Thank You For a Fantastic Blue Tie Ball 2024!

Thank you to all our incredible sponsors, supporters, and guests for helping to make sure that the 2024 Blue Tie Ball was an amazing success!

This year’s Blue Tie Ball gala took place Friday, October 4, at the King Street Ballroom and Perch, located in downtown Seattle. The evening began with a cocktail hour and silent auction, during which guests could meet and mingle with Crime Prevention Coordinators (CPCs) and Precinct Captains from each of the Seattle Police Department’s five precincts, to learn about their ongoing, proactive efforts to reduce crime in our neighborhoods.

We were thrilled to bring the energy up this year with a spirited pre-auction performance by the University of Washington Alumni Band, which filled the ballroom with sound as guests found got settled in their seats.

Next came the core of the event, speakers included Mayor Bruce Harrell, Seattle Police Chief Sue Rahr, and SPF Board Chair Frank Stauff, who introduced incoming SPF President and CEO Ian Adair. Next, Frank took a few moments to honor our incredible friends at the Celebrity Waiters Luncheon (CWL), which has selected SPF as its beneficiary of choice for the last three years, raising a million dollars for the men and women of SPD.

Frank presented CWL with a custom ‘Thanks a Million’ award for its amazing partnership.

The live auction kicked off with a gorgeous flurry of color and sound, as the Mak Fai Kung Fu Dragon and Lion Dance Association dancers dazzled our guests with a fun, interactive performance. These talented performers are a cherished part of the Seattle community and we’re so grateful for the way their performance enhanced this year’s gala.

Next up was this year’s keynote address, given by founding SPF Board Member and storied local developer Michael Malone, who encouraged guests to give and to give big.

Thanks to a generous community, the event raised more than $400,000 to support crime prevention, safety equipment, community programs, and officer wellness initiatives not covered by the city budget. It is with profound gratitude that we say thank you for your unwavering commitment to public safety!

Thank you to our generous Blue Tie Ball sponsors, including Lieutenant level sponsors: Clise Properties, Erin Air, and Hunters Capital; and Sergeant level sponsors, Axon, Laurie Griffith, and Steinhauer Properties.

If you were not able to attend this year’s Blue Tie Ball and would like to contribute to the mission, please make a gift today! Your generosity helps support SPD’s proactive crime prevention programs, initiatives, and strategies.

Yes, I want to help!

Welcome to SPF's New President and CEO Ian Adair

We are thrilled to introduce you to the Seattle Police Foundation’s new President and CEO Ian Adair!

When current SPF President and CEO Cherie Skager announced her retirement over the summer, SPF Board President Frank Stauff knew he had some big shoes to fill. He immediately sprang into action and recruited former SPF Board Chair Lynne Houserman to serve as the chair of the board’s search committee. Houserman spearheaded the CEO selection process, managing candidate review and coordinating and leading interviews.

Ian was selected after an extensive, nationwide selection process.

“I want to express my thanks and gratitude to Cherie for her exceptional leadership over the past 7 years and her dedicated efforts in advancing the Foundation's mission,” Stauff said. “While we will miss her, she leaves the Foundation in a strong position with a well-defined plan for the immediate future.”

Ian brings with him a wealth of experience in the nonprofit sector and has an impeccable reputation as an inspiring leader across varied industries. He is a renowned keynote speaker, facilitator, and recognized nonprofit industry influencer, and last but not least, a published author!

Highlights of his professional experience include leading the Martinez Foundation, which was founded by Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame baseball player Edgar Martinez, to support equity in education throughout Washington state. For more than five years, Ian served as the Executive Director of the Gracepoint Foundation, supporting one of Florida’s largest behavioral health service organizations. Ian came to us from Arlington, Virginia, where he worked for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP Global), as the Director of Leadership Development & Credentialing.

While he and his family have lived on the east coast for the last eight years, they have a strong support system here in the Pacific Northwest and are happy to be home.

We look forward to Ian’s leadership and are excited for the upcoming season of growth and change.

Seattle Police Fallen Officer Memorial Project

Officer Joselito Barber Memorial Fundraiser Goal Achieved

Thanks to an amazing, generous community of supporters, we raised the $16,000 needed to purchase and install a brand-new public memorial for fallen Seattle Police Department Officer Joselito “Lito” Barber.

Officer Lito Barber’s memorial stone will be installed outside of the Filipino Community Center (FCC) in south Seattle. Thanks to the Filipino Community of Seattle for graciously providing this meaningful, publicly accessible space for the memorial. We hope to install Lito’s memorial in time for Peace Officers Memorial Day 2025 (Wednesday, May 15, 2025).

Anything raised beyond what is needed to purchase and install Lito’s memorial will help the Seattle Police Fallen Officer Memorial Program continue to move forward. The next officer slated to be honored is fallen Harbor Patrol Unit Officer Jackson Lone, serial number 5119, who died in the line of duty on March 16, 2005.

The Seattle Police Fallen Officer Memorial Project was born in 2022 out of a simple desire to make good on SPD’s vow to always remember and honor its fallen officers. We’re thankful that this mission resonates so powerfully with our community of supporters. This was true grassroots fundraising at its most inspiring, with well over 130 individuals, businesses, and service organizations stepping up to honor Lito.

Thank you all, so much, for helping us ensure that Officer Barber is honored and remembered forever.

Officer Alexandra "Lexi" Brenneman Harris Memorial Dedication Ceremony

In September, the Seattle Police Foundation was honored to host a ceremony to dedicate the newly installed memorial honoring fallen Seattle Police Officer Alexandra “Lexi” Brenneman Harris (EOW June 13, 2021).

The ceremony took place on Thursday, September 26, 2024, and was officiated by Seattle Police Department Chaplain Charlie Scoma and the Seattle Police Honor Guard. Speakers included interim Chief Sue Rahr, Assistant Chief Tom Mahaffey, and Rebecca Brenneman, Lexi’s mom. The Mounted Patrol Unit was in attendance, along with many of Lexi’s colleagues, friends, and family members.

Detective Tim Oliverson played the bagpipes.

The memorial is located along the Ship Canal Trail southwest of the Fremont Bridge. It’s a meaningful location that was hand-selected for its 24-hour a day accessibility and its deep connection to Lexi.

The memorial site is within walking distance of the Wallingford neighborhood, where Lexi grew up, and it’s inside the boundaries of the West Precinct service area, where she worked.

Officer Lexi Harris had served with the Seattle Police Department for five years when she was struck and killed while rendering aid at the scene of a vehicle crash on I-5. Known as SPD’s very own Wonder Woman, Lexi was bicycle officer assigned to the Seattle Police Department Community Response Group Unit (CRG).

The memorial’s prominent location along a busy Seattle walking, running, and biking path is a nod to Lexi’s distinct physicality. The treed, parklike space is a reflection of Lexi’s love of the outdoors.

We want to thank Det. Britt Kelly for her work to locate and coordinate the perfect location for Lexi’s memorial, along with our generous donors for bringing meaningful projects like the Seattle Police Fallen Officer Memorial Project to life.

Highlights from SPD's In House EMT School

Thank you to our generous EMT Unit donors, the Seattle Police Department’s 2024 in-house EMT school is underway, with a total of 17 law enforcement professionals on their way to becoming certified Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs).

Coordinated and arranged by SPD EMS Coordinator/Safety Officer Tyler Verhaar, EMT school kicked off at the end of August and runs through mid-November. Students practice a variety of emergency medical skills and learned to perform a Rapid Trauma Assessment (RTA), which is an essential protocol for anyone pursuing EMT certification.

Since 2018, Seattle Police Foundation donors have provided crucial dollars to pay for the training necessary for Seattle police officers to become certified EMTs, plus purchase the medical equipment and supplies needed to perform this vital work. Before SPF donors stepped up, SPD officers were paying for their training, certification, and medical supplies out of their own pockets.

Learn more about the EMT Unit on our website at: SPD EMT Unit

Congratulations SPF Board Member Greg Steinhauer

The Seattle Police Foundation’s September Board Meeting was a bit more action-packed than usual!

We were joined by guests from multiple neighboring law enforcement and public safety entities, who stopped by to honor SPF Board Member and past Chairman Greg Steinhauer for his contributions to public safety during the Major League Baseball All-Star Week in July of 2023.

SPD Deputy Chief Eric Barden did the honors, thanking Greg and presenting him with a custom-made glass achievement plaque featuring challenge coins from SPD, the King County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, and Washington State Patrol (WSP).

As you can imagine, ensuring public safety during a multi-day event as massive as MLB All-Star Week is an extraordinary undertaking, requiring extensive partnerships and collaborations, plus multiple command posts. Thanks to Greg’s generosity, the Seattle Police Department Special Operations Center (SPOC) was able to set up a Unified Command Center (UCC).

This vital communications hub was used throughout All-Star Week by the Seattle Police Department and its various local, regional, and federal partners, including the Seattle Fire Department, the King County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol, the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, and Burlington Northern.

In addition to donating this integral space, Greg was an exceptionally generous and gracious host, paying out of pocket for meals, snacks, and beverages, to keep the team fed and hydrated throughout the long workdays.

Greg does so much for the Seattle Police Foundation, the Seattle Police Department, and the Seattle community, and it was truly wonderful to see him honored in such a meaningful way. Thank you to SPD’s Special Operations Center (SPOC) for going above and beyond to recognize Greg, and, most of all, thank you to Greg Steinhauer for all that you do!