Inspiring Women Honored at Dress for Success Oregon Gala

Dress for Success gala

Portland, OR. Dress for Success Oregon held its most successful fundraiser to date on April 28th at the Portland Art Museum. 540 fun-loving guests raised over $343,000 to help women in the Portland area get jobs, keep jobs and thrive. (Photo credit, Images by Brant)

The “Celebrate Success” benefit showcases women who have made great strides in their path to self-sufficiency and local women from business, philanthropy and government. Those women were honored with The Athena Award for setting an example for other women and men to follow. They are role models that exemplify the best elements of success, compassion and community engagement.

Cindy Larson & Shari Dunn from Dress for Success Oregon with the Athena Award winners: Loretta Mabinton from PGE, Michelle Weisenbach from Key Bank, Kathy Larson from Larson Legacy and Commissioner Loretta Smith.

Long-time supporter Bank of America hosts a table of business and community leaders, and served as the evening’s presenting sponsor.

Angelique Okeke from Nike, Lauren Osbourn from JPMorgan Chase, and Benjamin Okeke, Attorney at Law, enjoying the evening.

Pam Mason, former Program Manager at Dress for Success Oregon with Jan Robertson from Norris Beggs & Simpson and Karen Fishel, co-founder of Dress for Success Oregon, having fun at the reception.

The 2017 Athena Award Winners were:

• Kathy Larson, Vice President and co-founder of The Larson Legacy

• Loretta Mabinton, Managing Attorney and Associate General Counsel at Portland General Electric

• Commissioner Loretta Smith, Multnomah County Commissioner

• Michelle Weisenbach, President of KeyBank Oregon and SW Washington.

The event featured a gala cocktail reception, diamond dig, seated dinner, live auction, and fashion show. Emcee Poison Waters delighted the crowd and Nattalyee Heather Randall amazed with her vocals.

Sponsored by Bank of America, The Standard, Wells Fargo, Arlene Schnitzer, Gerding Edlen, Key Bank, Moda Health, Vernier Software and other generous partners.

About Dress for Success Oregon:

The mission of Dress for Success Oregon is a Workforce Development organization designed to empower women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. Well-known as an organization that provides professional clothing, it is Dress for Success Oregon’s proven job preparation, retention and mentorship programs that have truly become the heart of the organization.

Since opening their doors in 1999, Dress for Success Oregon has served over 25,000 women in Oregon and SW Washington. In 2016, 1,500 women were helped and 617 women found jobs as a result of the various career development programs provided by Dress for Success Oregon. This affiliate nonprofit receives no tax dollars and is 100% funded by the generosity of donors in the community. All money raised stays in the local community and allows the anti-poverty nonprofit to help even more women.

To learn more about how Dress for Success Oregon helps local women, please visit: oregon.dressforsuccess.org

Elisa Klein

I’ve been a professional journalist and writer since 1987, (and long-time reporter for KOIN-TV.) As a nationally published reporter, with a Master’s Degree in Journalism, I love to report positive news and information. Journalism has also connected me with another non-profit where I served as a leader; the Northwest’s biggest writer’s organization: The Willamette Writers.