celebration of youth: community in action

This spring, our community came together for Friends of Youth’s Celebration of Youth—an inspiring series of gatherings that demonstrated what is possible when people unite around young people.

Hosted at Sparkman Cellars, this year’s event featured two focused evenings centered on youth experiencing homelessness, behavioral health, and foster care. Through powerful panel conversations, attendees heard directly from young people, caregivers, and employees—lifting up lived experience, professional expertise, and the shared responsibility we all have to support youth in our community. 

The impact of this collective effort was extraordinary.

Together, our community raised more than $451,000 through our Celebration of Youth campaign alone, helping sustain critical programs for young people across the region. When combined with our 75th Anniversary campaign, that impact grows to over $636,000 in total support—a reflection of the deep commitment from donors, sponsors, board members, and community partners.

Beyond the numbers, the evenings centered connection, understanding, and hope. Panelists Krystal Kosche, McKenzie Snell, Demetrius Morgan, Kathy Opie, Eli, Anthony (April 24^th event), Alice Hinga, Michael Brandal Johnson and Yvonne-Monique Aviva (May 8^th event) shared stories with honesty and courage — offering insight into the realities young people face and the transformative impact of stable housing, supportive relationships, and access to care. These moments reminded us that real change happens when we listen deeply and act with intention.

The result was a successful event and a meaningful step forward. Every conversation, every connection, and every contribution plays a role in creating a community where all young people can thrive.

To everyone who showed up, spoke out, volunteered, or gave generously — thank you. We would also like to extend our gratitude to our hosts Jordan Babineaux, Eric Buley, Brooke Drennon (April 24t^h event), Tiana Cole and Brad Blackburn (May 8^th event), as well as to our wonderful sponsors and supporters Amazon, A Platinum Events, Banner Bank, BECU, Brown & Brown, Chateau Retirement, Corient, F5 Networks, Fulcrum, Gesa Credit Union, HUB, Liberty Mutual, Logic 20/20, Microsoft, Northwest Children’s Foundation, Puget Sound Energy, Rod Skaar, Sher Partners, Sparkman Cellars, WAFD Bank, Wingspeak Productions, and Zachor, Stock and Krepps.

Celebration of Youth truly reflects a community in action.