned a communications degree and later earned a master’s in social work from Walla Walla University.
She is inquisitive and quietly mischievous. A few years ago, while visiting Puerto Vallarta, she somehow made her way through a fence and onto a Mexican naval base in order to inspect a wildflower. She was escorted back through the hole in the fence by a soldier. When traveling with her, it is common for one of her kids to say, “Mom, you can’t go in there…” or “You’re not supposed to do that.” That has never stopped her.
Like many women born in the 1940s, she came of age at a time of fast, deep transition…from dutiful housewife to an independent community leader. She has logged thousands of hours of volunteer work.
A long-time donor and supporter of the YWCA she has connected several women with YWCA services. She has been an officer in Sherwood Trust, the Walla Walla Community College Board of Trustees, the National Association of Social Workers, P.E.O., and the Walla Walla Parks & Recreation Advisory Board.
She served as a CASA Advocate, the first female swimming referee in the Inland Empire Association, and a Girl Scout Troop Leader, and was on the First Congregational Church Social Concerns committee. She was a PTA member and officer for Sharpstein, Green Park, Edison, Bernie, and Pioneer Junior High. She has also envisioned and established five new libraries, expanded services to underserved, rural, and ESL communities, and established unique collaborations with other organizations.
She sees connections and possible solutions easily; it’s like watching a community social work version of chess. She is fascinated by the brain and the effects of ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences). She works to put ACEs research into action at all levels of human development and community social work. People around her describe her as humble, insightful, kind, and fair-minded. Her motto is best captured by her favorite poem, “O for a World,” by Miriam Therese Winter, which begins, “O for a world where everyone respects each other’s ways, where love is lived and all is done with justice and with praise.”
O for a world with more women like this one.
Join me in celebrating Jean “Punkey” Adams, YWCA Leader of Distinction for 2025.
When YWCA Advocate Karen Angel met Grace in the shelter and asked about her needs, the answer broke her heart.
“She told me she would like to have a little more food,” Karen said. “She had been skipping meals to make sure her kids had enough to eat.”
Karen showed Grace where to find supplies that YWCA clients were welcome to share – a wide variety of foods furnished by community donations.
The more she learned about Grace, including her struggles with an unreliable Ford Focus that barely fit her family of five, the more impressed Karen was by the young woman’s resilience, resourcefulness, and care for her kids.
So when the United Way asked for nominations of families whose lives would be improved by owning a reliable used car, Karen and Client Services Director Lana Bushman knew just whose name to put forward.
Grace and her family accepted the Honda Odyssey minivan at a holiday presentation at Underriner Honda of Walla Walla.
“Grace worked so hard for her family,” said Karen. “It was a joy to connect her with this gift and walk alongside her on the journey of building their new life.”
The 2024 Fun Factory team logged 1,874 miles this summer visiting places kids gather in Walla Walla and nearby communities like Touchet, Prescott, and Dayton.
With a van full of glitter, games, and googly eyes, they offered eight weeks of free kids’ activities — all made possible by YWCA donors.
The team reflected on the summer as a time of growth, becoming more patient and improving their crafting skills. Though they adored kids of all ages, they especially loved visiting the Inspire preschool.
“I was nervous about interacting with children under 5 who spoke little English,” said van driver Lindsay Drango (pictured above left with Jude Clum-Stockton). “But they were so sweet. And communicating in Spanish was a fun challenge.”
“At some places,” said Kiley Komnik, one of the leaders, “we felt like celebrities, the kids were so excited to see us.”
Kiley also shared that the job made them feel more connected with the community. “Kids recognized me in the grocery store!”
“It’s great that YWCA donors support such a fun, rewarding program for kids in Walla Walla and nearby areas,” said David Craine, another team member.
“Fun Factory,” David confessed, “almost doesn’t feel like a job!”
Finding the strength to move forward after domestic violence can be overwhelming. That’s why the YWCA’s LiNC program — Living in New Circumstances — exists.
Through a series of supportive classes, women regain confidence and reclaim their power.
Eighteen women walked into LiNC classes in 2024, each with unique challenges and strengths.
One was Vanessa*. She had silently endured more than a decade of abuse without ever calling 9-1-1. Then her partner’s violence escalated to strangulation. She feared for her life.
A CPS caseworker recommended she look into LiNC. Vanessa showed up with two black eyes and a broken tooth, afraid to walk to her bike alone after class. But she was vulnerable and ready to heal.
“As I got to know Vanessa,” said LiNC Director Andraya Anderson, “I saw an amazing mom with amazing children. She didn’t have a car, but somehow she still made it to all of her kids’ school activities!”
Vanessa began to believe in herself again and found strength in a supportive community. “In LiNC,” Andraya said, “each woman can feel safe, cry, and work on regaining the power that was taken away from them.”
In 2024, Mariposa leaders entered Walla Walla fifth grade classrooms with a fully updated curriculum for this group of students who started school in 2019 and were in kindergarten when the pandemic hit in 2020.
Today’s fifth-graders are part of the first generation to spend their lives immersed in social media, with screens everywhere.
Changes in the use of technology in and out of school have had a major influence on these girls’ early learning experiences and continue to shape their worlds.
They have health and relationship challenges related to screen time, including loneliness, isolation, obesity, and cyber-bullying.
The YWCA is all about helping women and girls become leaders in their own lives, said Rebecca Patterson, Mariposa Coordinator, and we need to meet them where they are.
If we don’t include the online space where so much of their lives are happening, she said, we’re missing a big opportunity to help girls learn and grow.
A. YWCA Fun Factory is a mobile ten-week summer recreation program that visits neighborhoods throughout the Walla Walla Valley. The Fun Factory brings FREE outdoor fun, crafts, games and other activities to places where kids gather.
Q. What ages is it for?
A. We see kids as young as 4 and as old as 12 or 13. Most crafts are designed with ages 5 – 10 in mind, but all are welcome to come give it a try.
Q. What are the dates?
A. This summer the van will roll out every weekday from June 23 – August 15 (except July 4).
Q. How does it work? Where do I sign up?
A. No need to sign up. Each stop lasts about an hour. Some kids live close enough to a Fun Factory location that they can show up on their own. Others are dropped off. And if a parent or other adult wants to stay, that’s OK too. (Adults can even make the craft, as long as they promise to share the glue and glitter!)
Q. What does a Fun Factory day look like?
A. Each day of the week is different. Imagine one week’s activity is paper bag puppets. On Monday, the van might take puppet supplies Ten Ton Studios in Waitsburg, to the library in Dayton, and then, if the YWCA office gets a confirmation call by 1, all the way up to Starbuck School. The next week, those locations will have a different activity. Once the schedule is published, you will know what to expect and can put an entry like “Fun Factory – Touchet Library – Thursdays at 2:45” on your calendar and show up every week if you like.
A. At each stop you’ll find three or four enthusiastic, energetic leaders who love making things and playing games with kids. You’ll know you are at the right place when you see the white Fun Factory van and the Fun Factory leaders (Ollie, Paige, Helena, and Maggie) in their bright tie-dye shirts.
Q. What if it’s too hot to play? Or too smoky to breathe well?
A. Click hereto check the heat index and air quality numbers for your stop’s ZIP code. Here’s when we will move Fun Factory activities indoors:
If the heat index is 101 or higher,
or if the air particulates are 151 or worse,
And In locations with no indoor option, we will cancel for everyone’s comfort and safety.
