kBanquet proves community is a winner

What a fabulous night for local businesses, educators and scholarship recipients. Our annual Pillars of Strength and Crystal Apple Awards took place May 4 at the Cowlitz County Event Center. With more than 340 guests in attendance the room was filled with excitement, laughter and cheers! I believe this was our largest attendance yet and it’s no wonder, nominations were at an all-time high; 74 educators, 45 businesses, 18 scholarship recipients, two lifetime achievements, one Ambassador of the Year and finally, one Workforce Education Best Business Practices. What makes this night so special is having a room filled with people who give 100 percent to their jobs, business, students, and communities and the love and support from friends and family cheering them on. For me, I felt so honored and fortunate to be standing among my peers and community leaders who were all so deserving of their nominations and recognition. It truly gave me chills.

Emcee honors went to Bill Oftun, director of assessment, DTE and technology integration at the Longview school district and member of the Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce Education Committee. Bill did a wonderful job keeping the evening rolling, but also keeping it light and meaningful. Congratulations to all the nominees and winners. There are too many to list in this column but continue to read and you will find a full list on a page 5. One of the most special parts of the evening is bringing up our scholarship winners and providing them with a certificate and LARGE check from $1,000 to $4,000 to put toward their post-education experience next year. This year KLCC, Lower Columbia Professionals and the Lonnie Knowles Memorial Fund gave away 18 scholarships totaling $25,000 and Evergreen Home Loans gave out another $1,000. It’s awesome seeing our young people on stage, meeting their parents, and talking with them about their future plans. To top off the evening we offered our center pieces from Lisa Allen of Banda’s Bouquet to help raise funds for next year’s LCC Foundation donation. We raised $1,025, enough for 2024 LCC scholarship! Thank you to all who put money in the envelopes, truly we appreciate your support.

This event doesn’t happen without the generous help of sponsors to offset some of the expenses, pay for the students and their families to attend the evening at no cost and help hold the cost down to all those wanting to attend. Huge thank you to: Fibre Federal Credit Union, Lower Columbia

For more Awards, see page 5

Crystal Apple & Pillars of Strength

Thank you C's Photography for documenting the Crystal Apple & Pillars of Strength Awards Banquet. To see all the photographs, or to purchase photos as keepsakes from the evening click here.