Please join us on Saturday, June 3, 2023 at 5:30PM for a fun-filled prom themed evening with dinner, wine, bidding, and laughter as we celebrate 45 years of services and raise critical funds to support early learning. We will be celebrating with you in person at Magnuson Park Hangar 30. Let us unite with our volunteers, donors and community members to support Denise Louie Education Center and hear about the work we are doing as you engage and connect with your tables. Together we will honor this year’s Dream Award recipients and help raise funds needed to close the opportunity gap.
Event Schedule
5:30pm - Check-In | Silent Auction Bidding | Live Auction Preview
6:30pm - Program | Live Auction
8:00pm - Dancing begins
9:00pm - Event concludes
Theme
Dress up to bid and dance the night away in your favorite semi-formal, formal, or black-tire attire. While our theme may be prom, that does not mean you are required to wear something from a specific era unless you want to! Instead, just get ready for an evening full of excitement and celebration!
The Dream Award was established to acknowledge the exceptional work of individuals and organizations whose strong commitment to children has resulted in (1) increased access to early education for children and families and (2) increased internal resources that allow Denise Louie to serve and expand its programmatic mission and goals.
2023 Individual Dream Award Recipient - Karen Ko
For many years, Karen has served as one of DLEC's pioneers through her dedication and endless support of our mission of closing the opportunity gap for our children and families. As Executive Director in the 1980s, she expanded our Head Start program and Early Childhood Education and Assistance program to receive federal and state funding for early learning services. After leaving DLEC, her love and passion for the community never wavered. She took on the influential role as a Community Engagement Coordinator for the City of Seattle, where she advocated for community issues, connected businesses, families to resources and helped uplift the whole community. Her support of community members to advocate and navigate city systems and empowering individuals to become self-sufficient left a lasting impact on how they saw their role in the community. As a community leader and an individual, she has amplified our work and exhibited a remarkable passion and commitment to DLEC's children, their families, and the greater Seattle community. Karen's dedication to public service has left a positive lasting impact in the lives of children and families served through Denise Louie.
2023 Community Dream Award - Amerigroup
Amerigroup has supported education, child development, and early learning by helping hundreds of nonprofit organizations in Washington State. In 2022, they continued to support and expanded their initiatives to support the communites' needs, advocating for predominantly low-income communities and families of color through supporting nonprofits that provided direct services. For the past 10 years, Amerigroup has partnered with DLEC, bringing staff and families together by volunteering, supporting our all-staff meetings, and co-teaching our parent education night. In addition, they championed many summer programs and advocated for wellness during community and health fairs, back-to-school drives, and even COVID-19 events. Amerigroup has encouraged our vision of empowering children and families to reach their full potential so they can advocate for themselves, our community, and the world through early learning supports. Without Amerigroup's partnership, we would not have been able to successfully support our most vulnerable children and families. As a community organization, they have exhibited a remarkable passion and commitment to our children, their families, and the greater Seattle community.
Special Guest Speaker - Dr. Sheila Edwards Lange
We are honored that this year’s guest speaker is Dr. Sheila Edwards Lange. Dr. Lange is the Chancellor of the University of Washington Tacoma and as the chief executive officer of the campus she provides leadership on all campus matters. She has a wide range of experience in higher education administration and has been a leading advocate for diversity and inclusion throughout her career.Prior to her position at UW Tacoma, Dr. Lange served as President of Seattle Central College (SCC). Under her leadership, Seattle Central strengthened relationships with community partners to create new academic programs, broadened equity and inclusion initiatives and enhanced student support services to better promote student success. Dr. Lange has been an active contributor to many civic and educational boards both locally and nationally to advance educational excellence and inclusion. She currently serves on the boards of Pugh Capital Management, the Seattle Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Washington Campus Compact, AAA Washington and the Seattle Art Museum. She is the past national president of the Women in Engineering Pro-Active Network. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the Washington State Association of College Trustees’ 2020 CEO of the Year, Puget Sound Business Journal’s 2021 Director of the Year and 2011 Woman of Influence, and the 2013 UW College of Education Distinguished Alumni Award. Dr. Lange was born in the small town of Pachuta, Miss., and, as a first-generation college student, received a bachelor’s degree in social ecology from the University of California, Irvine. She earned a doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington in Seattle. She is a Head Start alumni and an advocate for access to early childhood education for all.
Auction Chairs - Denise Moriguchi and Jennie Cochran-Chinn
Denise has been a former board member of Denise Louie Education Center and has been serving on our Emeritus Board since 2021. With
deep roots in the community, Denise’s local knowledge combined with her
wealth of management and marketing experience has made her an
incredible resource, especially as a member of the capital campaign
committee for Mercy Magnuson Place. Denise earned her degrees in
economics, Asian studies, and business administration from Sloan School
of Management at MIT and Bowdoin College. Her career in marketing and
brand management spans nearly 15 years, including branding for Bayer
Healthcare. After returning to Uwajimaya in 2013 as Marketing Director,
Denise became President in 2016 and CEO in 2017. In addition to her
dedication to DLEC, Denise sits on the board for AAA and serves on Mayor
Bruce Harrell’s transition committee.
Jennie
has been an instrumental volunteer in our 2021 and 2022 Dinner and Auction and
Development efforts. Her support has led to the success of Denise
Louie's virtual auctions and return to in person auctions. We are excited to have her as our 2023
Auction Chair. "The
brain is a muscle, and just like any muscle it is important to stretch
and build it. This is what early learning does - it sets the foundation
for learning for the rest of a child's life. It's fundamental for
every child to have access to multicultural early learning that allows
them to build that necessary foundation to be successful in life. No
other organization does this better than Denise Louie Education
Center." Jennie Cochran-Chinn
Auctioneer - Gee Scott
Gee Scott is a Radio Host on the “Gee & Ursula Show. Podcast Host “Leaving A Legacy” and a Game Day Host for the Seattle Seahawks. He is also an Auctioneer and Emcee. "If better is possible, then good is never enough." #ScottLegacy
