Ending the Year with Generosity, Joy, and Community — Newsletter, January 2026

Jan 1

Written By admin

A Season of Gratitude & Looking Ahead

As we turn the page on the year and look ahead with renewed energy, we’re feeling especially grateful for the generosity that already defines the Sunnyside Village Cohousing community. One of the quiet joys of building this community has been discovering just how much our members and explorers care — not only about Sunnyside, but about the wider world around us.

With that spirit in mind, let’s jump into our first story: Giving Back…

-Norm & Jennie

Giving Back: The Spirit of Volunteerism at Sunnyside Village Cohousing

As the new year begins, we wanted to pause and celebrate something truly special about Sunnyside: the depth of care, commitment, and service our members and explorers bring into the world — both within our community and far beyond it.

We recently invited our members and explorers to share where and how they volunteer. What came back was heartwarming and inspiring. Combined we tallied more than 2,500 volunteer hours each year—a powerful reminder that service and community go hand in hand.

Here is a sampling of what was shared:

*Jennie working at the Sunnyside property*

Jennie volunteers on many fronts. She serves on the board of a treatment program for people with substance use disorders, supporting recovery, recycling, and job training. She is deeply involved with the Evergreen Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, where she helps lead social justice efforts, community actions, and outreach.

Jennie also reminds us that everything at Sunnyside Village is volunteer-driven, spending many hours each week in planning, outreach, and welcoming new members to our community. Sunnyside also just finished its fourth year of holiday present gifting. See the story below: Sharing Holiday Joy.

Tina gives her time at the Edmonds Food Bank, working mostly in the kitchen, sorting and packing food. What she values most is the culture of care shown by staff and volunteers — especially the way the people served are treated as “neighbors,” not customers.

We also heard from Melissa, a new explorer currently living in Maryland. Her volunteering spans both people and animals: supporting a local food bank, teaching voiceover classes through her union community with SAG-AFTRA, and fostering border collies. Over the past year alone, she’s fostered four dogs, helping them heal and find loving homes. As she shared, “Once they feel safe and their confidence builds, their true personalities come out — and the fun begins.”

Kim noted that her volunteer energy is currently focused right here at Sunnyside, contributing many hours on Zoom and increasingly in person, with hopes of discovering (and rediscovering) volunteer passions as the new year unfolds.

Norm embraces the idea of thinking globally and acting locally. He stays engaged in civic life, listening to and supporting the LGBTQ+ community. As Sunnyside moves toward cottage construction this spring, he is focusing his volunteer energy alongside Jennie on outreach and welcoming new members into our growing community.

Paying it forward seems to be woven into Sunnyside Village Cohousing’s DNA, showing up in countless small acts of care, time, and generosity. With this spirit already alive and thriving in our community, there is so much to celebrate and be grateful for.

Sharing Holiday Joy Beyond Our Village

For the fourth year in a row, Sunnyside Village came together to spread some holiday magic to families at Sunnyside Elementary School who could use a little extra support during the season.

*Mary Lee packing the 'sleigh' for gift delivery*

Sunnyside members pooled resources to purchase and wrap 55 gifts, thoughtfully chosen from children’s wish lists, along with grocery gift cards for parents to help make the holidays a bit brighter and easier. School staff are always deeply appreciative — and as Sunnyside co-founder Jennie says, “Helping these children puts me more in the holiday spirit than anything else I do in December!”

It’s just one more way Sunnyside Village lives out our values of connection, generosity, and care.

Holiday Magic, Sunnyside-Style

December also brought a special kind of warmth as we gathered for Sunnyside Village Cohousing’s Annual Holiday Celebration — and what a joyful, heart-filling afternoon it was.

We were generously welcomed into Pm & Jack’s Seattle home, where the smell of scrambled eggs and smoked salmon mingled with fresh coffee, laughter, and that unmistakable feeling of being among friends. Plates filled quickly, conversations flowed easily, and the potluck spirit was alive and well—some dishes familiar, some surprising, all offered with love.

One highlight was welcoming John and Cathy, explorers visiting from California who stopped by to meet the broader Sunnyside community. Their visit reminded us how far our circle already reaches—and how exciting it is to imagine it growing even more in the year ahead.

And then there was the magic: taking part in our greatly anticipated Imaginary Gift Exchange. Names were drawn from a hat, and one by one we offered creative, heartfelt — and occasionally hilarious — virtual gifts. No wrapping paper required, just imagination, good cheer, and plenty of laughter.

Here’s to community, creativity, and many more moments like this — together.

Closing Thoughts

As we step, jump, or are gently pushed into the new year, these stories remind us that Sunnyside is already becoming what we want it to be. Whether through volunteering, gift-giving, or simply celebrating together, this season feels like a beautiful reflection of who we are becoming—connected, playful, welcoming, and grounded in care for one another. If this is what winter brings, we can’t wait to see what the seasons ahead will hold.

Warmly,
Norm and Jennie and all of us at Sunnyside Village Cohousing

Come as a guest, leave as a neighbor
Register for our Thursday Zoom session
and see if Sunnyside feels like home.

admin