During January 2024, the AAUW Port Townsend branch is recognizing Velda Thomas, a woman of the diverse global majority. Thomas has lived in Port Townsend for over sixteen years. She is a writer, poet and published author. She is also well known for her work in holistic health, shamanic work, and as a ritual leader. “Love of creative expression has been a constant thread running through my life.” Whether visual, written or performance, she has dabbled in it all blending genres to expose distinct hybrid forms of personal expression. Her current practices and interests include sound, somatic movement, clay, printmaking, poetry and personal narrative. In December 2023 she completed an art residency at Fort Worden. She believes that now is a time for her to combine all her gifts into a focus on community wellness and support. “We need one another to resonate, create, and hold each other,” Thomas states. She asks something we can all consider, “How can I be more human-caring?” She is also currently focused on the needs of the local BIPOC community.

She is married, and has two grown children. From her website, Thomas was “born in England, UK with family ancestry sourced from Africa, the Caribbean and the America’s. She has worked as a fashion designer, kindergarten teacher, adult educator, birth doula, massage therapist, and sound practitioner.”

AAUW Port Townsend recognizes Natalia Duran, the Outreach Coordinator for Jefferson County Immigrant Rights Advocates/ JCIRA (click for info) here in Port Townsend. Natalia immigrated to the United States from Mexico in 2012 after earning her BA degree there and has many talents from design, sewing, organizing, and management. In Mexico she worked as a fashion designer/illustrator for jeans from design through the industrial process to the final product. Locally, she has created original designs and up-crafting clothing in children’s wear, then sewing and selling her items. Through her volunteer work for Dove House, she was encouraged to apply for the position at JCIRA, and was hired.

At JCIRA she works with immigrants from Ukraine, Afghanistan, Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rice, Panama, Peru and more – all here in our community. She also represents JCIRA in area schools during equity training for teachers and staff so that they can better serve our diverse population. One of her passions is serving immigrant children by seeking collaboration with groups to fund local camps and after school activities for these students. She involves her daughter in many of her activities to set an example of being an advocate for others.

The AAUW of Port Townsend is honored to recognize Tonia Burkett as a vital woman of the global majority in our community. Ms Burkett earned her BA and MA degrees in Portland, OR and worked on her doctoral studies in North Carolina as a Ford Foundation Fellow. Her work is centered on community organizing and education through consulting and workshops. She has her own company, USAWA, which is Swahili for “equity” [click for info]. Here in Port Townsend she has worked with Black Lives Matter of Jefferson County and other groups on anti-racist education and training building safe, respectful community cohorts who share accountability for their learning. Her work model is based on “spiritual economics” and respectful, loving, relationship building.

AAUW Port Townsend delighted to honor Zhaleh Almaee as Woman of Excellence 2023-2024. Each year, our community nominates and celebrates a local Woman of Excellence who has contributed significantly to the local community through paid or volunteer work. She is a role model, change agent, teacher/mentor and community activist. This award is a tradition unique to our branch since 1996.

Remarks at December 9, 2023 ceremony from Debbi Steele

“Zhaleh is a multi-heritage ritual theater artist, social justice educator, and cultural organizer.  As an Iranian-American Jewish person, she has continually worked to achieve her vision of a community that offers a healthy, just, and inclusive space for all of us.

She has lived in Port Townsend for 13 years.  As a teacher, she has gone far beyond to create a platform for marginalized voices to share their stories and envision better futures.  She conducted restorative circles where parents whose students have experienced racism in school had space to be heard by school officials. 

Zhaleh co-founded The Community Equity Initiative.  They contracted with the school to bring in multiple people of different identities to work with staff and students. She also co-founded The Mandela Center for Change with her partner Mark Weinblatt.

Youth theater groups have also benefited from her involvement.  They have addressed complex social issues through creative theater forms.  She is currently Program Director at Owl360 The Nest.  This new gathering place for teens is a place she brings inclusive and collaborative leadership to youth. In addition to all that, she is a humble mother of four.

In today’s world we honor this young woman, perhaps the youngest who has received our award, who is showing our youth and our community that they belong today and can help lead our world tomorrow!”

Click a picture below to see full size –>

More information about Zhaleh:

PTLeader news March 27, 2012

PTLeader news Feb. 21, 2017

www.mandalaforchange.com

www.owl360.org