Announcing the nominees for Crosscut’s 3rd Annual Courage Awards

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The nominations are in! Last month, we asked you to tell us about the people in your community who are bravely standing up for what’s right, and pushing us all to think harder about how we can build a better future for our region. You delivered.

Here are the nominees for Crosscut’s 2015 Courage Awards. Winners will be honored at the third annual Courage Awards breakfast on October 29 at Seattle’s Benaroya Hall. Tickets (and tables!) are still available. We hope you’ll join us.

Courage in Public Service

Kaaren Andrews — Principal of the Interagency Academy, a network of high schools for troubled teens

Ross Barnes — Champion of the use of science based evidence in decision making

Miriam Barnett — CEO of YWCA Pierce County, fighting to eliminate racism and empower women

Jorge L. Barón — Executive director at the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project

Yoram Bauman — Founder of the Carbon Washington initiative, professor at the University of Washington, economist, and comedian

Alex Becker — advocacy program manager for the Real Change Homeless Empowerment Project, and co-chair of the Seattle Human Rights Commission.

Admiral Herbert Bridge — Naval officer, business magnate, and longtime philanthropist for a number of causes in Seattle and the Puget Sound area

Ellen Bynum — Executive Director at Friends of Skagit County

Dongho Chang — Traffic Engineer for the city of Seattle

Donnie Chin (posthumous) — Director and founder of the International District Emergency Center, shot in his car in the early morning hours on July 23

Rep. Judy Clibborn and Sen. Curtis King — Worked across the aisle to craft and pass state transportation bill

Desiree Douglass — President and founder of HeadStrong, and early advocate for safe crosswalks

Jenny Durkan — U.S. Attorney for Western Washington from 2009 to 2014, helped win reform for Seattle Police Department

Joni Earl — CEO of Sound Transit, led the effort to create a regional mass transit system

Louisa Edgerly — Associate scholar at the Center for Local Strategies Research, and adjunct Instructor and Lecturer at Seattle University and University of Washington, helping to unionize contingent faculty

Megan Ferland — Executive Director Western Washington Girl Scouts, fighting for the rights of transgender girls

Priscilla Lisicichi — Executive Director of Safe Streets, pioneering community policing, drug treatment, and community safety networks

L. Deon Fields — Mentor in Youth Violence Intervention with the Austin Foundation, and mentor at Seattle Public Schools

Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon — Washington State Representative and advocate for environmental cause

Kia Franklin — Partnership director at Equal Opportunity Schools, seeking to advance educational equity and reform

Faye Garneau — Businesswoman whose contributions changed the way Seattle holds district elections

Tom Glade — President of Evergreen Islands, advocates for a clean environment and quality of life in Skagit County

Cecile Hansen — Chair of the Duwamish Tribe since 1975, founder of Duwamish Tribal Services, and longtime champion for federal recognition of the Duwamish people.

Bruce Harrell — Seattle city councilmember and chair of the Public Safety, Civil Rights, and Technology Committee

Monisha Harrell — Chairperson for Equal Rights Washington

Nick Hanauer — Co-founder and partner at Second Avenue Partners, and civic activist for public education

Hye Kyong Jeong — Director of Outreach and Advocacy at The Arc of King County

Marissa Johnson and Mara Willaford — Black Lives Matter activists who protested Bernie Sanders' Westlake Park rally

Debora Juarez — Candidate for Seattle City Council, and twelve-year partner of Williams Kastner in the Chair Tribal Practice Group

Adrien Leavitt — Trial attorney with the King County Department of Public Defense, champion of queer issues, and photographer with #1 Must Have

Christopher Liu — Executive Director at Washington State Department of Enterprise Services, working to create opportunities for Minority, Women and Veteran owned businesses

Paulina Lopez - Community organizer in South Park and member of the Duwamish River Clean Up Coalition

Nicole Marshall — Associate director of Impact at City Year

Vince Matulionis — Director at United Way of King County and longtime advocate for fighting homelessness

Lola Peters — Writer for The Seattle Star and South Seattle Emerald, helping organize against acts of violence as a part of the Black Lives Matter Movement

Dave and Sue Pope — Local activists behind the Save the NE 130th Beach campaign

Heather Powell — CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Whatcom County

Seattle Goodwill — Nonprofit organization that provides education and employment to individuals in need

Susan Rooks — Board member of the City of Anacortes Housing Authority and all-around upstanding citizen

Paul Shoemaker — Founding executive director of Social Venture Partners and author of the book, Can’t Not Do

Marilyn Strickland — Mayor of Tacoma

Christoph Strouse — North Seattle College student and member / leader of many campus sustainability projects, such as solar power

Kurt Triplett — City Manager of Kirkland since 2010,  led effort to acquire 6-mile segment of the Eastside Rail Corridor

Dick Wagner — Maritime historian of the Pacific Northwest and founder of the Center for Wooden Boats museum

Washington Firefighters — Currently battling the largest wildfire in Washington state history

Rainn Wilson — Actor from "The Office" (Dwight Schrute) and longtime supporter of the Mona Foundation

Pam Winney — Leader of Friends of Forks Animals, dedicated to the health and welfare of animals in Clallam and Jefferson Counties

John Wolfe — Port of Tacoma commissioner

Women of Color for Systemic Change — Group dedicated to peaceful protests and dialogue aiming to ease tensions between people of color and police

Courage in Culture

Jo-Anne Birnie Danzker — Executive Director of the Frye Art Museum

Marcus Green — Editor-in-Chief of the South Seattle Emerald

Desiree Douglass — President and founder of HeadStrong, and early advocate for safe crosswalks

Duwamish Tribe — Native American tribe, indigenous to Seattle, but denied federal recognition

Zeke əswəli  — Preserver of the Lushootseed language and culture

Sam Farrazaino  — Founder of Equinox Studio

Tia Fields — Vice prinicipal at Garfield High School and spoken word artist

Melinda Fox — Co-founder and CEO of Echo Media Mobile S.P.C.

Wyking Garrett — Founding director of Umoja P.E.A.C.E. Center and key member of AfricaTown

Rev LaVerne Hall — Associate minister of Mount Zion Baptist Church and legacy life member of the National Council of Negro Women

Wier Harman — Executive director of Town Hall Seattle

Cecile Hansen — Chair of the Duwamish Tribe since 1975, founder of Duwamish Tribal Services, and longtime champion for federal recognition of Duwamish people

Chris Jordan — Artist, Tacoma Arts, active in Black Lives Matter movement

Dawn Mason — President of the board of directors of the First Place Scholars Charter School, and co-founder and longtime consulting director with Parents for Student Success

Jacqueline Miller — President and CEO of the World Affairs Council

Ijeoma Oluo — Writer addressing issues of race, feminism, identity, mental health, and the arts

Elsie Taniguch — Longtime CEO and President of Leilani's Enterprises, and health & wellness consultant at Nikken International

Huong Vu — Manager of arts, culture, and civic grants for the Boeing Company, and board member for Grantmakers in the Arts

Dick Wagner —Maritime historian of the Pacific Northwest and founder of the Center for Wooden Boats museum

Courage in Business

The Arc of King County — Non-profit organization serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Prometheus Brown — Rapper with Blue Scholars, and advocate for Filipino issues

Beto Yarce - Executive director of Ventures, a program that helps low-income business owners

Hazel and Don Cameron — Leaders of the Seattle CARES Mentoring Program and the 4C Coalition

Kevin Daniels — Owner of Daniels Real Estate, committed to preserving historic buildings

Jaebadiah Gardner — Founder and CEO of Gardner Global, Inc., and managing partner for Onpoint Real Estate Services

Nick Hanauer — Co-founder and partner at Second Avenue Partners, and ivic activist for public education

Taylor Hoang — Executive Director of the Ethnic Business Coalition

Norman Johnson — Executive director of Therapeutic Health Services

Susie Lee — Co-founder and CEO of the Siren social media platform, and independent artist

Nate Miles — Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Eli Lilly, advocate for children, families, social justice and educational advancement

Mona Foundation — Non-profit organization dedicated to improving education and gender equity in the U.S. and abroad

Kurt Petrauskas — Owner and founder of Earthwise Architectural Salvage

Heather Powell — CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Whatcom County

Dan Price — The founder and CEO of Gravity Payments, who raised the minimum salary of his employees to $70,000

Norm Rice — Former mayor of Seattle and former CEO and president of The Seattle Foundation

Jim Sinegal — Co-founder and former CEO of Costco, and major philanthropist

Fisher Qua — Member of Impact Hub, principal Practitioner at Back Loop Consulting, and steering committee member and farm manager at Alleycat Acres

Dick Wagner — Maritime historian of the Pacific Northwest, and founder of the Center for Wooden Boats museum

Lifetime Achievement

Hazel Cameron — Executive director of the 4C Coalition, mentoring vulnerable youth in King County

Donnie Chin (posthumous) — Director and founder of the International District Emergency Center, shot in his car in the early morning hours on July 23

Lovell Deon — Mentor in Youth Violence Intervention with the Austin Foundation, and mentor at Seattle Public Schools

Desiree Douglass — President and founder of HeadStrong, and early advocate for safe crosswalks

Joni Earl — CEO of Sound Transit, led the effort to create a regional mass transit system

Norman Johnson Fields  — Executive director of Therapeutic Health Services

Elson Floyd (posthumous) — President of Washington State University and Chairman of the Pac-12 CEO group, died of cancer on June 20

Carver Gayton — Former corporate manager of education relations at Boeing, and former executive director at the Northwest African American Museum

Cecile Hansen — Chair of the Duwamish Tribe since 1975, founder of Duwamish Tribal Services, and longtime champion for federal recognition of Duwamish people

Samuel Berry McKinney — Pastor emeritus of the Mount Zion Baptist Church, and longtime advocate for civil rights causes

Barbara Moore — Principal of South Lake High School and creator of teen parent programs

Sister Margaret "Peg" Murphy — OP of Catherine Place and advocate for women

Norm Rice — Former mayor of Seattle and former CEO and president of the Seattle Foundation

Dick Wagner — Maritime historian of the Pacific Northwest, and founder of the Center for Wooden Boats museum

Jacquie Jones Walsh — Executive board member of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists and longtime labor and civil rights activist

Priscilla Lisicichi — Executive Director of Safe Streets, pioneering community policing, drug treatment, and community safety networks

  

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