The tradition of honoring women who have made significant contributions to the Greater Puget Sound community began in 2006 and was entitled “Inspiring Women Night.” Creating such an honor allowed the team and fans to recognize and thank the women who have made a difference in the community. To reflect the ever-changing roles and opportunities that women have in our community, the program will now be called “Believe in Women Night.” This year the program amplifies the contributions of Black women, leaders of color, and organizations serving Black communities during the 2020 WNBA season and beyond. This year’s Believe in Women honorees are Seattle-area businesswomen and civic leaders of color, driven by their shared philosophy that women and girls should have the chance to succeed at every level no matter their race, ethnicity, or gender.
2022 Honorees
Ijeoma Oluo
Ijeoma Oluo is a writer, speaker and internet yeller. She is the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller So You Want to Talk About Race and most recently, Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America. Her work on race has been featured in The Guardian, The New York Times and The Washington Post, among many other publications. She was named to the 2021 TIME 100 Next list and has twice been named to the Root 100, as well as received the 2018 Feminist Humanist Award and the 2020 Harvard Humanist of the Year Award from the American Humanist Association. She lives in Seattle, Washington.
KD Hall
KD Hall is the CEO of KD Hall Communications and KD Hall Foundation. With 16 years of driving projects in strategic communications, education, and Seattle area non-profits, Hall is an affiliate professor at the University of Washington, a member of the board of governors at NATAS Northwest Emmys, and a board member at Business Impact Northwest. Her work at the KD Hall Foundation has created a positive impact in Seattle through community programs like the College Ambassador Program, Girls on the Rise, and Women on the Rise, each providing mentorship to young girls and women looking to thrive as professionals.
Joycelyn Thomas—Ginger Ackerley Award recipient
Joycelyn Thomas, ARNP holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree, Master of Nursing and Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Washington. Currently, she works as a Family Nurse Practitioner at a Family Practice Clinic for Virginia Mason Franciscan Health where she is the former Medical Director. During the pandemic, her volunteer work focused on COVID-19 education and vaccination distribution within the African American community. Through her leadership, she worked collaboratively with local governmental, large health care organizations, churches, and grass roots community organizations to educate BIPOC communities about COVID-19, benefits of vaccinations, and administer thousands of vaccines.