Toni Osotio

Toni is dedicated to the importance of arts education in our schools.  She is an experienced teacher with degrees in History/Social Studies, Special Education, Elementary Education, and an MA in Educational Leadership.  Currently in the role of Art Specialist and Art Docent Co-Chair at Cascade Ridge Elementary, it is Toni’s passion that excites children, inspires other teachers, and educates parents on the importance of art.  She captures and nurtures the imagination of more than 700 children through her lessons, the Northwest art exhibit, Fine Arts Night, and connects the students to artists and projects in the community.  Toni sees how critically important success in the arts is to kids and its relation to success in other subjects, often creating curriculum that connects arts to different interest areas.  Toni believes that “art comes at all times in your life,” and is devoted to giving children a foundational art education. 

Lisa Files

 First diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2002 she has learned how to cope and help others have hope.  “Pay it forward” has special meaning for Lisa now and she helps other women diagnosed with cancer living in Sammamish.  “We are not promised an easy road” says Lisa and she shares her home and her life story with those who come behind her.  The biggest lesson to learn is to change from being a giver to a taker as there comes a time when you must have some help.  Now she can give that gift back to others.

 Tom & Sally O’Brien

 When son Cory, a junior at WSU, died unexpectedly in 2004 they didn’t know how they would cope with their loss.  Cory hoped to become an EMT with a fire department.  Tom and Sally drew from community support to start a scholarship fund in Cory’s name and it has “taken on a life of its own” dad says.  “We feel Cory’s hand guiding our efforts” Tom relates as the family plans the Third Annual Cory O'Brien Memorial Golf Classic, Dinner and Auction to provide scholarships to Eastlake students to attend WSU.  “We look for kids like Cory” say mom and dad.

 Marin Morrison

 Marin was a world class athlete competing in multiple swimming events as a young teen, until tragedy struck in the form of brain cancer leaving her partially paralyzed, half blind and aphasic.  In spite of some of these obstacles, she continues to participate on the Eastlake high school swim team while conducting distance learning from home.  Her motto is “don’t believe them” when told of all the things she cannot do, and she has unquenchable hope and determination.  Marin is modest, but realizes she is famous with her marinlove.com website and inspires people all over the country with her story.   

 Michelle Moulton

 Horribly misdiagnosed in 2003 Michelle underwent debilitating unnecessary treatment.  Since then she has been exposed to the underbelly of healthcare shortcomings in Washington and has started doing something about it.  From lobbying and testifying for healthcare reform to being appointed to a medical board to working domestic violence issues, Michelle is living what she learned “you can’t change the past but you can change the future”.  Her goal is to have safe, affordable healthcare available to all citizens, especially the children, in Washington State.  She was nominated for the James Madison award through the Washington Coalition for Open Government.

A person whose enriching and inspiring contributions create enthusiasm for learning

Bruce Kovalsky

Checkmate anyone? Starting in 1997, Bruce opened the world of chess to students in Sammamish.  He started a before school chess club at Sunny Hills Elementary with 25 students and the number grew to ninety.  Six years ago he also started a club at Pine Lake Middle School. Bruce assists others in starting chess clubs, organizes rated tournaments and shares his expertise twice a month with a Group class at the Pine Lake Fire Station.  As a United States Chess Federation National Master and former National Intercollegiate Chess Team Champion, he understands the joy of competition along with its mental challenges and wants to share this with others. Chess stimulates kids intellectually, encourages friendship and sportsmanship, and students return year after year, which is Bruce's biggest reward.

Mary O'Brien

"Live to Love, Love to Learn, Learn to Live" is the Arbor Schools' motto.  Mary O'Brien founded the school in 1993 because she wanted an alternative to the traditional classroom and she wanted it closer to home. She left her law practice and began Arbor with just seven students.  Now the school encompasses students from 15 months to 15 years, with each level based on the Montessori learning philosophy.  Mary believes that all students want to learn and can be successful in a creative, respectful and caring environment.  Her biggest reward is in seeing students feel good about themselves, being proud of their accomplishments, caring for others and acting respectfully.

James Rosenzweig

There is more than history and literature being taught in James Rosenzweig's classroom.

By being attentive to the many demands on students' time and energy, he brings their world into the classroom, making the learning more relevant.  He believes in building good working bonds and offering support by creating a warm and relaxing learning atmosphere, where the students can relate to him. He wants students to see that they can make a difference in the world.  His volunteer experiences in the YMCA "Youth and Government Program" led him to teaching high school along with volunteering at the Sammamish YMCA. Comments like the following reflect his impact on high school students, "No teacher has ever made me think so hard and discover so much about myself."

CHRISTIAN McOMBER

9^th Grade at Inglewood Junior High School 

Kinsey Mannon

Senior at Eastlake High School

 Kinsey is the President of Eastlake’s Honor Society.  She was elected for this position due to her desire to help others become the best that they can be.  Passionate about working with children, she is very involved in the Boys & Girls Club, and was chosen as the 2007 “Youth of the Year”. Kinsey is a member of the Sammamish Youth Board and a president of the Keystone Club, after being a member for 3 years. Her résumé of community service and leadership roles is extensive. Kinsey hopes to become a teacher so she can continue working and inspiring children.

Dee & Todd Hoeke

Finding a way for youth in our community to express their creativity and give back to others is a high priority for Dee and Todd Hoeke. As members of Sammamish Rotary, they have been involved in many programs that touch a huge cross section of the Sammamish community. They are a driving force behind “Nightmare at Beaver Lake”, and spend hundreds of hours and many months each year. They are fixtures at other events, including the “Challenge Day Race”, “Summer Night Concert Series”, “Eastside Domestic Violence Ninth Grade Education Program”, and assembling play structures for new parks. Dee and Todd exemplify the spirit of community involvement.

Elisa Huston

For Elisa Huston, helping others is a family affair.  As a way to teach her daughter to help others less fortunate, Elisa used her energy, enthusiasm, and public health training to revive the “Sharing is Caring” program at Blackwell Elementary.  Projects include: “Operation Iraq”, a program which sends cards, and essentials, to service men and women fighting overseas and collecting 3000 lbs of food for local food banks.  Elisa headed the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital MATHATHON where 140 students completed 28,000 math problems and collected $16,000.  She also coordinates “Teen Feed” at her church which serves meals to homeless teens.

Kristin Heffley

Kristin Heffley didn’t know what to expect when she started volunteering with the Chris Elliott Fund -- she just knew that she was inspired by the dedication of others raising money for terminal Glioblastoma brain cancer research. She is actively involved with the McAuliffe Elementary auction, works with the CEF as Catalog Chair for their live auction, and is now single-handedly running an online auction that will expand the awareness of "Chris Elliot Memorial Fund" to a national audience. Each year donations to the “Dana Farber Brain Cancer Institute” have increased, and with the online auction in play the goal for this year is to reach $100,000.

Lisa Jensen

Lisa Jensen, as a high school student, became involved in the “DECA” program. She was so inspired by her adviser that it changed her life. When her boys reached high school, she wanted them to have the same chance by providing them and others with the same skills and “DECA” experiences she had. As a result, she became a driving force behind the current community program available to Sammamish teens. She has worked to establish a program that benefits not only high achievers, but those students looking to find a place to bloom. She now has the support of business and community leaders and has helped many children achieve stellar success.

Paul Bruno

Paul Bruno, a Sammamish dad, was looking to find a channel where the youth of our city could become involved. For the past three years, he has used his background to run the lighting and sound at the “Nightmare at Beaver Lake”, a yearly activity that involves Sammamish, citizens young and old. It has been a family affair, with both of his children participating.

Barbara Coyner 

Barbara has been involved in PTSA, church and the Sammamish community for most of her 18 years as a resident of the Plateau.  She has served on PTSA Board of Directors for 4 schools and PTSA Council, and has been honored with 3 Golden Acorn awards.  Her volunteer work extends from preparing students for DECA competition to co-chairing the Senior Party at Eastlake.  Barbara has enjoyed learning about the inner workings of the school system, and how the governmental decisions affect our schools. As a result, she gained knowledge of how to influence state policy makers through visiting legislators in Olympia and to make improvements in education for our kids. 

Brendan Hyland

 Brendan Hyland is a favorite teacher and coach at Skyline High School.  He was awarded “Most Inspirational Teacher” and also helped coach his Cross Country team to a State Championship title.  He loves his job and it shows.  Mr. Hyland makes learning fun by being creative – for example sometimes he uses made up rap songs to teach lessons in his Science classes.  He finds it rewarding that his career choice has given him the ability to reach kids, teach them good values and help them learn that having a great attitude can get them through some tough challenges.