What a ZOO!

Last night, Patty Barrier and I left our ailing spouses (Jimmy with recent shoulder surgery and Ken with needed knee surgery) to have a quiet dinner together, while we went to the big Woodland Park Zoo Jungle Party “Big Claws, Big Cause”.  Barrier Motors Audi was one of the sponsors of the event.

We arrived early so we could go on the giraffe tour.  Patty and I enjoyed the giraffe tour immensely! We got to feed the three giraffes, the large Reticulated male and the two Rothchilds’ giraffes, the shy female, Olivia,  and the 1-1/2 year old playful baby female.  The giraffes had very long purple tongues that could reach many inches towards the maple leaves that we were hand feeding them.  The big male giraffe could easily reach over the tall fence to eat the leaves that we gingerly held towards him.

Following our bonding with the giraffes, we stopped and checked out the hippopotamus feeding as well and met Water Lily (see photos above), who was enjoying large sections of cut cantaloupe between submerging herself in the water and swimming around her pond.

The party itself was impressive with spirited bidding at the auction and dozens of generous “raise the paddle” bids.

What a Night!

What an incredible party last night at the 30^th Anniversary Fifth Avenue Theatre Gala! Even my husband, Ken the curmudgeon, unexpectedly enjoyed the festivities. Fifth Avenue Theatre board member and event chair, Bonnie Towne, was thrilled with the outcome of over $400,000 raised last night, $148,000 from the “raise the paddle” portion alone. See photos of Bonnie above being celebrated by the audience and onstage with recently retired Managing Director, Marilynn Sheldon and David Armstrong, Executive Producer.

The evening was organized into three Acts. The First Act included a cocktail reception and silent auctions in the lobby and onstage. Following a light buffet dinner, the Second Act was a fifteen item live auction that was the most enjoyable auction Ken and I can recall attending ever. Every other item or so included a musical production and the auction portion was ably handled by celebrity reader, Sharon Friel, and auctioneer, Brad Goode. The big bidders of the evening were Jim Towne, who kept the bidding lively and Cathy Boshaw and Rick & Kandi Holley. The Third Act following the auction included champagne and dessert onstage to celebrate the successful conclusion of the fundraising.

Kenny & Marleen Alhadeff, were thrilled to share the Tony award they recently received for their support in producing the musical hit, Memphis, with the enthusiastic audience. See third photo above. And a fitting finale to the program was the surprise singing performance of their hugely talented daughter, Andrea Alhadeff.

Ladies on the Links to Benefit The First Tee

Earlier this week, I played in The First Tee Ladies on the Links golf tournament fundraiser at Broadmoor. What a great cause that gives kids that might not otherwise have the opportunity, a chance to learn to play the game of golf! The mission is “To impact the lives of young people in the greater Seattle area by providing learning facilities and educational programs that promote character development and life-enhancing values through the game of golf.”

Deborah Juarez once again chaired the event for the 8^th year in a row and it was a fun tournament with prizes and gifts on every hole including fragrant fresh gardenias courtesy of Martha Harris, who also played in the tournament, followed by lunch and a silent and live auction.

My foursome included Dana Reid, Kim Cleworth, and our First Tee player, Kelsey, who graduates from Rainier High School this week and has a golf scholarship to Spokane Community College in the fall. See photo above of our foursome. Though the rules required that we count two drives for each of the players, I was lucky that Dana, Kim and Kelsey were all superior golfers with very long drives and we finished the nine hole scramble one under par. Though my putting has been abysmal so far this season, I did have the opportunity to sink a couple of medium long putts. Hooray!

Other friends I saw who were also participating in the tournament were Kay Baxter, Annette Parks, and Mari Schrempf.

Three Under Par!

Yesterday, Patty & Jimmy Barrier and Ken and I traveled to Suncadia for the Tangerine Travel Annual Golf Tournament.  It was a spectacular, sunny day with blue sky (for a change!) and we had the opportunity to play the beautiful Tumble Creek course.  Angie Lepley, owner of Tangerine Travel and title sponsor of the event was there along with her team all arrayed in bright orange-tangerine shirts to welcome all the golfers as we arrived and give us an overview of what to expect.

The tournament format was a scramble so we were able to play best ball on each stroke.  Ken didn’t actually play but helped us keep score for the first nine holes.  The fourth golfer in our group was Ed Clark, who turned out to be the entire reason why our team was able to turn in a score of three under par.  See second photo above of Ed, Jimmy and Ken.  Though Patty and I each sank a couple of long putts, it was a stretch that we had to count two of each of our drives, but Ed was able to overcome that handicap as well!

The big sponsor of the event was Kevin Swett of KSC Freight Inc..  See top photo of Ken, Kevin and Mike Kunath above.  Kevin and his wife, Cindy, also raise beautiful dogs as companion animals and the proceeds of the golf tournament and dinner auction were split between Seattle Children’s Hospital and Canine Companions for Independence.  Kevin, whose avocation is photography, included photos of gorgeous companion dogs at each sponsored hole on the golf course.

We saw other friends who were also involved in the tournament including Frank Dennis and Connie Blumenthal pictured with Ken and me in the third photo above, Moe & Suzy Krabbe and Erik Moris.  

We ended the day tired but very pleased that we had participated in such a fun event to raise money for children’s health and companion animals.

IslandWood Dinner in the Woods

Last night Ken and I made the trek on the Bainbridge Island ferry to IslandWood’s annual “Dinner in the Woods” Gala. IslandWood’s mission is to provide exceptional learning experiences and to inspire lifelong environmental and community stewardship and this event is one of the primary fundraising opportunities each year. The really good news is that we were encouraged to wear jeans and fleece, so after the black tie event of the previous evening, this party was very comfortable and casual. For those of us that don’t take the ferry very often, it always seems like such an exotic adventure to find the right ferry line and buy tickets to the intended destination. Somehow we managed to do this successfully and were met on Bainbridge Island with a promised private shuttle ~ an old yellow school bus.

On the way, we ran into friends also traveling to the party including Will Poole & Janet Levinger, Ken Bunting, Ken & Laurie Myer, Bob & Cindy Blais, and Sally & Paul Kassab. Once there, Ken and I were transported by an IslandWood docent via golf cart throughout the beautiful IslandWood campus to the cocktail party area between the main visitor center and just outside the dinner and auction tent. At the cocktail party we connected with more friends including Lauren Selig, Colleen & Byron McCann, Ruby Love, and Ann Ramsay-Jenkins. See photo of Ken at cocktail party (2^nd photo above).

When it was time to move into the tent for dinner, as guests of Honorary Chairs, Phil & Geda Condit, we were seated front and center at a table right in front of the podium. We were delighted to see that in addition to Phil & Geda, we were also seated with Patti Payne, Mike & Lee Keller and Kappie & Joe Ayers. Lee and Patti immediately reorganized the seating so we could sit together and were scolded only slightly by Geda who had planned to trade seats later during the evening. You can see that no grudges were held however by the photo of Geda, Patti and Phil (4^th photo above).

Phil kicked off the auction dinner part of the evening with some background about how he had come to be such a staunch supporter of IslandWood when he was Chairman and CEO of Boeing (see 3^rd photo above). He also noted that although Boeing, as the title sponsor of the evening, has continued to be a proud sponsor of IslandWood, that the current sponsorship is not because of his influence but because of the quality programs that IslandWood has offered to over 25,000 school children since it was launched in 2002 and to over 4,000 children from 70 schools this year alone.

The Master of Ceremonies and auctioneer for the evening was Kevin Joyce, who is an IslandWood enthusiast, parent and lover of the environment. Kevin expertly auctioned off fifteen Live Auction items and led the ubiquitous “Raise the Paddle” segment. One of the quirky announcements of the evening was that this Gala was serving as the wedding rehearsal dinner for IslandWood Board member, Dennis Madsen and his bride, Debbie Mahan, since they were being married the following day.

Included in the evening’s program were several poems written by children who have visited IslandWood. This one was my favorite by Carly from Greenwood Elementary:

GRATITUDE POEM

The pine trees teach me how to keep my ground.

The rain helps me wash away my bad feelings.

The blue sky shows me how to be happy.

The moon teaches me how to light the way.

The maple trees show me how to let go of my hatred like leaves in the fall.

The mountains teach me how to stand strong and be patient.

The thunder and lightning teach me how to be afraid.

The animals help me find new discoveries, and the sun shines all day long so that I can see.

Lights Up! Wine, Dine & Shine at Seattle Rep

Friday evening, Ken and I attended the “Lights Up! Wine, Dine & Shine at Seattle Rep” fundraiser to benefit the Seattle Repertory Theatre. We followed a long red carpet to enter the festivities where almost every woman was wearing at least one flashing, lighted ring to denote the purchase of a raffle ticket. Our neighbor, Debbie Killinger, however took the prize for most flashing rings, wearing ten; one on each finger! It was a lovely black-tie party with dinner onstage in the Bagley Wright Theatre. Once we entered the auditorium, the stage looked fantastic with three crystal chandeliers hovering overhead and tall multi-arm candelabras lighting up each table.

We were guests of Seattle Repertory Theatre chairman, Toni Hoffman and her husband, Rod (see photo above). It was great fun to catch up with so many friends including Joan & Bob Cremin, Pat Wallace, Marco, Paul Birkeland, Stacy Lill, Alta & Stan Barer, Deborah & Doug Rosen, Jane & Dave Davis, Elizabeth Rudolf, Jan Hendrickson, Kathleen & Mike Mitrovich, Deb & Larry Doran, Kate & Larry Anderson, Stewart Parker, Debbie Killinger, Sherry & James Raisbeck plus scores of others.

The program included a brief original play, Yosemite, written by Seattle Roosevelt High School sophomore, Maddie Daviss, one of four youth playwrights who took part in Seattle Repertory Theatre’s 2010 Playwriting Project. Her play, performed by four professional equity actors, was charming and very well-received by the gala audience. The evenings’ “Raise the Paddle” was directly targeted to Seattle Rep’s Initiative for Young Audiences and began with a generous $1,000,000 leadership gift from longtime theatre subscriber and patron, Matthew Clapp Jr. His generosity was acknowledged with a standing ovation from all in attendance. Others followed his lead and a total of an additional $130,000 was raised through the “Raise the Paddle”. Including that, a brief auction and ticket sales, the gross raised was $370,000.

The auction included round trip airfare for two people to Puerta Vallarta and a one week stay at Toni & Rod Hoffman’s beautiful, beach front condominium home. The item went well above the published $5,000 value, so Toni and Rod offered a second package on the spot and were able to double the funds raised for the Seattle Rep.

Nothing to do with the theatre, but a cultural phenomenon I noticed Friday night is that several of us have decided at the same time to grow our hair longer. I know I have been doing so and noticed that Pat Wallace, Elizabeth Rudolf and Jan Hendrickson have been doing the same thing. I’m not totally sure what the driving force is on this, but am guessing that we are all trying to look a bit younger once again!

YMCA Partners with Youth Campaign Results & Volunteer Celebration

On Tuesday evening, as Co-Chair of the YMCA Association Board Partners with Youth Campaign, I attended the 133^rd Annual Meeting and Partners with Youth Volunteer Celebration at the Grand Hyatt in Seattle.  One of the evening highlight’s was recognition of Jane Lewis, outgoing Chair , YMCA Board of Directors.  Jane has done an incredible job of overseeing the organization as we completed a $40 million capital campaign during the past few years and continued to set new records for our Partners with Youth Campaign.  See photo of Jane above enjoying a standing ovation from the YMCA supporters gathered for this special evening.

I had the exciting job of announcing the overall fundraising totals for both the Association Board and the overall Association-wide Partners with Youth Campaign.  Sharing the stage with me were representatives from 15 of the various YMCA locations throughout our area each reporting on the success of their individual campaigns.  For the Association Board, we raised more money than ever before at $1,212,393 and were thrilled to do so.  However, with a goal of $1,300,000, we still have additional funding opportunities and are focused on raising the rest of the dollars to support kids and families in our community.  Following an impromptu drum roll, I announced that against an overall goal of $4,602,000, with the combined totals, together we raised $4,610,823!  What an accomplishment during this time of economic challenge and stress!  Of course the credit goes to both the volunteers and the YMCA staff who all work so hard to make this possible.

Following the exciting fundraising news, fourteen 2009 Volunteers of the Year were recognized by Jane Lewis, Board Chair and Bob Gilbertson, President/CEO, YMCA of Greater Seattle including Angela Doolittle of Auburn Valley, Laurie Larson of Bellevue Family, Dean & Audrey Stupke of Camping Services, Marilyn Herzberg of Coal Creek Family, Jeanne Shepard of Dale Turner Family, Mike Myers of Downtown Seattle, Carolyn Thomas of Matt Griffin, Greg Martin of Meredith Mathews East Madison, Jeffrey Barker of Metrocenter, Joel Lenox of Northshore, James  Rosenweig of Sammamish Family, Rebecca Wilson of University Family, the Dolphin Swim Team Parent Club of West Seattle & Fauntleroy, and Mark Owen of the Association Office.

The evening ended with President/CEO Bob Gilbertson sharing an appropriate quote that he had learned from one of his mentors growing up:  “The time we give to others is the rent we pay for the space we occupy in this world.”

Cathi and Marcelo win the Peoples' Choice Award!

Oh! What a night! Last Saturday evening after months of preparation, I had the opportunity to participate in the new Plymouth Housing Group fundraiser, Seattle Dances! competition featuring local “celebrity” dancers paired with professional dancers. Though I had said “NO” five times before I finally said “YES”, I have to admit that it was so much fun learning this new dance and getting to know new friends in the local dance world. It turns out that all of the other non-professional dancers had a similar epiphany of realizing how much fun they were having learning a new skill and that we found ourselves devoting more and more time to the pursuit. The other non-professional dancers included Kathy Casey, Joyce Taylor, Steven Goldfarb, Michelle Foreman Barnet, Colette Courtion and Paul Lambros.

My dance partner, Marcelo Garces, is a master choreographer and created and taught me the Bachata, a salsa-style dance that comes from the Dominican Republic. He included many complicated steps and the piece de resistance was the “neck drop” where he would support my weight in a flat back-bend while stepping over me several times before letting me slide down his leg to his calf or ankle. He would then return me upright by using his leg to push me back to a standing position. It was quite a trick to learn and I landed on my behind many times during rehearsals. I found the best thing to do was just trust him to return me to a standing position and close my eyes until he did!

What a wonderful experience it was participating in this creative fundraising event! It was such a high-energy and exciting project. The staff of Plymouth Housing Group was amazing! They were unfazed to deal with multiple table seating changes, counting cyber votes and actual votes, and producing a brand-new event without a roadmap. No matter how many questions, concerns and suggestions we threw their way, everything was handled with aplomb by the staff and board leadership. And of course Hallie Kuperman, owner of Century Ballroom produced the dance portion of the event, selecting professional partners for each of the celebrity dancers and providing rehearsal space.

It is so rewarding to hear that that the goal of $350,000 was exceeded and approximately $410,000 was raised for Plymouth Housing Group. Many people supported the project by voting for the dancers at $25 per vote both before the event and during the event. I am eager to hear the final number results for both the Cyber Choice Award and the People’s Choice Award and get a list of all the donors that voted for me that I will want to thank for their support.

Of course I was thrilled that Marcelo and I won the “Peoples’ Choice” award and the sparkling mirror ball trophy is prominently displayed in my ZINO Society office so that I can brag about it frequently.

I will treasure the memories of the people and the activities associated with this incredible event.

We are winners at Seattle Dances Competition!

Last night was an amazing fundraising event at the Fremont Studios to benefit Plymouth Housing Group!  The event was “Seattle Dances” and was a sell-out with 450 people in attendance.  The venue looked spectacular with giant screens, bright pink and black table clothes and napkins and mirror balls everywhere!  The guests came early to participate in the silent auction and to sip the Kathy Casey Signature Cocktail – “The Lizzy Highfly”.  The guests in my cheering squad trailed blue feather boas throughout the party.

Once the guests sat down for dinner, a brief 19 item live auction was held prior to the big dance competition.  Meanwhile all the dancers put on their costumes and got ready with hair and makeup and mentally rehearsed their dances in their minds just one more time.  See photo above of Steve Goldfarb, Kathy Casey, Giuseppe Graziola, our costume designer, and me, photo of Colette Courtion practicing her “attitude” and photo of Joyce Taylor having her makeup applied.  The top photo is my dance partner, Marcelo Garces and me, hoping for success in capturing a mirror ball so we were practicing holding one in anticipation.  The bottom photo is of competitors, Paul Lambros and Steve Goldfarb with their partners, Deron Hayes and Alison Cockrill.   

When it was time to perform, Guest Emcee, Patti Payne, along with Century Ballroom’s Hallie Kuperman introduced us and our dances.  Michelle Foreman Barnet, riveting in a beautiful Tracy Gail red satin dress, was first onstage to dance the tango with her partner Greg Rolnick.  Next in skin-tight black spandex slacks and a see through black mesh shirt was Steve Goldfarb with his partner Alison Cockrill in a tiny black fringe two piece outfit, to dance the salsa and following him Kathy Casey, her hair in finger waves in a hot pink and black lace flapper dress dancing the Charleston with her partner, Joshua Welter.  Next Marcelo and I danced our Bachata, Marcelo wearing a turquoise shirt adorned with crystals and me in a dark blue and turquoise cocktail dress also sparkling with Swarvoski crystals designed and produced by costume designer, Giuseppe Graziola.  After working on the routine for a couple of months, it felt like our two minute dance was over in the blink of an eye.  Following us was Joyce Taylor doing the very high-energy Lindy Hop with her partner, Mark Kihara, and then Paul Lambros doing the West Coast Swing with his partner Deron Hayes.  One of the fun highlights of Paul’s dance was not only his dancing and his acting talents, but his quick de-frocking of his partner, Deron Hayes’ dress, leaving her in a sexy two –piece dance outfit.  The finale of the competition was Colette Courtion dressed in a very sexy black one-shoulder leotard with dance partners Ricki Mason and Tanya Harris sensuously performing the Beyonce Single Ladies’  Dance with attitude!

Following each performance came the part of the evening I was most worried about (after the dance piece!).  It was time for a “raise the paddle” to vote for each dancer individually and of course the votes were in the form of money being donated to Plymouth Housing Group.  I was worried that some of the dancers (me?) might be standing on the stage uncomfortably while no one voted and standing there would be excruciatingly embarrassing.  Fortunately, my concerns turned out not to be a factor at all.  The audience responded enthusiastically to all the dancers with plenty of votes for each!  When Marcelo and I were standing on the stage during this segment, I was astonished and gratified to see so many bid paddles raised voting for us!  I was overwhelmed with the amazing support we received from so many friends and acquaintances in the audience.  I kept blowing kisses to all the generous bidders for what seemed like an endless amount of time while people just kept bidding and bidding, many in chunks of $500 at a time.

Following this, the celebrity judges, Peter Boal, Nicole Vogel and Marco retired to deliberate on the winners while the amazingly talented young nine-year-old dancers from Everett, Erik and Rickie performed.  There was even another opportunity to raise a paddle to donate more to Plymouth Housing Group following their performance.

Finally the dance competitors filed back onstage to find out who would win the three mirror ball trophies.  Patti Payne provided color commentary (something for which I have just coined the name “Patti-Patter”) and  the winners were announced:

Cyber-Choice Award – Michelle Foreman Barnet

Peoples’ Choice Award – Cathi Hatch

Artistic Award – Colette Courtion

Of course, when Patti announced my name, Marcelo and I were thrilled and we held our mirror ball trophy high for all to see!  It was so fun to hear the four Hatch tables and the JP Morgan Chase table erupt in cheers and see blue feather boas waving furiously!

Though I know I have many additional people to thank in addition to those listed in this blog posting, I do want to thank the following people for attending the big event last evening and cheering me on:  First of all my husband, Ken Hatch, who not only attended, but also uncomplainingly stayed so I could dance in celebration into the wee hours of the morning; followed by Joan & Bob Cremin, Bonny & John Midby, Stacy & Dean Jones, Mike Kunath & Kate Harrison, Robin Brummet, Michelle Rubesch, Trudi & Dave Syferd, Toni & Rod Hoffman, Penny & Mick Thackeray, Arlene Wright and Beni Turan, Debe & Jeff Doran, Lynn & Frank Lindsay, Sue & Tom Raschella, JJ McKay, Pat Wallace, Rachel Garces, Spencer Kunath, Trisha Nerney, Delphine & Charles Stevens, Joanne & Ted Baseler, Micki & Bob Flowers, Supida Sanders, Ed Brennan, Katie & Kevin Laramore, and Alicia & Michael Hatch.  I know there were others in the room who cheered me on and voted for me as well but I don’t have all the names yet, but please do know that I so appreciate you too!

And of course another BIG thank you is offered to all the people who voted for me online prior to the event.  I know some of you voted both prior to and at the event and I appreciate every single one of you!  Thank you for your support of me personally and of Plymouth Housing Group.

But, now it is time to put ice on my Bachata inflamed knee and take a nap!    

It is almost here - Seattle Dances!

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to see the rest of the competitors who will be dancing in the Seattle Dances dance competition on Saturday evening. I was impressed with what each of the non-professional dancers has accomplished in getting ready for this big first-year fundraiser to benefit Plymouth Housing Group.

Beautiful blonde Michelle Foreman Barnet, who is opening her new hotel, the The Maxwell Hotel within a week after the completion is dancing the tango with partner Greg Rolnick. Steve Goldfarb, who has been working out twice a day since he agreed to participate and is looking extremely buff in his see-through black shirt, is dancing the salsa with partner Alison Cockrill. Food and cocktail diva, Kathy Casey is dancing a fun and high-energy Charleston in a bright pink and black dress with her partner, Josh Welter. KING-5 TV news anchor, Joyce Taylor has been practicing for a year working on the Lindy Hop and will dance with partner, Mark Kihara. Their dance includes some fun choreography that ends with them in a heap on the floor. Plymouth Housing Group Executive Director, Paul Lambros looks completely at ease dancing the West Coast Swing with his partner Deron Hayes. Paul is such a good dancer that I wonder if this whole dance competition with him competing was his idea!? (Actually, I know the truth is that it was Board President, Lynn Beck’s idea.) Showing a little skin and going after the “sexiest costume vote” is Colette Courtion who is dancing a sizzling Beyonce’s Single Ladies Video dance with dance partners, Ricki Mason and Tanya Harris. See photo of Colette, dance partners and celebrity judge Marco above. My dance partner, Marcelo Garces, and I are dancing the Bachata, a Dominican salsa-style dance with lots of hip movement. I am currently wearing a knee brace as a result of all our rehearsals and the leg and knee action needed to make the hip movements. Our big trick is the “neck drop” that includes my head sliding down his leg to his ankle and then him throwing me back upright by kicking his leg. I have to close my eyes each time because it is so scary!

It has taken a cadre of staff, volunteers and professionals to produce this event. Hallie Kuperman, pictured above with her video camera, owner of Century Ballroom, is one of the primary sponsors of the event supplying dance rehearsal space for the dancers and providing the dance partners and 10 lessons for each selected dancer. Tamara Wilson (pictured with me above) of Wilson Public Relations has provided all the promotion support for the big event and has already said that she will dance next year in the competition. Marco, who owns the successful and popular hair salon Marco's Hair Salon, is not only serving as a celebrity judge along with Peter Boal, Artistic Director of Pacific Northwest Ballet and Nicole Vogel, publisher of Seattle Metropolitan magazine, he is also providing the hair and make-up support for the dancers. All of the costume design has been provided by Giuseppe Graziola shown in the bottom photo with my royal blue and turquoise costume on which he has worked long and hard. In his final version of my costume, he actually draped the fabric directly on my body so he could fit it perfectly. The Guest Emcee is Patti Payne and the 20 item live auction will be handled by Sharon Friel.

Leading up to the actual event, people have been able to go online and “vote” for their favorite dancer with all funds going to Plymouth Housing Group. Plymouth Housing Group Board President Lynn Beck and Barb Nystrom, serving as event co-chairs have been happily surprised with the response to this pre-event fundraising opportunity with the total raised to date in online voting at $23,000.

Tomorrow is the big day! I will be busy with hair, make-up and rehearsals until the big event begins at 5:30 pm.

Treehouse Luncheon with Michael Oher

Yesterday, as a member of the “Advisors to the Treehouse Board,” I had the pleasure of attending the annual Treehouse Champions for Foster Kids luncheon at the Sheraton Seattle. It was a huge success and here are the results in the words of Dawn Rains, the Treehouse Director of Development and Marketing, “With about 1,200 people in attendance, we raised $707,326 – a 47% increase over last year! This will go a long way in helping foster kids like Naomi, Tyler and Michael heal from abuse and neglect and follow their dreams.”

Michael Oher, (top photo above) the pro football player featured in the book and movie, The Blindside, was the guest speaker and in his humble and humorous way, shared a bit about his journey and how he wants to help other foster children succeed in life. Other speakers included Janis Avery, Treehouse Executive Director, who has personally raised two children that she and her partner adopted from foster care, and has dedicated the last 15 years of her life to Treehouse and the children they serve. Also sharing stories of their positive association with Treehouse and the difference it made in their lives were foster children, Naomi Nelson, a Treehouse alumni who is currently attending Western Washington University and Tyler Cormier, a 15 year old Treehouse youth who is a high school honor student and tae kwon do black belt. See photo of Tyler (3^rd from left in back row of bottom photo) along with his siblings in the Cormier Family that performed two inspirational songs for the audience.

Friends Carmen Gayton and Alexandra Brookshire co-chaired the luncheon and were lauded for their vision and leadership, tireless commitment and countless hours of service. I especially appreciated that the luncheon was held in a downtown hotel which made it much easier to access than some of the previous years’ luncheons held at the sports stadiums. Also attending the luncheon were fellow Junior League of Seattle sustaining members pictured from left to right in center photo, Toni Hoffman, Mary Herche, Janet True and me.

Yes, Dancing is Harder that it Appears!

Here I am with wet hair with my amazing Bachata dance partner, Marcelo Garces, following a hard dance workout including a difficult grapevine sequence expected to be danced at warp speed.  The second photo is of costume designer, Giuseppe Graziola and my dance style teacher, Naomi Scoggin.  It takes a village to help get ready for the upcoming Seattle Dances competition fundraiser which will occur on March 13, 2010 at the Fremont Studio.  This dance competition is a fundraiser for Plymouth Housing Group, so when people go online and vote (for Marcelo and me of course), all the funds go to support the important mission of Plymouth Housing Group which is to provide permanent homes for the most challenged homeless people in our community—those suffering from long-term homelessness and multiple disabilities.  Click here to vote for me as “Best Cyber Choice Dancer” (best to do it sight unseen though there is a brief video clip on the website of Marcelo and me at rehearsal).

Please VOTE for Cathi! Voting is now live for SeattleDances.com!

In a shameless attempt to capture the mirror ball, since I am worried that my actual dancing won’t do it, the link is below where you can vote for your favorite “dancer” (I’m hoping you will vote for me at $25 per vote, and Plymouth Housing Group is a great cause of course!). Here is where to go to vote (http://www.seattledances.org/) and just click at the bottom of the page on "Cast Your VOTE" or just click on my name here Cathi Hatch and it will take you to my voting page. 

And, for those of you that are available and want to join Ken and me at our tables on March 13^th, the evening of the humiliating event, the link to register is also http://www.seattledances.org/ . Please do let me (or McKenzie in my office at m.powell@zinosociety.com ) know if you will be joining us so I can save room at our tables. Now, I’m off to rehearsal . . .