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Phil Noble Scholarship Fund for Training and Education

The Phil Noble Scholarship Fund for Nonprofit Leadership is named for the late Phil Noble, beloved servant of the community, Bellevue City Council member, and champion for human services and those less fortunate. His example of leadership inspires all who work in the community, and the AEA will remember Phil for his dedication and values.

The AEA is invested in the development of leadership in the not-for-profit sector in our Eastside community. As part of this investment, the AEA has an annual scholarship budget which is used to recognize award winners in the categories of staff, volunteer and youth.

The AEA gives awards of recognition for Eastside human services!

The awards for 2013 will be presented on June 12 at the AEA luncheon.

2013 Award Winners

• Volunteer of the Year: Art Mabbott (nominated by Friends of Youth)
Art, a recently retired math teacher, has dedicated his retirement to helping youth in need through Friends of Youth. He started his volunteer work by involving his church, All Saints Episcopal in Bellevue, as a dinner donor for FOY's emergency shelter for young adults, The Landing. More recently, he became trained as an on-call volunteer with the Safe Place program, learning how to accompany FOY staff on calls to respond to youth in crisis. He and his wife, MaryAnn are dedicated assistants and excellent ambassadors at all FOY events. His unceasing advocacy for youth is inspirational.
• Business of the Year: Tom Varga, Managing Partner, CFO Selections (nominated by Kindering)
CFO Selections developed a novel business model at its inception, allocating a portion of their revenues each and every month to their foundation, CFOS Foundation. They are particularly interested in children's issues, especially foster care. In addition to the grants the Foundation makes, partners at CFO Selections (chief financial officers) and on the board of the foundation give high level, strategic, talented pro-bono consultation to the organizations they fund. Tom conceived this business model, has nurtured it, brought it to fruition, and is working to replicate it.
• Youth Volunteer: Elia Studivant (nominated by Youth Eastside Services)
Elia became a PEACE (Peers.Educating.And.Coaching.Empathy) ambassador at Bennett Elementary. She gave up her lunch and recess two days a week for four weeks to come in and learn how to be a peer leader to help stop bullying at her school. At the end of the four weeks Eila went into the classrooms at her school and helped educate her peers on ways to stop bullying and help build a stronger community. As Eila has transitioned out of elementary school and into middle school she continues to bring her awareness, education and support to her peers about the harm bullying can cause to an individual and a community.
• Not-for-Profit Staff: Daniel Hanson (nominated by Youth Eastside Services)
In the context of violence as exemplified by Newtown, Connecticut and the marked increase of youth suicides in the community, the PEACE program for the Bellevue School District grew out of the need to have maximum impact. Danny Hanson was key in the development of this unique model; it focuses on training young people in the elementary schools to be the "ambassadors" to teach the younger students to identify, resist and actively work to eliminate bullying. In 2012 this model reached 13 elementary schools, with over 430 young people being positively impacted by the program; surveys show a success rate of 96%. Danny's commitment and leadership through this program are making this happen.
• Faith Organization: Snoqualmie Valley Alliance Church (nominated by Encompass)
The Snoqualmie Valley Alliance Church (SVA) is a dynamic, responsive and incredibly engaged church in the Snoqualmie Valley. SVA responds to needs in the community by running an extremely popular clothing bank; operating a teen center in downtown Snoqualmie; assisting monthly in the local food bank; asking members to contribute to shoe, socks, sleeping bag, food, and hygiene items drives regularly; having members volunteer all over the community; and most recently, opening a free health clinic! SVA is an active and founding member of One VOICE (Valley Organizations in Collective Effort), a collaboration of helping organizations, both faith-based and secular in the community. Organizations like Encompass depend on churches like SVA to help bridge the gap for the most vulnerable in the community. They have made and continue to make a positive difference in the Valley.
• Elected Official: Amy Walen, Kirkland City Council (nominated by Hopelink)
Ms. Walen was elected to the Kirkland City Council in 2009. Throughout her time in Kirkland, she has been active as a fundraiser for the Evergreen Hospital Cancer Center, and has helped organizations such as Meow, Old Dog Haven, Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, Kirkland Downtown Association, KITH and "Adopt a Highway". Most recently, Councilperson Walen advocated for the Income Source Non-discrimination Ordinance which requires landlords to allow Section 8 voucher holders to compete for housing units equally. On March 19th, not only supported the ordinance, but provided a passionate, well-reasoned argument, grounded in her experience as a publicly-elected official, business person and landlord, focused on the type of city she wants Kirkland to be. Many advocates present that night were deeply moved by Ms. Walen's statement and her support for the vulnerable in Kirkland.
• Legacy Award: Mimi Siegel, Kindering)
Since 1978, Mimi Siegel has dedicated her career to Kindering, the Bellevue-based neurodevelopmental center helping infants and children with special needs. The largest and most comprehensive a program in the Northwest, Kindering offers comprehensive early intervention (EI)and family-centered services. As Executive Director, Mimi led Kindering, founded by five Bellevue-area mothers, into a nationally-renowed program for EI. Today, Kindering supports 3,500+ infants, toddlers and their families annually.

Dr. Glenn Lux, President of Pediatric Associates, confirms, "Mimi Siegel has been the Executive Director of, and the moving force behind, Kindering since 1978. Kindering under her leadership has become, and continues to be, the benchmark for how non-profit service organizations should serve a community. Her immense skill and passionate leadership are very important reasons why Kindering is so successful."

Award winners are nominated annually by AEA members. Nominations for 2014 awards will be accepted spring 2014.

Award Categories:

• Volunteer of the Year: Recognizes the important value volunteers bring to the human services sector in advocacy, service delivery or community organizing. Recipient is recognized with a $75 restaurant gift card.
• Business of the Year: Recognizes the charitable actions that the business community brings to the human services sector through engaging its employees to "give back." Recipient is recognized on the AEA website, newsletters and brochure for one year.
• Youth Volunteer: Recognizes the contributions of time and talent of young people to the human services sector and supports their philanthropic development. Recipient is awarded $100 for education/training through the Phil Noble scholarship fund.
• Not-for-Profit Staff: Recognizes an outstanding staff person who tirelessly supports the mission of helping others and consistently exemplifies commitment, ethics and competency. Recipient awarded $100 for education/training through the Phil Noble scholarship fund.
• Faith Organization: Recognizes the important partnership between the faith community and the human services sector by honoring an exceptional faith group which has taken action and done an outstanding community service to help those in need in our eastside community. Recognized on the AEA website, newsletters and brochures for one year.
• Elected Official: Recognizes an elected official who has been a bold "catalyst for change" to better the understanding of, and support for, human services. Recipient recognized on the AEA website, newsletters and brochures for one year.