Scene & Heard: VYFS honors its visionary founders
Published 11:55 am Thursday, September 4, 2025
Last week, the sun-and-shade-dappled grounds of Vashon Youth & Family Services were a place of celebration, speeches and and even a few tears, as founders of the almost 50-year-old organization were honored in a special event that featured the dedication of a capacious and handsome new bench outside the facility.
The names of the founders — Edith Aspiri, James Griswold, Stephanie Smith Findley, Marian Fitch and Nancy Mish — are emblazoned on a plaque attached to the bench, which was designed and built by Craig Smith, the brother of Stephanie Smith Findley, from Alaskan yellow cedar — a wood that is known for its enduring strength.
Founded in 1977, VYFS has grown over the years to provide an expansive suite of programs for island youth and families, including behavioral health counseling; substance use treatment; crisis response; year-round child care through through Vashon Kids; a bilingual resource navigation program for islanders seeking access to critical services; and its Family Place program offering an array of parenting support services.
At the founder’s day event, Aspiri shared her recollections of the organization’s beginnings, born around a kitchen table as she and others were inspired by Smith Findley’s vision to create a system of support for island families.
Aspiri also recalled a fiery meeting that she and Fitch had attended with King County Councilmember Paul Barden in 1977, which resulted in the first small grant to VFYS, then called Project Intercept.
The meeting had started, she said, with Barden firmly shutting down the idea of providing any funding for the nascent organization, Aspiri said — a response that she said “raised my hackles.” Fitch, she said, was a “crackerjack” who pushed back even harder on Barden’s reluctance to help, Aspiri said. The pair came home with $7,500 from the county — a start to now widespread support for the organization.
Dave Mish, the son of Nancy Mish, who died in 2005, also delivered a moving speech, saying that he had only recently become aware that his mother was one of the founders of VYFS.
“She never liked to take credit for anything, even though she did lots for this community,” Mish said. “So when I was told a couple of months ago that she was a founder, I said, ‘are you kidding me?’ And the irony is, this place helped me get sober 13 years ago. My mom — if she was still around — would be so proud to know the fact that my sobriety came from the same place she founded … that’s a little town story you don’t hear very often.”
Other speakers included VYFS board members and current staff members, including VYFS Executive Director Jeni Johnson, who lauded the founders for their lasting contribution to the island.
“They launched a movement of care, connection access that continues to thrive today,” Johnson said. “The legacy of persistence and generosity is what has always carried VYFS forward. Challenges shift, resources may tighten, but what has endured is the commitment of people who refuse to give up on Vashon’s neighbors, children, families and our beloved community.”
The founders, she said, embodied Margaret Meade’s oft-quoted saying: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
