Friends, Food, and Fun at the 2017 INL Food Truck Rally

Posted on by Robert Hanna in INL Food Truck Rally
Group photo of Lighthouse staff at the 2017 INL Food Truck Rally
Group photo of Lighthouse staff at the 2017 INL Food Truck Rally (photos courtesy of Rick Diffley)

On Thursday June 1st, we hosted our second Inland Northwest Lighthouse (INL) Food Truck Rally! We welcomed over 250 people to our facility and raised over $11,000 which goes directly to our Employee and Community Services Program in Spokane. These funds will help employees be successful at their jobs, provide training to increase independence and self-sufficiency, and adaptive technology.

Vendors serving pizza to guests at the event
Vendors serving pizza to guests at the event

The event started off with some rain, which gave way to a beautiful sunny evening in Spokane. We had delicious food provided by the Greater Spokane Food Truck Association, and the seven food trucks that participated. The variety of food was amazing. The food trucks included Toby’s BBQ, Mixed Plate, King of Tacos, Mac Daddy Gourmet Grub, Roamin’ Pizza Chariot, Black Fire Kettle Corn, and Brain Freeze Creamery.

Guests had opportunities to take a tour of our manufacturing facility, have a cold beer in the beer garden, purchase raffle tickets for a chance for some great prizes, and for kids we had a bounce castle!

We had many wonderful raffle prizes at the rally. They included the Date Night Package, which had: Two night stay at the Red Lion Hotel, $50 gift card to Clinkerdagger, and two movie passes to The Garland Movie Theater. We also had a Seattle Mariners Mini Trip Package which consisted of: One night stay at The Silver Cloud Hotel, $50 gift card to Jimmy’s Restaurant, and two tickets to Fireworks Night at the Seattle Mariners game on Saturday, July 28th. We are so thankful for our in kind donors from so many great businesses in the Spokane and Seattle area.

Director of Public Relations and Development Greg Szabo speaking at the event
Director of Public Relations and Development Greg Szabo speaking at the event

Throughout the evening the emcee kept the music playing, and people had a great time. The speakers for the night’s festivities were Director of Public Relations and Development, Greg Szabo, and the new President and CEO of the Lighthouse Mike May. Mike told the crowd about a couple of the amazing parts of his life, and talked about what this new venture in life means to him.

Overall the 2017 INL Food Truck Rally was a great success. The community was able to learn a lot about the great training opportunities we provide for our employees and the amazing quality products that are made by people that are blind in the greater Spokane area. Thank you so much to those of you that could join us and for donating to a great cause.

Ethel L. Dupar Fragrant Garden Blooms with Support for the Lighthouse

Posted on by Robert Hanna in In Bloom, Photos
King County Master Gardener Helen Weber leading a guided tour at Redefining Vision In Bloom
King County Master Gardener Helen Weber leading a guided tour at Redefining Vision In Bloom

Submitted by Julie Brannon, ECS Support Services Manager  & Braille Instructor

It was a great pleasure to spend time with our guests at the Redefining Vision In Bloom event on Saturday, August 17th.  We had about 20 guests join us that beautiful morning for a fun and educational presentation.  It’s always an honor for me to get to talk to people about the benefits of braille, which I did that morning with the added delight of connecting it to experiencing the Ethel L. Dupar Fragrant Garden.  Guests also had the opportunity to hear details about The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc.’s history from our President and CEO Kirk Adams.  And as always, our guests were fascinated by the personal tour by King County Master Gardener Helen Weber. The Redefining Vision In Bloom events have raised nearly $4,000 in support of our mission.  If you haven’t had the chance to have hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and a personal garden tour then you need to join our final event of the season on September 14th, 11:00am to 1:00pm.  Sign up on our RSVP page.

The 2012 Redefining Vision Luncheon Was a Great Success!

Posted on by Robert Hanna in Audio, Photos, Podcast
Keynote Speaker Patricia Walsh speaking at the 2012 Redefining Vision Luncheon
Keynote Speaker Patricia Walsh speaking at the 2012 Redefining Vision Luncheon

 

Thank you to all of our guests and sponsors who participated in the 2012 Redefining Vision Luncheon!  We hope you were inspired by the stories of opportunities and empowerment for individuals who are blind, Deaf-Blind, and blind with other disabilities. The event generated over $75,000 toward Lighthouse accessibility initiatives.  We are so grateful for your commitment to the Lighthouse.

We would also like to thank our wonderful volunteers, our emcee Cyrus Habib, our Accessibility Manager Peggy Martinez, and our Keynote speaker Patricia Walsh.

Listen to Keynote Speaker Patricia Walsh’s remarks here: [powerpress]
If you were unable to attend the event but would like to support Lighthouse accessibility initiatives, it’s not too late!  DONATE NOW