Seattle's Ethiopian community has grown rapidly since the 1970s, when many Ethiopians fled their home country to escape war, famine, and ethnic violence. In the early 2000s, there were several thousand Ethiopians living around Seattle, and five Ethiopian churches (three Protestant, two Ethiopian Orthodox) served their spiritual needs. The Ethiopian churches met more worldly needs as well, such as sharing information around the community and providing aid to community members experiencing crisis. Despite high tensions between ethnicities in Ethiopia, the churches helped keep the community in Seattle united and gave members a place to preserve and pass down culture to their US-born children.

This image shows Yeshihareg Wibie at St. Gebriel Church of Ethiopians, an Ethiopian Orthodox church in the Central Area. Wibie is sitting on the floor at the back of the church as more congregants crowd in for Lidet services. Lidet means "birth of light" and celebrates the birth of Jesus. Ethiopian Orthodox churches celebrate this holiday in early January. St. Gebriel's opened in 2000, and hosted a quickly growing congregation.

Caption information source: "Central Area church provides 'little bit of home' for members," by Matthew Craft, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, January 5, 2003. page B1
Caption information source: "Ethiopian churches meet spiritual, practical needs," by John Iwasaki, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, January 7, 2003, page B1