12th Annual Girls Inc. Power of the Purse Raises $431,294

12th Annual Girls Inc. Power of the Purse Raises $431,294

by | Mar 23, 2017 | Features, News

Portland, OR. This year’s “must have bags” were up for bid at the 12th annual Power of the Purse (POP) Gala on March 17th. At the benefit notable Portlanders and designers joined forces to create one-of-a-kind purses which are auctioned off to benefit Girls Inc. of the Pacific Northwest. (Photo credit, Jennifer Rogers)

Kennedy, helped entertain supporters, she’s a Girls Council member.

Local designers, including Ellington Handbags, Looptworks and new to the event, designer Denise Tjarks, created purses together with this year’s “Purse-o-nalities.” 14 local celebs, including KGW reporter Cassidy Quinn and BurnCycle founder Jessi Duley showed their passion for empowering young girls. Unique creations were showcased by school-aged Girls Inc. in a live runway auction.

Organizers say, over the past decade, the Power of the Purse Gala has been recognized as one of Portland’s most fashionable fundraising gala and has raised more than $2.5 million to support Girls Inc. programming in the Portland metro area, and the greater Pacific Northwest. The nonprofit works to inspire and empower girls, ages 6 to 18, to be strong, smart, and bold through after-school groups, mentorship and educational opportunities. Together, with support from partners, funders, and the Pacific Northwest communities they serve, Girls Inc. gives every girl the opportunity to realize the “Power of Her.”

The nonprofit works to inspire and empower girls, ages 6 to 18, to be strong, smart, and bold through after-school groups, mentorship and educational opportunities. Together, with support from partners, funders, and the Pacific Northwest communities they serve, Girls Inc. gives every girl the opportunity to realize the “Power of Her.”

Rapper Wynne performed at the event.

This year’s Power of the Purse Gala kicked off with an exclusive POP Up Shop and reception prior to the runway event. The POP Up Shop featured hand-picked, local vendors, with 25 percent of all proceeds raised going to support Girls Inc. programming. Vendors included Amira Jewelry, Fetch Eyewear and many others. In addition, this year the POP Up Shop featured a “Girls Experience” opportunity, allowing for party-goers to give towards educational and empowering opportunities for the girls.

This year’s 2017 Purse-o-nalities were:

• Tiffany Boyd, co-founder, What the Festival;

• Eden Dawn, style editor, Portland Monthly;

• Stacey Dodson, market president, U.S. Bank;

• Jessi Duley, owner, BurnCycle;

• Susan Fairchild, owner; S Fairchild Designs;

• Paula Hayes, CEO and founder, Hue Noir;

• Kathleen Lewis, philanthropist;

• Peggy Maguire, senior vice president, corporate accountability and performance, Cambia Health Solutions;

• Hon. Adrienne Nelson, judge, Multnomah County Circuit Court;

• Kate Norris, founder, winemaker, and general manager, SE Wine Collective;

• Cassidy Quinn, reporter, KGW News;

• Angela Sheehan, principal, CFO, Glumac;

• Kelsey Troy, senior vice president, human resources, KinderCare Education; and

• Susan Wilkerson, vice president and general manager of strategic global accounts, Lam Research

Featured purse designers were:

• Leather Girl Kelley;

• Mari Lassa;

• Ellington Handbags;

• Scott Hamlin of Looptworks;

• Susan Fairchild of S Fairchild Designs;

• Christina Castillo of Christina Castillo Handbags;

• LOURDES é EVA;

• COLTY;

• Janny Downey of Minou-Minou;

• Denise Tjarks;

• SOREL;

• Jeff Amrhein of Hand and Hide; and

• Mia Scofield of Mo&Co.

The event is presented by KinderCare Education, along with supporting sponsors Harold & Arlene Schnitzer Care Foundation, Bank of America, Buchanan Angeli Altschul & Sullivan LLP, Ernst & Young, KeyBank, Portland Trail Blazers, The Standard, U.S. Bank, Nike, Wells Fargo Bank, Hannah Andersson, Delta Airlines, Kaiser Permanente, Markowitz Herbold PC., Burncycle, Sally Morrow Creative, Premiere Press, Cambia, Kassab Jewelers, Randall Children’s Hospital, Cindy Thompson Events, Lam Research and Walsh Construction.

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About Girls Inc.

Girls Inc. of the Pacific Northwest inspires girls, ages six to 18, to be strong, smart, and bold. Our gender-specific programs and research-based curricula provide girls with the confidence and self-esteem to access a bright and economically-independent future. For more information, please visit www.girlsincpnw.org.

United Way Supporters Thanked for $21,631,102 in Donations

United Way Supporters Thanked for $21,631,102 in Donations

by | Jul 2, 2014 | Events, Features

Portland, June 25th, 2014. At the Spirit of Generosity Awards United Way of the Columbia-Willamette recognized exceptional donors, companies and volunteers who contributed to the organization’s success during the 2013-14 fundraising season. The celebration at the Winningstad Theater drew 275 people and gave leaders the chance to thank donors for the $21,631,102 raised in the 2013-14 local United Way campaign. Pictured are: Patricia Bussey, Chief Development Officer, United Way of the Columbia-Willamette; Tiffiny Burkey, Network Division Software Lab Manager, Intel; Barbara Forrer, Intel retiree; Jill Eiland, Corporate Affairs Manager, Intel; Maksim Drotenko, Community Affairs Manager, Intel; Love Centerwall, Vice President, Corporate Relations, United Way; Donald Braden, Director – Resource Development Operations, United Way. Intel won the Corporate Leadership Award as well as the Largest Corporate Gift and Largest Employee Gift awards.

Funds raised will go to break the cycle of childhood poverty in the four-county region, as well as to nonprofits selected by individual donors. (Photo Credit: Jessica Love, Perfectly Blossom Photography)

Shawn Butler, Operations Manager, UPS; Lyle Arnett, Operations Manager, UPS; Kevin Church, Division Manager, UPS; Wes Walker, Operations Manager, UPS; Adam Crawford, Corporate Relations Executive, United Way of the Columbia-Willamette. Church won the Employee Campaign Coordinator of the Year award.

Shawn Butler, Operations Manager, UPS; Lyle Arnett, Operations Manager, UPS; Kevin Church, Division Manager, UPS; Wes Walker, Operations Manager, UPS; Adam Crawford, Corporate Relations Executive, United Way of the Columbia-Willamette. Church won the Employee Campaign Coordinator of the Year award.

Carol Aaron, Senior Vice President for Cu¬lture and People, PeaceHealth; Tamera Millington Bhatti, Director, Human Resources, PeaceHealth; with additional PeaceHealth employees. PeaceHealth won the Campaign Chair’s Award, Best New Company Campaign Award and Largest New Corporate Gift Award.

Carol Aaron, Senior Vice President for Cu¬lture and People, PeaceHealth; Tamera Millington Bhatti, Director, Human Resources, PeaceHealth; with additional PeaceHealth employees. PeaceHealth won the Campaign Chair’s Award, Best New Company Campaign Award and Largest New Corporate Gift Award.

 

A full list of the award winners is at http://unitedway-pdx.org/spirit-generosity-awards-2014.

From United Way

OUR MISSION

Improve lives, strengthen communities and advance equity by mobilizing the caring power of people across our metro area.

ACTIONS

  • Ignite a community-wide social movement thereby mobilizing thousands to action—to give, advocate and volunteer—to improve the conditions in which they live
  • Galvanize and connect all sectors of society—individuals, businesses, nonprofits, faith communities and governments—to create long-term social change that produces healthy, well-educated and financially stable individuals and families
  • Raise, invest and leverage millions of dollars annually to create and support innovative programs and approaches which generate sustained impact in local communities
  • Hold ourselves accountable to our steadfast commitment to equity and continually measure improvement in education, financial stability and health

VALUES

  • Collective impact: We are better together; United Way inspires people to get involved and focuses our collective resources for amplified results.
  • Equity: We recognize inequities in our community and will prioritize our resources to level the playing field for those communities most impacted by these inequities.
  • Service: We believe volunteerism transforms our communities and ourselves. 
  • Connection: Our portfolio of relationships—corporate, nonprofit, government, faith and philanthropic—is unique and strengthens our ability to collaborate, convene, leverage and achieve change. 
  • Integrity: We act with integrity that justifies trust, and we take responsibility for our relationships and results. 
  • Innovation: We support new and better ways to solve old problems.
  • Pursuit of excellence: We adapt and learn from both our successes and mistakes.
  • Passion: We are tenaciously committed to a better community and to building a modern United Way to drive positive social change.

– See more at: http://www.unitedway-pdx.org/mission#sthash.1FcmTmok.dpuf