Month: June 2026

Program: Andrea Suarez, “The State of Homelessness in America,” June 11, 2026

Join the University Sunrise Rotary Club for a program featuring our member Andrea Suarez, Founder and CEO of We Heart Seattle.

The program will be presented on Zoom on Thursday morning with the Zoom line opening at 7 a.m.  The formal meeting including the program runs from 7:30-8:30 a.m.  No registration is required, and the program is free.

The meeting will be available via Zoom.  Click here to join the meeting Thursday morning.  The Zoom line will open shortly after 7 a.m.

Andrea Suarez, Founder of WeHeartSeattle
Andrea Suarez, Founder of WeHeartSeattle

Our member, Andrea Suarez, is the Founder of We Heart Seattle. She has lived in King County for twenty-four years and in the downtown area since 2009. In September of 2020, she started ‘We Heart Seattle’ out of love for the city–wanting it clean and safe for all to enjoy.

From the We Heart Seattle website:

We Heart Seattle is an action-based, boots-on-the-ground movement that organizes trash cleanups in our public spaces and offers resources to those in need. Through our direct civic engagement, we lead the way to a more compassionate and healthy community. To meet these goals, we:

  • Organize regular volunteer trash cleanups in public spaces
  • Offer individualized assistance to those in need
  • Create a sense of community by welcoming everyone to be involved in real civic engagement
  • Build a network of people who no longer walk by neighbors in need and areas needing repair while expecting someone else to help
  • Utilize all available safe housing, shelters, and treatment facilities for anyone who is ready
  • House our neighbors quickly without the typical restrictions, delays and inefficiency that has kept many on the streets
  • Clean up litter and eradicate graffiti
  • Develop great partnerships with like-minded stakeholders
  • Work cooperatively with city and county employees and leaders

You can find the slides for Andrea’s presentation here:

2026 State of Homelessness 02 Use 2007 to 2024Download

Program: Maya Smith, Ph.D., University of Washington, “Reaffirming Commitments to Equity, Justice, and Inclusion in the Current Climate,” June 4, 2026

Join the University Sunrise Rotary Club for a program featuring Maya Smith of the University of Washington.

The program will be presented in-person and on Zoom on Thursday morning.  The formal meeting including the program runs from 7:30-8:30 a.m.  No registration is required, and the program is free.

  • The in-person meeting will be at the North Seattle Church (2150 N 122nd St, Seattle).  Doors open at 7:00 a.m. and the program begins at 7:30 a.m.
  • Click here to join the meeting on Zoom.  The line will open shortly after 7:00 a.m.

Maya Angela Smith is a Professor in French and Italian Studies and the inaugural Associate Dean for Equity, Justice, and Inclusion in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Washington. She earned her doctorate in Romance Languages and Linguistics from the University of California, Berkeley. Her scholarship broadly focuses on the intersection of racial and linguistic identity formations among marginalized groups in the African diaspora, particularly in the postcolonial Francophone world. Her most recent book, Ne me quitte pas: A Song by Jacques Brel and Interpreted by Nina Simone and Others, was published with Duke UP in 2025.

We will be meeting in-person; Maya will join us via Zoom.

Maya’s presentation slides can be viewed here:

Maya Smith, UW 060426Download