The Sound of the Pacific Northwest

Seafair is almost here! ! The Seafair Summer Kickoff is on June 1 and it goes on till the Seafair Weekend Festival, July 31 through August 2 at Genesee Park and Playfield. This event anchors the Boeing Seafair Air Show and the Apollo Mechanical Cup Hydroplane Races on Lake Washington. Have you ever wondered when and why Seattle became so huge on hydroplanes racing? Our guest today knows everything about hydroplanes races in Seattle. As a matter of fact, he was an unlimited hydroplane driver himself! And he has written and published several books on the subject of unlimited hydroplane racing. David Williams’ latest book is “The Chuck Lyford Story. Every Day Counts.”

We’re excited to welcome Natalie Edwards, Interim Executive Director of Portland Backpack, to the program. Hear how Portland Backpack is making a difference by helping fight food insecurity for children and families in the community. Don’t miss this inspiring conversation on the latest episode of Sound of the Pacific Northwest!

New Episode of Sound of the Pacific Northwest! 

This week we welcome Roula Bland, Head Coach of SAKE Paddling Club, for an inspiring conversation about teamwork, resilience, competition, and the growing dragon boat community in the Pacific Northwest.

From championship races to building community on the water, Roula shares the passion and purpose behind the sport — and why paddling changes lives.

Don’t miss this encouraging and energetic episode

Furnish Hope is more than just a furniture bank—it is a community movement dedicated to turning empty houses into warm, dignified homes for those in need in Bend, Oregon. As the only organization of its kind east of the Cascades, it serves as a critical bridge for individuals and families rebuilding their lives after crisis. To talk about Furnish Hope, we invited their Founding Executive Director, Megan Martin.

The Des Moines Legacy Foundation is hosting their 4th Annual Bayside Diamond Ball on June 6th at the Des Moines Yacht Club. To talk about Bayside Diamond Ball “PARTY” and the Des Moines Legacy Foundation, invited their president Patrice Thorell.

CASA began in King County with just a small group of volunteers recruited by word of mouth. Today, it has grown into a nationwide network of more than 70,000 volunteers. These individuals are specially trained by the court to advocate for children who have been removed from their homes due to allegations of abuse or neglect.

CASA volunteers play a vital role by gathering information, providing reports to the court about each child’s needs, helping inform critical decisions, and ensuring that every child’s voice is heard throughout the process.

To share more about this important work, we’re joined by Sarah Childs, Recruitment & Retention Coordinator for the King County Dependency CASA Program, and Michael Griesedieck, Program Manager.

Nourish Oregon is hosting their 10th annual Share the Love gala on Saturday, April 18 at the Oregon Golf Club. To Talk about Nourish Oregon and the Share the Love gala We’ve invited Betty Brown the president of Nourish Oregon and Aaron Brown, their deputy director.

Ever feel like your phone is basically glued to your hand? Today, we talked with Mitra Manesh, author of The Attentionist: New Choices for a New World. She says this isn’t about lacking discipline; it’s an attention crisis, and most of us don’t even realize it.

If you stand in the corner of Wells Ave and 3rd Street in Renton, WA and look up, you’ll see a beautiful dragon on top of a rooftop. The dragon’s name is Erasmus, and he has his own festivities. To talk about Dragon’s Landing, we have invited, Gianna Grisolia, of Open Invite Events, the signature event producer behind Dragon’s Landing, April 12th from 10am to 5 pm in the corner of Wells Ave and 3rd Street in Renton, WA

Today we’re talking to Street Dog Coalition, an organization that provides free veterinary care to pets of people experiencing homelessness.

To talk about Street Dog Coalition, we invited their Executive Director, Katrina Weschler.

This weekend, we celebrate World Down Syndrome Day. World Down Syndrome Day is marked each year on March 21. The 21st day of March (the 3rd month of the year) was selected to signify the uniqueness of the triplication (trisomy) of the 21st chromosome which causes Down syndrome. World Down Syndrome Day provides an opportunity to raise awareness about the rights, and inclusion of people with Down syndrome around the world. To celebrate World Down Syndrome Day. Today we have invited an organization in Portland that empowers individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We’re talking about PHAME, with PH, not F. To talk about PHAME, we have invited Dana Dinh, their Outreach & Student Engagement Manager.

The Seattle Seahawks are officially now for sale, right after winning the Superbowl against the Patriots. The team, managed by the Paul G. Allen Estate, is expected to sell for a record-breaking price, potentially exceeding $7 billion to $10 billion, as part of a long-term plan to donate proceeds to philanthropy. Considering this, why did Family Promise of Spokane officially offered to buy them for $43,542? To explain this, we invited their CEO, Joe Ader.

The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) will host a free Alzheimer’s & Caregiving Educational Conference for Portland-area residents on Wednesday, March 18 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm PT at the University Place Hotel & Conference Center (310 SW Lincoln Street, Portland). The free conference is open to everyone and will allow participants to learn from experts in the field of Alzheimer’s disease, brain health, and caregiving. Register by visiting www.alzfdn.org/tour. Advance registration is highly recommended. To talk about this event, we invited Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., Alzheimer’s Foundation of America President and CEO, and one of the presenters, Garvin Reiter, a certified elder law attorney with 25 years of experience who specializes on legal issues faced by the elderly and individuals with disabilities.

February is American Heart Month and a time when we shine a spotlight on heart health. We invited two volunteers from the American Heart Association to talk about this: Dr. Ruben Halperin, a Medical Director at Providence Health Plan in Portland and a volunteer medical expert for the American Heart Association, and Therese Dumas, who has been touched by heart disease and is serving as a Go Red for Women Ambassador in Washington. They talked about heart health and steps we can take to reduce our risk for heart disease and stroke at any age, but also as we age. Listen to our talk here.

There’s an organization in Portland that has been coming to the rescue of homeless youth between 15 and 25 years of age since 2002. Their name is p:ear. To talk about p:ear, we invited Tony Camacho Martinez, their program director.

Urban Harvest Exchange is a grassroots 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Tacoma, Washington, dedicated to food sovereignty, food rescue, and community mutual aid.To talk about it, we invited David Thompson, the Founder and Director of Urban Harvest Exchange. Listen to our talk here.

When the pandemic hit in 2020, April wanted to help seniors stay active during the shutdown in the comfort and safety of their homes. Wanting to reach as many people as possible, she started creating free video workouts on YouTube with her then 80-year-old mom. Both are humbled and grateful that they are helping so many — yes2next videos have been viewed more than 60 million times with more than 500,000 subscribers.

CASA started from a handful of volunteers recruited by word of mouth in King County and has grown to 70,000+ volunteers across the United States.  The volunteers are trained by the court to advocate for the needs of children removed from their families due to abuse or neglect allegations.  CASA volunteers gather information, report to the court on the needs of the child, assist the court in making difficult decisions, and make sure that the children’s needs are heard.  To talk about CASA, we invited Sarah Childs, Recruitment & Retention Coordinator for The King County Dependency CASA Program, and Michael Griesedieck, their Program Manager.

Katherine Kehrli is the founder, chair, and chief bread & energy cookie officer for Community Loaves, a grassroots bread and cookie home-based volunteer brigade, baking and delivering wholegrain loaves and energy cookies to local food banks. Listen to today's podcast to find more information about this fantastic organization. 

Dr. John Zeisel is a world-renowned expert on living with Alzheimer’s and he’s the founder of the I’m Still Here Foundation. You can meet him Thursday, January 22 from 1 – 2:30 pm at the Frye Art Museum Auditorium. This community-focused event is designed to bring together both people supporting loved ones on the memory loss journey and professionals who provide dementia-friendly programs and services in our area.