WENATCHEE — Mary Big Bull-Lewis always felt like something was missing, but it wasn’t until her 30s that she started digging into how to change that.

Teresa Bendito-Zepeda is a Wenatchee native and a co-founder of non-profit Parque Padrinos. In 2020, she also founded her own business, Teresita's Consulting, to provide services like interpretation and translation to local organizations, including Confluence Health.

WENATCHEE — When the pandemic came to Wenatchee, Laurie Flarity-White saw a need and looked for a cupboard-sized solution. She found one.

WENATCHEE — Linda Haglund has deep roots in the Wenatchee Valley. Local businesses are what Haglund sees as the heart of Wenatchee’s community, which is why she has been working for over a decade to support those businesses.

CHELAN — Larry Hibbard doesn’t spend as much time with his wife as he used to; someone a little older has been keeping him out late — her name is Valentina, a 100-year-old self-playing instrument.

WENATCHEE — Nothing like having a warm hat on a cold day. Thanks to Aїda Bound, a lot more people in the local area have those warm hats through her Hat Project.

WENATCHEE — Nurses, medical assistants and respiratory therapists at Central Washington Hospital, the largest hospital in North Central Washington, have been working tirelessly to keep people alive through the worst of COVID-19. And now they're working into their third year of the pandemic.

WENATCHEE — A stroll around the Wenatchee Valley College campus will reveal a variety of colorful murals by students in Marlin Peterson’s mural painting class.

Wenatchee Valley College Math, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) director Karina Vega-Villa began her work helping the community doing community outreach for Lewis and Clark Elementary School, where her son was choiced in for the dual language program.

WENATCHEE — Dr. Peter Rutherford is the CEO of North Central Washington's largest medical provider, Confluence Health. Confluence Health has been a key part of the region's COVID-19 response in its care of the sickest COVID-19 patients at Central Washington Hospital along with its testing an…

WENATCHEE — In 2010, immigration officials asked Norma Gallegos for help reaching immigrants who qualified for citizenship. Twelve years later, she’s shepherded a few thousand through naturalization.

WENATCHEE — Jenny Rojanasthien is the executive director of the NCWTech Alliance, a nonprofit that in 2021 successfully rebranded to be more inclusive of the six counties they serve. 

WENATCHEE — When announcing plans for the valley’s first charter school in 2018, few could have predicted Pinnacles Prep opening would be amid a pandemic.

Randy Lewis remembers helping his grandmother sort through her collection of Swarovski crystal beads as a child. When she asked which was his favorite, Lewis held up a type of iridescent bead, called Aurora Borealis, that reflected a variety of colors. 

WENATCHEE — "You take over any organization in the middle of crisis let alone the worst pandemic we've had in about 100 years there's always something new every day to learn," said Luke Davies.