SAMMI Awards Held Friday Evening at Eastridge Church in Issaquah

Editor's note: This story has been updated.

The SAMMI Awards will be held Friday evening and event organizers are inviting the community to attend the annual event to honor people who have contributed to life on the Sammamish Plateau.

The written introductions and photographs were supplied by the SAMMI Awards. Sammamish Patch and other sponsors have contributed to the annual event.

"The people we honor have made unselfish contributions to the quality of life in our city, and in doing so they inspire all of us (to) give back," SAMMI Awards Executive Director Cary Young wrote in a letter to the community.

"This type of award ceremony is truly unique to Sammamish, and reflects the values that make our city one of the best small cities in America."

The awards ceremony will be held at 7 pm at Eastridge Church at 24205 SE Issaquah-Fall City Rd. in Issaquah. The doors open at 5:30 pm. The event is open to the public. But organizers would appreciate a $5 per person donation.

On average, about 400 people attend the annual event. To read about all 2011 nominees, click on the white letters in the green bar above or .

Here are the nominees for the 2011 Spirit of Sammamish Award:

Helen Baxter

• A local Sammamish resident since 1984, Helen has certainly seen a lot of change in our community. Her strong sense of reasonable growth along with acknowledging our past is evident in her desire to preserve the heritage of Sammamish. Her leadership role in serving as President of the Sammamish Heritage Society from 2004-10 paved the way to save numerous historical projects including Saving the Reard/Freed House.  Her dedication, loyalty and serving her community certainly distinguishes Helen for wanting to preserve our local heritage.

Stephanie Doyle

• Upon her extraordinary community experiences in Utah, Stephanie brought that same mentally to the Sammamish Plateau and in 2006 started W20, which is an organization whose mission is to raise money for local charities. The goal of the organization is to create a local awareness through a "Girls Night Out" where anywhere from 50 to 100 women will gather and listen to a message from a designated charity. This gives the charity an opportunity to inform a fresh audience about their mission, current needs and volunteer opportunities. Through Stephanie’s drive, determination and perseverance W20 has raised over $32,000 for local charities throughout King County. 

Charlotte Philips 

• A catch phrase to describe Charlotte Philips would be, "willing to sit in the front seat." Her "can do" attitude to tackle any problem has created a significant awareness for the plight of her close friend Michelle Moulton, who is in need of a liver transplant. Charlotte has donated her time, money and support to Michelle and her family. Charlotte helped start the Friends of Michelle website which raises funds for the family.   Additionally, she assists with transportation, daycare, and food preparation. Her dedication and love for her friend has united and rallied their community to support Michelle and her family in a common cause.

Laura Walker

• Known as the Pixie Camp Director, Laura's passion and drive for creating an environment where people feel welcome, empowered, and safe stimulated the creation of a week long Girl's Scout Day camp on Beaver Lake in the summer of 2007. That year the camp drew 150 girls. Through her tireless effort in being able to engage others, this camp has grown and in 2010 expanded to two separate one-week sessions, which served over 500 girls and had 88 adult volunteers. Additionally, the camp has a teen leadership program that over a four-year period has attracted over 70 young ladies that help guide 10-12 year old girls. What an incredible way to touch the lives of so many people.