Event Details
WHAT:
LWSF’s Be the Bridge Spring Benefit
WHERE:
Seattle Marriott Redmond
7401 164th Ave NE, Redmond, WA 98052
WHEN:
Thursday, March 26, 2026
4:30 pm: Early Check-in, Meet & Greet
5:00 pm: Drinks & Hors d’Oeurves
6:00 pm: Event Program, Student Performances, Raise the Paddle
7:00 pm: Dessert Dash
Overview
Thank you for being a champion for students.
Be the Bridge is not just an event—it’s a call to action. As a Table Captain, your leadership is critical to the success of our largest fundraiser of the year and our mission to support over 30,000 students in the Lake Washington School District.
A Table Captain’s Role
A Table Captain’s #1 job is to help lead a generous table by filling the room with people who are—or have the potential to be—passionate about supporting students through LWSF. Your specific responsibilities include:
- Recruit: Invite friends, family, colleagues, or anyone else who may be interested in attending the event and supporting LWSF.
- Fundraise: Encourage your network of friends and colleagues to donate during the event’s exciting Raise the Paddle, or, if they can’t attend, to donate online or via Donor Advised Funds or stock donations.
- Host: Serve as a gracious representative for LWSF at your table during the event, sharing information about our work, answering questions, and encouraging your guests to donate as generously as possible. During the event’s Dessert Dash, rally bids from your table by encouraging guests to combine their donations so your table can compete for first pick of desserts.
- Thank: After the event, follow up with your guests to thank them for their attendance and support, and encourage them to stay involved with LWSF in the future.
Ready? Let’s Get Started!
1. Invite your network
The best way to fill your table is by making specific and personal invitations to individuals who you think will care about our mission.
Schedules fill up quickly, so start inviting guests ASAP!
- Brainstorm a list of 25-30 people you want to invite. Think about past guests, friends, neighbors, and business contacts. Consider community members who share the values of LWSF and believe in investing in students.
- Tables seat 10, but if you have more than 9 guests for your table, we will try to seat you at adjacent tables. If you have half of a table, or fewer than 9 guests, we will seat you with another group.
- If you have been a Table Captain before and can’t remember who you sat with, email our Table Captain team at tablecaptains@lwsf.org.
- Community Partners: Please consider inviting management and organizational leaders, as well as clients and partners with whom you want to share your dedication to youth in our community.
- Reach out with personal invitations to your potential guests. This can be a phone call, text, email, or card. Let them know why LWSF’s work matters to you.
- If ambivalent responses come in, do your best to encourage your friends to get involved. Share with them why you first got involved with LWSF, or send them information about an area of our work that you really believe in (see a great overview of our work here.)
- If a friend can’t attend, encourage them to donate in lieu of attendance at https://lwsf.ejoinme.org/BTB2026_donate. We do plan to make highlights of the program available to watch on-demand after the event.
- When a contact agrees to attend, encourage them to bring a friend—just make sure everyone registers online.
- If you want to mail physical invitations, email our Table Captain team at tablecaptains@lwsf.org to arrange for pickup at our office in Redmond.
Subject line: Join me for an evening of impact on March 26!
Dear [Recipient’s Name],
I’d love for you to join me at the Lake Washington Schools Foundation’s Be the Bridge Spring Benefit on March 26 to celebrate their impact and raise funds for the life-changing resources that they provide to LWSD students. It will be a wonderful evening of connection and inspiration, with drinks, appetizers, and a special program highlighting the Foundation’s two-plus decades of impact on local students.
WHAT:
LWSF’s Be the Bridge Spring Benefit
WHERE:
Seattle Marriott Redmond
7401 164th Ave NE, Redmond, WA 98052
WHEN:
Thursday, March 26, 2026
5:00PM–7:00PM
If you can come, please register at my Table Captain URL and you will automatically be included as my guest: [insert your unique Table Captain URL here]
Unable to attend? Please consider making a donation in lieu of attendance. Every contribution makes a difference!
Looking forward to seeing you there,
[Your Name]
2. Connect on social media
- “Like” or “Follow” LWSF’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and/or YouTube.
- Mark yourself as “Going” on the Facebook event page and share it with your network
- Using the templates below, make your own social media posts to ask your network to register for Be the Bridge or donate in lieu of attendance.
When making social media posts, please use #bethebridge and tag LWSF. Here are our handles:
- Facebook: @LakeWashingtonSchoolsFoundation
- Twitter: @LWSFoundation
- Instagram: @lakewaschoolsfoundation
- LinkedIn: @lake-washington-schools-foundation
Behind every student’s success, there’s a supportive community—and the Lake Washington Schools Foundation helps build that support through vital programs. I’m honored to be a Table Captain at this year’s Be the Bridge Spring Benefit on March 26, raising funds to keep LWSF programs going strong. Registration is OPEN and I want you to sit with me. DM me to join as my guest!
From providing weekend meals to students facing food insecurity to supporting classroom innovation, the Lake Washington Schools Foundation transforms lives through its programs. That’s why I’m proud to support their mission as a Table Captain for the Be the Bridge Spring Benefit on March 26. Together, we can help fund programs that remove barriers to education. DM me to join as my guest!
Did you know the Lake Washington Schools Foundation supports programs that help students succeed academically, socially, and emotionally? I’m excited to attend the Be the Bridge Spring Benefit on March 26—an event where we’ll hear inspiring stories about these programs in action. Join me in supporting the work that makes a real difference for over 30,000 students. Registration is open NOW—let’s sit together!
Visit our Media Kit to download our logos.
3. Lead a generous table
Tell your guests why YOU support LWSF!
Your guests are coming to support a cause you believe in—make it personal.
Share your story! Ask yourself:
- When and how did you first learn about LWSF’s work?
- What issues facing students are you most concerned about?
- Which LWSF programs resonate the most with you?
- How is LWSF working to address your concerns?
- What aspects of LWSF’s work would most interest your guest?
We need every attendee to give a minimum of $250.
When a guest agrees to attend the event with you, please make sure that they know in advance that they will be asked to contribute—nobody likes to be surprised by donation requests.
If that figure seems high, please let your guests know that they can elect to make a smaller monthly donation that adds up to $250 or more over the course of the year.
New this year, we will host a raise the paddle style of ask – similar to the way that donations are accepted at an auction. Each guest will have a unique bid number that they can hold high at the giving level that is the right fit for them. This is a more engaging and collaborative way for donors to give, as everyone can experience the generosity and collective impact in real time. Each of your guests will receive their bid card at check in. Please make sure that each of your guests has a bid number before sitting down for the program,
Some donors prefer to donate via donor-advised fund or payroll giving programs, but since those aren’t on-the-spot donations, we’ll ask them to let us know how we can expect their donation to arrive so that we can tally your table’s total correctly.
4. Stay updated
Watch your email!
Periodically as the event approaches, we will check in with you on your progress, share with you which of your guests are registered, and deliver suggestions on how to communicate with your guest list.
We will email reminders to your registered guests about attending the event, but you should also periodically reach out personally to those seated at your table and make sure they remember to attend. We will also send you a message just before the event letting you know exactly when to arrive at the venue and what to do when you get there.
Also watch out for new posts on social media. It’s incredibly helpful for you to like, comment on, and share any post you see, whether it’s related to Be the Bridge or not. You have the power to increase our reach, which supercharges our ability to raise funds and help more students!
Cancellations?
- If a guest needs to cancel, please let us know ASAP at tablecaptains@lwsf.org so we can fill that space with another supporter.
- If you need to add or adjust the number of seats at your table, please reach out to tablecaptains@lwsf.org.
Questions? Email our Table Captain team at any time at tablecaptains@lwsf.org.
