On Monday, October 16, Dr. Jill Biden, the wife of former Vice President Joe Biden, was the keynote speaker at the 22nd annual Hopelink Reaching Out Luncheon at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue.
Hopelink is the largest social services agency in east and north King County, serving 64,000 people every year.
The luncheon, which was free to attend, was full to capacity with 1800 attendees, all present to make generous donations to Hopelink.
Dr. Biden talked about the challenge of tough times, and the role each of us can play in helping each other, and in building a stronger community. 'None of us needs to fix the whole world,' she said, 'but we can make a difference - one good turn after another.'
During Dr. Biden's speech she talked about balancing her life as a wife, mother, being Second Lady and still keeping her professorship at Northern Virginia Community College; adding to that, was her son, Beau's losing battle with cancer in 2015.
Biden said, 'Sometimes our strength comes from within us. Sometimes it can't. That's where community and groups like Hopelink come in.'
The luncheon raised a record $1.19 million to support Hopelink services.
Today, Hopelink provides a full array of critical social services through a number of different programs, including housing, transportation, case management, financial assistance, employment programs, energy assistance, adult education and literacy training, a vast referral network and six food banks. Hopelink Centers are located in Redmond, Bellevue, Kirkland, Shoreline and Sno-Valley/Carnation.
To make a donation and for more information about Hopelink, visit their website, hopelink.org.
