On Tuesday, January 2, the Seattle City Council swore in five new members. After reciting oaths in front of a live audience, Joy Hollingsworth, Rob Saka, Cathy Moore, Maritza Rivera, Bob Kettle, and Cathy Moore joined the council. Dan Strauss and Tammy Morales returned to their previous positions as council members. In contrast, Sara Nelson, a council member who's been in office since 2022, was elected president. Teresa Mosqueda, a council member serving since 2017, effectively stepped down to join King County Council after winning her campaign in that election, leaving open an appointment for a new Seattle City Council member. The council has 20 days to appoint someone as Mosqueda's equivalent, with this countdown beginning on January 3. If the council does not appoint someone after this period, they must convene every weekday, except for holidays, to vote until the appointment is filled.

“The connection with community on this project has been more robust, fruitful, and emotional than I was prepared for. I don’t think I will ever experience a job like this again.” Says Patrick McGlothlin, Senior Project Manager at Lydig Construction.

The new Rainier Beach High School’s model is Build The Beach For Us By Us, and it’s needless to say the efforts are led by the community and built by Lydig Construction. Through their work with the Seattle Public Schools and programs like ANEW, they’re working to create opportunities for individuals to have successful and fruitful careers in construction.

In case you missed it, in the South End of Seattle and Rainier Beach Community Center is where Rob Ross, who is the founder of United Business Connections, held a Black Vendors Market where over 25 Black businesses were gathered with a lot of self-care items, plus clothing and accessories that uplifts Black beauty and Ezell's Famous Chicken even stopped by and feed the community.

Joining Trae Holiday on this episode of The Day With Trae is K. Wyking Garrett, the current CEO and president of the Africa Town Community Land Trust (ACLT). In this episode, the community leader talks to Holiday about his organization's mission, how and why it was founded, and the numerous projects it's created to fight against gentrification and maintain Seattle's Black community in neighborhoods such as the Central District.

In the 2024 Winter Classic, the hosting Seattle Kraken defeated the Las Vegas Golden Knights in a 3-0 shutout, as Eeli Tolvanen, Will Borgen, and Yanni Gourde all scored in a day that celebrated the city of Seattle as a true hockey town.

Starting the New Year, Trae Holiday is back with a brand new season of The Day with Trae. For this first episode, Holiday is joined by life coach Heru Tchaas Amen for Mindfullness Monday, a segment happening now every Monday. The founder of Heru Health, a holistic life and wellness service focused on helping others find peace and balance within their daily lives, Tchaas Amen offers a variety of programs on how to transform one's life positively by integrating various meditation exercises and visualization practices into one's life. In this episode, Tchaas Amen, an advocate of energy work, explains his "FIVE" tips for living a balanced and healthy life: "focus on one's energy work," set intentions with purpose, and visualize success every day.

Monday, the Seattle Kraken host the Vegas Golden Knights for the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic at T-Mobile Park, but I wanted to take a moment and make sure you know about all the things happening not only on the ice, but also off the ice. Check out what’s happening starting tomorrow below via www.nhl.com

Because we are heading into a new year, we wanted to relive some of our favorite stories we have covered here on Back2Besa. This week on Back2Besa, we relive the time I headed to Boon Boona Coffee in Renton and not only learned more about coffee but how to make it in the traditional Ethiopian way; we remember and honor those whose lives were taken from us far too soon over at Day Of Remembrance which took place at First AME Church in Capitol Hill.

The National Fair Housing Alliance, Abt Associates, Northwest Fair Housing Alliance and the Fair Housing Center of Washington are completing a study as a requirement of a law passed in Spring 2023 that creates a program to address the role of government institutions in housing related racial discrimination in Washington.

Jonathan Batista, the pioneering Black Principal Dancer at the Pacific Northwest Ballet, adds another accolade to his illustrious career.

Awarded the prestigious Entertainer of the Year 2023 title by POCAAN, Batista’s triumph arrives a year after his historic elevation as the first Black Principal in the ballet company’s history.

Behind the storybook start of goaltender Chris Driedger, the Seattle Kraken collected only their second ever victory against the Calgary Flames as Kailer Yamamoto got the scoring started and Alex Wennberg got the clutch game winning goal in the third period to extend the teams point streak to seven games.

Written by Besa Gordon - With Christmas now behind us and the New Year fast approaching, it’s important to remember the power of giving and creating a moment of joy for someone who may not have had any of this year. Last weekend on Back2Besa we wanted to take a moment to look back at some of the people around the region who have taken time to give back to others.

The Black Home Initiative and Western Washington Realtists are excited to announce their first Homeownership Symposium at Langston Hughes Performing Arts Theater in Seattle on January 26, 2024, followed by our Western Washington Realtist Gala on January 27, 2024.

Our friends Anthony and Marlie, Love of Traveling While Black, are back on Back2Besa to give us their suggestions on how to live your best life this holiday season. Check out their activity suggestions.

Written by Besa Gordon - With Christmas being next week, I wanted to remind you of something really dope that occurred last month that will help you shop Black this Christmas season. On Black Friday, I pulled up to Métier Brewing Company in the #CentralDistrict as Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell proclaimed it "Black Black Friday" in partnership with Laura Clise of the Intentionalist, BECU, and DNA - Mayor Harrell emphasized the Black Black Card issued by BECU will give shoppers 20% back on their money loaded onto the card with the intention that they use the card to shop at Black businesses across the greater Seattle area. And what's really dope is the card has a 7-year expiration date, so it's not just for this holiday season. It's truly about shopping Black all year round.

The Seattle Sports Commission announced the initial lineup of award honorees and a special celebration of Washington sports following a year packed with major accomplishments.

Last month, the community showed up for Trae Holiday and The Day With Trae when she put out a call to appear in her new intro video at Medgar Evers. The video shoot was a part of a greater relaunch of her show, which will see a total revamp of her set, graphics, and more heading into the new year.

Behind a strong night in net by Joey Daccord and goals from Brandon Tanev and Jordan Eberle, the Seattle Kraken evened up the season series against the Los Angeles Kings with a tight 2-1 victory on the road.

A hockey rink is being built at T-Mobile Park for the 2024 Winter Classic! Here’s a timeline of the rink itself being built as well as the surrounding structures inside of T-Mobile Park ahead of the New Years day game.

Growth, development, leadership, and all the signs of future success are definitely things I found in my short time with the Rip City Remix a few weeks ago. The Remix is a new NBA G League team in Rip City (aka Portland, aka The Rose City) where players who are not quite ready for the bright lights of the NBA can literally develop their talents through a close partnership with the Portland Trail Blazers.