by Sarah Brede
EWI of Spokane Chapter President
Dear EWI of Spokane Members,
There’s a moment that keeps coming back to me from our March meeting at the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture.
We were surrounded by art — real art, the kind that asks something of you — and Wes Jessup, the MAC’s Executive Director, was talking about why spaces like that matter. What they do for a community. What happens when people come together inside them. And I couldn’t help but think: this is exactly what we do. This is EWI.
The MAC Foundation is a member firm, which made the evening feel even more meaningful. We weren’t just guests in a beautiful venue, we were guests of one of our own. That’s something worth pausing on.
Connections. Careers. Community.
Those three words are the foundation of everything we do as an organization, and that night at the MAC brought all three to life at once. The tour through the galleries sparked conversations between members who had never really talked before. The setting reminded us that our professional lives don’t have to be transactional, they can be rich, and interesting, and shared. And our community showed up, curious, engaged, and genuinely present with one another.
Evenings like that don’t happen without the generosity of a member firm willing to open their doors and say come in, let’s do something special here. Firm nights are one of EWI’s most unique benefits. They are a direct expression of what it means to be a member firm in this organization — not just a name on a roster, but a full participant in building something together. And for the broader chapter, they create experiences that simply can’t be replicated in a conference room.
If your firm has a space, a project, a mission, or even just a story worth sharing, I’d love to talk about how you might host a future chapter gathering. Reach out to our Programs Director, Jennifer Leigh, to explore what that could look like.
Eyes on April 21st!
Our Chapter Anniversary Meeting is almost here, and I want to be direct with you: this is the biggest evening of our year. We’re gathering at the Spokane Club (another member firm!) for an evening built around a panel called “The EWI Effect.” Three accomplished executives — Gwen Gunzel of Contract Design, Megan Schuyler Kennedy of Rogue Heart Media, and Jillian Robison of Eide Bailly — will be sharing what EWI has actually meant to their careers and their leadership. It’s going to be a real conversation, and it’s going to be good.
But here’s what I need from you: bring someone. Bring your firm’s executive. Bring a colleague who’s been curious about EWI but hasn’t seen it in action. Bring a friend who’s ready for something like this. Our goal is 60 people in the room that night, which means each of us has a job to do between now and April 21st.
This community is worth showing off. Let’s fill that room.
With gratitude,
Sarah
President, EWI of Spokane
EWI: Where diverse businesses come together for Connections, Careers, and Community.