Earlier this month, Sound Generations celebrated their 20th annual Inspire Positive Aging Awards at a luncheon at Bellevue’s Meydenbauer Center. For the first time, the nominations were open to all of Western Washington and not just King County. The special event was marked with live music, a resource fair, the most nominations that the organization has received, plus a sold-out crowd. KOMO’s Tyrah Majors was host of this event that honored remarkable people inspiring us all to age positively.
Here are the 2025 winners of Sound Generations Inspire Positive Aging Awards (text and photos courtesy of SoundGenerations.org)
Cecile Hansen
Advocacy & Activism
In May 2025, Cecile will reach a significant milestone of 50 years as Tribal Council Chairwoman of the Duwamish Tribe; a first in the entire history of the tribe. For years, Cecile has carried the tribe’s fight for federal recognition, advocated successfully for wellness services for Duwamish community members, ensured the tribe prioritizes elder housing, and secured funds to buy back land across the county. She frequently leads classes in the Longhouse Kitchen – like teaching participants to make traditional fry bread – and initiated the Mayor’s Arts Award-winning T’ilibshudub (Singing Feet), a dance troupe for children to learn traditional songs and dances.
Bonnie Moses
Community Service
Helping the furry friends of Port Angeles at the food bank, Bonnie repacks pet food to ensure that local pets have the supplies they need. When the food bank was unable to provide pet food, Bonnie took it upon herself to dig into her limited savings, purchase in bulk to stretch every dollar, and repackage the food herself to save on volunteer labor. Once having a farm of her own, she knew the importance of community support, so she now shares her time with the animals and people of Port Angeles.
Rene’e Rudd
Defining Inspiration
Rene’e works full time at InterCultural Children and Family Services, along with helping her community in many roles: sourcing items for families in need from World Vision or Northwest Furniture Bank, manages a church food pantry with her daughter at Peoples Institutional Baptist Church, helps her husband run Ezell’s Chicken, participates on boards of directors for nonprofit organizations and started the first ever Kinship Peer Mentor program in King County. She is a key community connector and is known to do it all with a smile.
Steve Schmidt
Health & Wellness
Steve is a coach who offers fitness classes at the Renton Senior Activity Center and the YMCA, teaching seniors prevent falling through balance, strengthening the upper body, being flexible to improve range of motion, and stress relief breathing techniques. His classes allow participants to remain active and safer in their lives. Steve himself attends continuing education classes to broaden his class content and better serve class attendees, taking over 1,350 hours of courses. He is also certified in Barre exercise techniques and cycled 1,000 miles from Seattle to San Francisco in 2006.
Elaine Simons
Intergenerational Impact
Elaine volunteers at a local community center, mentoring young professionals and students on career development and personal growth. Elaine also volunteers regularly at senior centers and nonprofit organizations, helping to combat loneliness among older adults while proving that aging is an opportunity to give back. As a mother who lost her child to police brutality, she channeled her pain into advocacy, resilience, and hope. Through her work, she has become a voice for justice, using her experience to support other grieving families and push for meaningful reforms. She has shown that aging is not just about growing older—it’s about growing wiser, stronger, and more determined to make a difference.
Claudia Webb
Intergenerational Impact
Ms. Claudia created “The Garfield Girls” to bring together local alumni from high schools around the Seattle area. She serves as the secretary for Seattle Limbe‘, which is modeled after the international nonprofit, Days for Girls, that works to eliminate the stigma and limitations associated with menstruation in the sister city of Cameroon. Claudia is also a member of the Pacific Northwest African American Quilters and previously worked as a civilian technician for the Army Corps of engineers in the Seattle District. Words are inadequate to capture the essence of Claudia’s zest for life, the impact she has on others and her desire to improve the life of others.
Mark Bryant
Lifelong Learning
Mark spent his life studying fitness and strives to share his knowledge with others. He’s enrolled in nearly 30 courses in the last 6 years, obtaining certifications in different specialized health and fitness topics. Over the course of his life, he has taken every opportunity to learn – whether it’s taking courses on writing and speaking, hosting his own radio show, or starting his own exercise therapy program at 66. In a crowning achievement, Mark will fulfill a lifelong dream, walking with the 2025 graduating class of Penn Foster college this August. Mark has proven over and over again that age and history doesn’t mean you stop dreaming, and it dang sure doesn’t mean you stop learning!
Watch a video and learn more about Sound Generations and the annual Inspire Positive Aging at the following link: 2025 Inspire Positive Aging Awards – Sound Generations
