Seattle City Council Pos. 1

Guests of the Mary’s Place luncheon donate shoes for the women. Hot sauce is another popular donation item.

Your name could be Sally or maybe Debra. And you and your toddler could be homeless, left out in the cold, with no clue of where to go and without a place to lay your heads this very night.

If that’s you – and it wouldn’t take much for any of us to end up homeless — then you’ll be eternally grateful to Mary’s Place, a day shelter established in 1999 in response to the needs of homeless women and children. Since then, … Continue Reading »

A blurry Geena Davis (thanks to my colleague, Sally Clark, for snapping the pic)

Women’s charities used to be funded by the farmer’s wife contributing egg money to overseas missions. That’s definitely not true today — not since the YWCA began its tradition of Inspire Luncheons 25 years ago.

What began modestly a generation ago has become a three-venue production, raising somewhere around $1 million annually to empower women and families. This week’s 25th anniversary event at the Washington State Convention Center first paid tribute to the late KOMO Anchor Kathi Gertzen who would have celebrated her 55th birthday that same day, April 29. For 24 … Continue Reading »

Last week I broke bread with a delegation from 15 countries across the globe, 16 women and one lone man. The visitors came to this country to participate in the U. S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program.

Cathy Allen, CEO of the Connections Group, posing with two of the visitors.

What I learned from these visitors is invaluable. I heard how they have been working on behalf of women and children in their countries to combat violence against women, counter human trafficking and address child sexual abuse.

At the dinner event, sponsored by the Center for Women and Democracy, I was lucky enough to be seated next to Daniella Misail-Nichitin from … Continue Reading »

It’s National Volunteer Week and few groups have a better excuse to celebrate than Gilda’s Club Seattle.

One of 28 groups nationwide, the club takes its name from the late Saturday Night Live comedian Gilda Radner. After Radner contracted ovarian cancer, she was helped by friends. Her wish was that people everywhere could enjoy such support.

Although Gilda’s Club Seattle maintains a hard-working core staff, much of the support work –  hosting support sessions, teaching yoga, art, cooking and exercise – is done by dedicated volunteers.

Sunday afternoon, Executive Director Anna Gottlieb handed out more than a dozen “we couldn’t do it without you” awards recognizing the service of those volunteers. The large audience was seated in the comfortable mismatched easy chairs and … Continue Reading »

It’s easy to get blinded at L.A. Live, the glitzy entertainment complex in the heart of LA’s downtown. There are sky-high banners, dueling strobe lights, giant advertising signs and flashy promos. Everywhere you look there’s enough stimuli to power an electric substation.

The complex includes a 14-screen multiplex, a sports arena with three tiers of suites, enough restaurants to feed a ravenous army, a 1000-room hotel and a revived convention  center.

The 23-acre site once was under-utilized land, a scary part of town where no one walked alone at night.  Now thanks to can-do vision and a slew of public/private partnerships, L. A. Live is a people magnet, drawing stars and average Joes alike from all over the vast urban area. The … Continue Reading »