Eastside community leaders descended upon the newly renovated Redmond Town Center Marriott on Oct. 19 for the second annual Leadership Eastside Network awards, also known as the LENi’s.

Leadership Eastside’s President James Whitfield explained, “This celebration is a gift to the people who get up every day and do the hard work of leading in our community. The Eastside is better for their passion and commitment. Tonight, they know that they are appreciated.”

Microsoft employee Ahinsa Mansukhani was one of the winners and received the Catalyst LENi for her more than 2,000 hours of volunteer work for the Children’s Response Center (CRC) and the creation and implementation of Bellevue’s Taste of Main event and Madison Valley’s Bastille Bash. Both events unite the community for a day of food, fun and entertainment, and raise money and awareness for abused children who receive services at the CRC.