A contingent from Washington Retail’s leadership team was on hand for Sen. Patty Murray’s annual Golden Tennis Shoe Awards luncheon last week.

Senator Murray, (D-Bothell), famous for becoming known as the “mom in tennis shoes” when she first ran for office, holds the annual event to honor outstanding individuals in the community who have made an impact helping others. The event was a great way to not only make new contacts but talk about issues that matter to retailers in an informal setting. More 1,000 people attended the event.

The three awardees were Javi Barria-Opitz, an advocate for personalized children’s health care; Tarra Simmons, Director of Civil Survival’s Policy Center; and Jane Weiss, advocate for safer gun laws.

Representing WR were Renée Sunde, President/CEO, John Engber, Director of the Retail Industry Coalition of Seattle, and myself.

Joining Senator Murray (D-WA) were U.S. Representatives Suzan DelBene (D-10), Pramila Jayapal (D-7) and Kim Schrier (D-8). Cecile Richards, co-founder of Supermajority, was the keynote speaker.

Congratulations to the honorees and Senator Murray for hosting the event.