Serving Spokane Valley: Ross’ assistance reaches far, wide

When asked about the work they do for the Greater Valley Support Network, Diann and David Ross say the same thing: They don’t want to brag and they don’t want it to sound like they are saving the world.

“It’s a very cooperative and collaborative effort,” David Ross said. “It’s a very diverse and broad group of people that shows up at our meetings.”

Greater Valley Support Network was started in 2012 by M.J. Bolt. Then, it was called the Greater Valley Homeless Network, and focused on helping the 800 homeless students in the Central Valley School District.

The network is still focused on helping children and young people from preschool to high school age, but it also includes their families and areas like health care and transportation.

David Ross said requests for help vary from finding someone who can move a stalled car, or helping a family that needs a crib, to dental surgery.

The Rosses both work in the public affairs office for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and through the church’s employment center they met a young woman in a job skills class.

“They learn how to do a job interview, but there was a problem: She wouldn’t smile,” David Ross said.

It turned out the young woman’s teeth were in very poor shape and that’s why she refused to smile.

The network connected the young woman with a dentist who was willing to do the repair work for free.

“And then she smiled,” David Ross said. “Sometimes it’s the little things that hold people back.”

The network does not have a budget and it doesn’t administer any funds – it instead tries to connect people to existing service providers.

It’s become an umbrella under which groups like Spokane Cares, Spokane Valley Partners, Family Promise and Work Source connect with churches spread throughout the Spokane-area.

“The churches provide the work force, the volunteers,” David Ross said. “And we can always use more help from more churches.”

The network rallies behind food and clothing drives, and helps fill backpack food programs in schools.

It organizes meals for families struck by sudden illness.

It finds contractors who can do small or big remodeling jobs when someone is suddenly disabled.

“And we would like to do more mentoring in schools,” David Ross said. “We’d like to just come in and be a friend to a child.”

At the monthly meetings, representatives from local school districts meet and mingle with people who work in social services.

The network uses an Internet-based tool to list and distribute requests for help and in most cases it takes just a few days to find the right resources, David Ross said.

Volunteers can sign up on a website that automatically connects them with a volunteer opportunity within the distance they select.

“It’s been a goldmine for us in terms of finding ways in which to serve,” David Ross said.

The Rosses aren’t lifelong Spokane residents, but they’ve been here for about a decade.

They raised six children and have 22 grandchildren – 20 of whom are nearby, a smiling David Ross said.

Their children all went off on missions and Diann Ross said she dreamed of going on her own mission in a developing nation once the children were grown and out of the house.

“I always thought maybe I’d go to Africa or another faraway place,” Diann Ross said. “But then I discovered we have our own Third World country right here.”

They both joined the network in 2013 and David Ross is a board member.

Diann Ross said the collaboration among all the different organizations and churches really is remarkable.

“I think it’s because we don’t have any money,” Diann Ross said. “We are not a nonprofit, we don’t have a budget, we just get people together to serve.”

Though neither do much hands-on work with clients, they both frequently tour the various organizations they work with to get a better sense of what they do.

A tour of Hearth Homes – an emergency shelter for women and children – left a big impact on Diann Ross.

“When you hear the stories of these women and you realize this is all they have,” Diann Ross said, “then their stories bring a sense of connection to the families.”