Lornet Turnbull

Lornet is an editor for YES!, a Seattle-based freelance writer, and a regional anchor for the Washington Post.

Buy nothing day

Building Community by Buying Nothing

These were the sort of genuine connections that Rebecca Rockefeller and Liesl Clark envisioned back in 2013 when they created Buy Nothing—a gift economy operated on a hyperlocal scale to bring neighbors together through sharing and community.

September 2, 2021

Seattle sharing shed

How a Seattle Neighborhood Confronted Food Insecurity in the Pandemic

Over the past year, more than 20 food supply organizations have contributed in one form or another to providing hot meals to residents through the community center.

April 12, 2021

Community Organizing

Facing COVID-19 With Community Instead of Fear

As the coronavirus spreads anxiety and panic across the globe, people are finding ways to share information and support each other.

Citing the “collective solidarity” of friends and family in China and Hong Kong who have been affected by the coronavirus, a Seattle group has formed an online community to coordinate resources and provide support to those most vulnerable to the infection.

March 13, 2020

Grannies Respond

Grandmothers Bring Food and Comfort to Asylum-Seekers at Bus Stations

Every morning, Bonita Amaro and her sister Yolanda Sanchez arrive at the Greyhound bus station in Sacramento to greet asylum-seekers passing through on their way to sponsors’ homes across the country.

January 4, 2019

RV going through desert

Caravan of Grandmothers Heads to Mexico Border

Grannies Respond/Abuelas Responden is a movement of grandmothers and their allies who have been similarly spurred to action by the humanitarian crisis unfolding on the southern border. Over six days, beginning July 31, their caravan will journey more than 2,000 miles, onboarding other “grannies” along the way.

July 13, 2018