On Thursday, June 16, the International Examiner will host the Reader’s Choice Awards (RCAs) for the first time in three years. The awards ceremony, first established in 2010, celebrates local Asian-Pacific Islander (API) leaders, artists, service providers, businesses, and nonprofits who contribute to the flourishing of Greater Seattle’s diverse API communities.
Originally formatted as a banquet dinner, the RCAs will now be presented as a free community potluck to increase event access for local youth. This year, the RCAs will be held at Hing Hay Coworks in the Chinatown-International District. The event will start at 6:45pm, with award announcements starting around 7:15pm. Organizers ask that guests bring a dish, or $10 to go toward purchasing food from a neighborhood restaurant, as they are able.
“We hope the RCAs will be successful this year and that we’ll be able to make it a biennial event,” said Lexi Potter, the event organizer. “Everyone at the International Examiner feels it’s really important to honor the many individuals and organizations that make the API community great. There are a lot of exceptional folks out there who aren’t regularly recognized for their efforts. We want to celebrate local people who promote the unique cultural and social contributions the API community has to offer.”
Unlike the Community Voice Awards, for which honorees are selected by the International Examiner‘s board of directors, RCA winners are chosen through a popular vote of our readers. Votes may be submitted until 5:00pm on Friday, June 10. At this time, the votes will be counted and the winners in each of 36 categories will be announced.
To take the Reader’s Choice Awards survey, either visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2016RCAs or fill out a print survey from the IE’s May 18 or June 1 issue. Print surveys may be mailed or delivered by hand to the International Examiner office at 409 Maynard Ave S, Suite 203, Seattle, WA 98104. All surveys must be received (not postmarked) by the five o’clock deadline.