LIFE + CULTURE
NAVIGATING FRIENDSHIP AND BUSINESS
FOOD + BEVERAGE CHEERS TO DAD! LOCAL SERVICES JOURNEY FROM THE OUTSIDE IN
THE ULTIMATE HIGH - PERFORMANCE
SPORTS WATCH
ULTRA - ROBUST / ULTRA - LIGHT
REVOLUTIONARY SHOCK ABSORBING CASE CONCEPT
GROUNDBREAKING NORTEQ MATERIAL
This month we turn our attention to the men – celebrating not only the fathers in our life, but a variety of influential local men from all walks of life. We included a variety of industries – from non profit, to mental health, to commercial real estates - and asked some local leaders to share their expertise and wisdom. If you think we missed some important male leaders in this issue, please let us know, and nominate who we should feature for next year’s Men’s issue. We’d love to hear from you!
And with Father’s Day in just a few weeks, we included a classic cocktail recipe to celebrate with and a fun gift guide courtesy of Tommy Bahama (see page 30 for full article).
We hope you enjoy this month’s issue. Happy June, and Happy Father’s Day!
PUBLISHER
Caitlin Agnew | caitlin.agnew@citylifestyle.com
EDITORIAL COORDINATOR
Taylor Robinson | taylor.robinson@citylifestyle.com
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Kevin Wallace, Julia Bonnheim
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Jennifer H. LaFreniere, Life N Light, Ricky Rath
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Steven Schowengerdt
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Matthew Perry
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HR Janeane Thompson
AD DESIGNER Evan Deuvall
LAYOUT DESIGNER Andi Foster
Bellevue Schools Foundation ‘Spring for Schools’ Gala 1: The Odle Middle School Orchestra serenades the Gala attendees. 2: Bellevue Schools Foundation board and staff at the annual gala dressed in garden party attire. 3: Superintendent Dr. Kelly Aramaki addresses the crowd of 800 attendees celebrating BSD joy. 4: On March 30th Bellevue Schools Foundation hosted the Spring for Schools Gala raising close to $400,000.
5: Inspired by BSF’s commitment to Narcan/fentanyl education, Laura Lynch shares her advocacy for robust fentanyl prevention education. 6: Newport High School Robotics team shows off their incredible build. 7: Jessica Holloway, BSD art teacher and BSF grant recipient, showcases her project with inspired students.
ZGiRLS Gala 8: Ashley Mitchell-Malveaux (ZGiRLS MarCom), Max Rombakh (Managing Broker, Windermere Real Estate Yarrow Bay), Jilyne Jarvis (ZGiRLS Co-Founder & Executive Director). 9: Courtney Thompson (Gala Moderator & U.S. Olympic Silver Medalist – Volleyball), Michelle Carter (Gala Speaker & U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist – Shot Put), Misti Bass-Boyd (Gala Speaker & WNBA Champion – PHX Mercury). 10: ZGiRLS Silent Auction. 11: Courtney Thompson (Gala Moderator & U.S. Olympic Silver Medalist – Volleyball), Jilyne Jarvis (ZGiRLS Co-Founder & Executive Director). 12: ZGiRLS Gala Photo Booth. 13: The “Ambitious” (named) table at the gala. 14: Max Rombakh (Managing Broker, Windermere Real Estate Yarrow Bay), Ben Brittingham (Founder Bedrock Branding), Misti Bass-Boyd (Gala Speaker & WNBA Champion – PHX Mercury).
Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Beyond Yoga is a premium active and lifestyle apparel brand focused on quality, fit, versatility and comfort for everybody. The company was founded in 2005, grounded in the values of body positivity and inclusivity. The brand creates clothing with luxuriously soft, low-maintenance fabrics for styles that withstand a range of workouts and beyond. It's community-focused, celebrating diversity, and giving back to causes in which it believes.
Bellevue Beats & Bites Music Series is bringing free live music to downtown Bellevue from June 4 through August 15. Over 30 talented musicians will take the stage at various downtown venues from 12 to 1 p.m. These musical performances will be accompanied by a variety of food trucks, ranging from sweet to savory. See the full lineup at https://bellevuedowntown. com/events/bellevue-beats.
Story in a Bottle Wines is a new independent wine store on Main Street in downtown Bellevue focused on family-owned wineries. Over half the wines in the store are exclusive to Story in a Bottle Wines, most of which are new to the U.S. market. With direct imports from Italy and France, the story has samplings available daily and hosts regular paid tastings on Saturday with wines, hours and pricing announced weekly on Instagram @storyinabottlewines.
Photography by Artist Adrian Xavier
KEVIN WALLACE
President Wallace Properties
Bellevue’s growth and prosperity is being led by an amazing corporate partner.
ARTICLE BY KEVIN WALLACE PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF KEVIN WALLACEKevin Wallace is the president of Wallace Properties and oversees all development and acquisition activity for the company. He is also responsible for all legal matters for the company’s three divisions: Brokerage, Property and Asset Management and Investment/Development. Bellevue Lifestyle asked Kevin to share his thoughts about Amazon’s positive impact on the city of Bellevue.
Were it not for Amazon, Bellevue would be the city that lost Microsoft, Expedia and Boeing in five years. In 2018, Microsoft, Expedia and Boeing ranked 1st, 3rd and 7th on the list of Bellevue’s ten largest employers, and collectively provided 12,000 jobs. Today, they are gone. Amazon wasn’t on the top ten list in 2018, and just six years later has created 12,000 jobs in Bellevue on its own - by far the city’s largest employer.
Amazon is on a path to more than double that headcount to 25,000. The company currently occupies, or is in the process of building, twelve high-rise towers totaling more than six million square feet of office space in downtown Bellevue. When these buildings are completed, Amazon will hold more than a third of the office space in the CBD – quite a feat for a company that wasn’t here in 2015.
It’s hard to overstate the positive impact Amazon’s growth has had, and will have, on our city.
• Construction of the Amazon buildings bolstered Bellevue’s tax revenues and provided thousands of construction jobs during the economic downtown caused by Covid-19.
• As the buildings open, their ground floor spaces offer numerous public amenities – shops, restaurants, entertainment facilities (ever played bocce?), childcare facilities, art sculptures, public gathering spaces and urban greenscape.
• Bellevue’s job creation will not end with Amazon’s 25,000. Major employers like Amazon induce additional jobs as the company contracts with other local companies and its employees buy local goods and services. In addition, Amazon’s presence attracts other companies through a clustering effect. Bellevue is already seeing new job growth from companies, large and small, leasing office space to be near Amazon and the talented people it employs. This incredible growth is not without its challenges. Rather than turn a blind eye to the increase in traffic, housing costs and costs of living, Amazon has embraced the challenges, assembled an all-star team of government affairs and community relations experts, and executed strategies to mitigate its impacts in each of these areas.
• Transportation. Amazon’s government affairs team works with Bellevue and the Bellevue Chamber to advocate for highway and transit improvements. Its shuttle services provide another mode of transportation for the city, keeping hundreds of cars off the road and reducing traffic congestion in the process. One day soon these shuttles may be autonomous, using technology created by an Amazon subsidiary called Zoox. For cycling, the
company is playing a key role in the visionary expansion of Bellevue’s regional bike network, donating $7.5 million to complete Eastrail and $2.5 million to start the design of the Grand Connection Crossing, connecting Eastrail to the heart of downtown.
• Housing. Since the launch of the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, the company has committed $670 million across the Puget Sound region to help make over 7,200 affordable homes available – of which $270 million was committed on the Eastside to help create or preserve over 1,700 units of affordable homes in Bellevue, Bothell, and Kirkland.
• Cost of Living. In partnership with Bellevue LifeSpring, Amazon created the Right Now Needs Fund, and through the program has donated $3 million to help address Eastside students’ basic and immediate needs like food, shelter, clothing and school supplies, so students arrive at school prepared to learn.
These are just a few major examples. In many of Bellevue’s most critical human services organizations, Amazon and its staff are major donors of time, talent and treasure. Hopelink, Mary’s Place, KidVantage, Youth Eastside Services, Eastside Community Development Fund, Bellevue Fire Foundation and many, many more.
The growth and prosperity downtown Bellevue is experiencing from Amazon’s growth is an incredible opportunity for all of us who live and work in the city. It will not be without its challenges, but Bellevue is fortunate this growth is led by such an amazing corporate partner. I guess being the city that lost Microsoft, Expedia and Boeing isn’t so bad after all.
LOCAL EXPERTS DISCUSS HOW AND WHY
MEN ENGAGE (OR DON’T ENGAGE) IN THE THERAPEUTIC PROCESS.
ARTICLE BY JULIA BONNHEIM
Self Space is a group mental health practice, offering psychotherapy services to adults, adolescents and couples. Self Space believes therapy is first and foremost a relationship with an open, non-judgmental professional with whom you can safely share your whole self with and experience real and significant change. This article emerged from a conversation between Marcus Berley and Dan Suffoletta, two mental health counselors at Self Space, in which they share insights into an often-overlooked aspect of counseling: how and why men engage (or don’t engage) in the therapeutic process.
MARCUS: I find that many men, are dragged through the doors of therapy rooms by their partners. I think this reveals a societal trend in which men’s engagement with mental health services often relies on their primary relationship. This makes it crucial for therapists to foster a space in which men can discover the intrinsic value of self-reflection and emotional work.
DAN: A lot of my research in the field has focused on exactly this topic, encapsulated in my capstone project titled, “Real Men Go to Therapy”. The project explores the effects of initial client motivation on therapeutic outcomes, and I found that a lot of men were saying, “My partner really encouraged me to do this and to be here,” underscoring the significant role partners play in men’s initial steps toward therapy.
I’ve found that even if you don’t start from a place of intrinsic or internal motivation, if the therapist or counselor is able to influence that, and allow the client to realize that there are intrinsic benefits to doing self-work, then that does lead to more positive outcomes.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF SELF SPACEMARCUS: The key seems to lie in the counselor’s ability to guide their clients toward recognizing the personal gains of therapy, moving beyond societal expectations or relationship pressures.
Men may find themselves in therapy after significant life upheavals, particularly when relationships break down. It’s often not until things blow up that they’re like, “You know what, it’s time I did this work.” Crises often catalyze the decision to seek help.
Hegemonic ideals of masculinity have long cast a shadow over men’s mental health. These societal norms emphasize strength, self-reliance, and an aversion to showing any sort of signs of weakness, and act as formidable barriers to men seeking help. Yet, these barriers are not impermeable. Therapy itself can become a groundbreaking arena where traditional notions of masculinity are challenged, and men can learn to embrace vulnerability as a strength rather than a weakness.
DAN: I tend to take a strength-based approach. I will kind of celebrate the courage that they’ve already shown. From addressing the apprehension of being judged or deemed “the problem” in a relationship, to celebrating the courage it takes to embark on the therapeutic journey, the most impactful therapy is filled with empathy, validation, and empowerment. This can help men engage more fully in the therapeutic process and help create a space where men can feel acknowledged and supported in their journey towards healing.
Self Space Counselor Marcus Berley
“Therapy itself can become a groundbreaking arena where traditional notions of masculinity are challenged, and men can learn to embrace vulnerability as a strength rather than a weakness.”
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THE FORUM SOCIAL HOUSE FOUNDERS SHARE KEY ADVICE FOR FRIENDS IN BUSINESS VENTURES
HOW DID FORUM SOCIAL HOUSE COME ABOUT?
Noah: The three of us know entertainment inside and out after being in the industry for well over 3 decades
“THE
Roger: Entertainment. It’s been a huge part of my career, and being able to collaborate and build our own unique brand of entertainment is something I take enormous pride in.
combined. We knew Topgolf was the perfect partnership to bring into the fold, being more entertainment driven than strictly golf driven. Once we were able to secure that partnership, then we started perfecting our Par1 Minigolf course. Icing on the cake was pairing those offerings with a top tier cocktail program and a food menu. End result: Forum Social House.
WHAT DO EACH OF YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT THE BUSINESS?
Noah: Creating and the people. I love bringing an idea to life and seeing it manifest. There’s truly nothing like that feeling in the world for me. And being able to create with incredible people? That’s the good stuff.
Raj: Building the company we’ve always wanted to work for. Seeing what works and what doesn’t at other companies and being able to use that knowledge to our benefit in our own company.
HOW DO YOU HANDLE CONFLICTS THAT MAY ARISE?
Raj: With mutual respect and self-awareness. We all know each other very well, as well as ourselves which is key in any partnership. It also helps to have 3 partners, and we each have a vote. So worst case we have a tiebreaker if something comes to a vote, but it never comes to that in all honesty.
HOW DO YOU KEEP EACH OTHER MOTIVATED AND ACCOUNTABLE IN ACHIEVING BUSINESS GOALS?
Roger: The beauty of the three of us as partners is motivation has never been something we struggled to find. Accountability comes with transparency, and respecting each other enough to know that if any one of us are bringing concerns to the table, none of us are offended by it or take it as some personal attack. We know each other
“START THE COMPANY BECAUSE YOU ALL HAVE A MUTUAL PASSION AND LOVE FOR WHAT YOU’RE DOING.”
well enough to know any concerns that are voiced are for the betterment of the business and our company and will never be taken personally.
WHAT DIFFERENT
DO EACH OF YOU BRING TO THE BUSINESS?
Roger: We each have experience in just about all facets, but we defer to each other’s strengths when necessary. Raj is well versed in operations, accounting, and business analysis. I’m great with software integration, marketing, and nightlife. Noah is great with our culture, team development and hiring. And we all lend our skill sets to achieve a common goal together.
Raj: We each bring a different perspective and experience to each portion of the business. We know when one of the others has a deeper knowledge or insight and usually defer. We all understand that deferring to an expert in a field is important as we can never be experts in everything.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO FRIENDS CONSIDERING GOING INTO BUSINESS TOGETHER?
Noah: Don’t just start a company because you’re friends and want to work together. Start the company because you all have a mutual passion and love for what you’re doing. Believe in what you’re doing, and fill in each other’s gaps so no one partner is doing everything. A healthy balance, passion for what you’re doing and a mutual respect can take you anywhere you want in life.
BY
JENNIFER H. LAFRENIERE, BLOCK-ARCHITECTSFounded in 1993 by three women in the Eastside Interfaith community, PorchLight is a foundationally sound, resource-expansive, client-centered non-profit serving East King County. PorchLight (formerly known as Congregations for the Homeless) is the only full-service shelter for adult single men experiencing homelessness in our area.
“Homelessness is a complex social issue in this country. The reasons why someone finds themselves experiencing homelessness are often equally complex. At PorchLight’s
Eastgate Shelter a hundred men sleep under our roof on any given night. Each one has a unique story, a unique set of circumstances, and a unique vision of what is next for him. Conversely, we as a staff and an organization have a single focus: Provide each man with support and services to travel his path to stable housing,” says Troy Christensen, PorchLight Executive Director.
PorchLight staff is made up of nearly 50 individuals, and one in five staff members are former clients. Hiring former clients makes for deeper connections with the
Porchlight provides a path from homelessness to stable living
men who come in for help, thereby getting them into necessary programs sooner with a higher rate of success.
In June of 2023, PorchLight moved into their new 20,000-square-foot facility in Bellevue that houses a 24/7 Emergency Men’s Shelter (EMS) and Day Center - which includes 100 shelter beds, a dining area, services for behavioral health, housing navigation, substance-use counseling, and case management. The EMS and Day Center are safe and supportive for men experiencing homelessness to sleep, eat, take showers, do laundry, and connect to life-transforming relationships and services that lead to stable employment, better health, and stable housing.
For more than three decades, PorchLIght has been dedicated to supporting men experiencing homelessness in East King County as they journey from the outside in.
• Financial Gifts – Amounts of any kind have impact. Consider a one-time or recurring gift.
• Clothing – new and gently used men’s clothing is accepted with scheduled drop off.
• Meals – Lunch and dinner meals for 100 accepted with a scheduled drop off.
• Sign up for our Volunteer Orientation offered the 3rd Wednesday of every month.
• Schedule a tour of our new building for your small group of 8-10.
• Request a presentation at your business or community group.
Find details on how to connect with PorchLight at porchlightcares.org
TOMMY BAHAMA HAS THE PERFECT GIFT TO COMPLEMENT DAD’S LIFESTYLE.
Your unforgettable summer is just beginning -- let Tommy Bahama be your guide for all things sunshine. Whether you’re teeing up for your next shot or heading to the beach, Tommy Bahama has versatile performance wear to keep you cool, bright color camp shirts and dresses, one-of-a-kind artistry, and versatile swimwear. Just in time for Father’s Day, Tommy Bahama has the perfect gift to complement Dad’s lifestyle. Tommy Bahama is Summer, so come along for the ride.
All items included are Tommy Bahama, unless otherwise stated. Select items available at Tommy Bahama stores in Bellevue & University Village; all items available at tommybahama.com
JUNE 6TH
Bellevue Farmers Market
Bellevue Presbyterian Church | 3:00 PM
Each market day is composed of its own unique mix of vendors offering seasonal fruits & vegetables, cut flowers, fresh meats, one-of-a-kind artisan goods and tasty cuisine. All BFM vendors grow and make the products they sell, and we are proud to say everything sold at our market comes from within the great state of Washington. Join us every Thursday from 3-7 pm!
JUNE 8TH
Robinswood Community Park | 9:00 AM
Explore Bellevue's hidden treasures and award winning parks by bike in the Lake to Lake Bike Ride, presented by the City of Bellevue. Enjoy a non-competitive ride, post-ride party with prize giveaways and a free kids ride in the park for children ages 3-8 (registration required). Proceeds from the event benefit the City of Bellevue's youth program donation fund!
JUNE 14TH
Bellevue Chamber
Annual Gala
Meydenbauer Center | 5:00 PM
We've said it before and we'll say it again...There ain't no party like a Chamber party! Enjoy an evening of savor food, drink, games and more. The Bellevue business community works hard, but who said we can't party harder? Join the Bellevue Chamber for a night of fun and fundraising this Friday, June 14th at the Meydenbauer Center. For details visit bellevuechamber.org
Dads come in many forms, from biological to step, godparents to foster parents, friends, and other family members. This Father’s Day, mix up this simple yet timeless cocktail to toast the special dad in your life!
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 teaspoon water
• 2 ounces bourbon (or rye whiskey, if preferred)
• Garnish: orange twist
Step 1. Add the sugar and bitters into a mixing glass, then add the water, and stir until the sugar is nearly dissolved.
Step 2. Fill the mixing glass with ice, add the bourbon, and stir until well-chilled.
Step 3. Strain into a rocks glass over one large ice cube.
Step 4. Express the oil of an orange twist over the glass, then drop into the glass to garnish.
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From the laborers to carpenters and superintendents, we take pride in our workmanship. That passion shows.”Jeff Stephenson Project MANAGER WITH ROBERTS GROUP since 2016