Just out., June 17, 2011, Page 49, Image 49

OREGON S LGBTO NEWSMAGAZINE
JUNE 17, 2011
pridefiles
L
our events to keep things
afloat.”
Swaim, 37, and Steele, 36,
met in college at the Univer­
sity o f Portland years ago.
“We were best friends for
seven years before we started
dating,” Swaim says. “Thank
goodness we finally figured
it out. We’ve now been together for 12 years.”
Both Steele and Swaim hail from Cali­
fornia. Steele grew up in Ukiah, Calif. “San
Francisco always felt a really long way away,”
she says. Swaim spent the majority o f her
youth in Southern California.
“In 2001, after working for years in the
entertainment industry in Los Angeles,”
Swaim says, “Kristin and I decided it was time
to return to Portland. We loved the commu­
nity and always wanted to plant roots here.”
In that decade back in Portland, the two
have materialized elaborate galas for Basic
Rights Oregon and Q_ Center, and have
helped put on productions for Insight Out
Theatre Collective.
“We tend to really balance each other,”
Swaim says of her partner in life and busi­
ness. “We have a rule that when one o f us is
up against a deadline or feeling stressed out,
the other one can’t go there. It’s great when
the day has gone a bit off track, because the
other one is always there to get things hack
on track.”
- J *
'
Hello Portland,
The Dynamic Fund­
raising Duo
We are opening
a new store on
in Raleigh Hills
on April 3rd.
Swaim and Steele combine forces in
management, theater and cycling
There have been many dynamic duos in
queer history: Batman and Robin, Annie Lei­
bovitz and Susan Sontag, Edina and Patsy.
Please welcome to the stage Samantha
Swaim and Kristin Steele.
“We are a lesbian couple working within
the community as artists, organizers and
consultants,” Swaim says.
The Sapphic team is the force behind Sa­
mantha Swaim Fundraising, a company fo­
cused on event planning, management and
fundraising.
Swaim takes a very direct role in her name­
sake business: “We provide the tools, educa­
tion and resources for organizations to increase
their fundraising at their event. We are event
planners with a fundraising eye, and fundrais­
ing consultants with an expertise in events.”
Steele, with a background as a writer,
works alongside Swaim.
“I work with clients to develop storytelling
strategies,” Steele explains. “People want to
connect and hear specific stories of change. I
try to help our clients do that. I work on-site at
4 9
2 2 N E 7 t h A ve.
P a ir r u A N O , O R 9 7 2 3 2
■
‘S tu tctct
Now Serving Beer
TRADITIO NAL
O R IG IN A L
4704 SW
Scholls Ferry Rd.
Portland Or, 97204
Join us on Sunday, June 19,h, 6pm - Late
•
•
•
•
Celebrate newly renovated patio
Complimentary hors d’oeuvres buffet
D J’s and additional performers welcome
No host bar
c h a iti e 1 e o n p d x . e o in
2000 NE 40th Portland, OR 47212
(501) 460.2682
KETTLEMAN