Averill will speak at ‘Ignite the Future’ gala on Mercer Island

Published 3:30 pm Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Bellevue resident Julie Averill, author of the upcoming memoir “Chief Impact Officer,” will be the keynote speaker at IGNITE’s “Ignite the Future” worldwide fundraising event from 1-4 p.m. on May 31 at the Mercer Island Community and Events Center.

The gala, which will bring together the Washington STEM and skilled trades communities, will raise funds to enable IGNITE to continue providing accessible programming for public and tribal schools and students, reads IGNITE’s website.

“We hope that you’ll join us as we raise funds critical to continuing our mission of creating a workforce development pipeline of inspired and empowered girls and gender-diverse youth to pursue STEM and skilled trades clubs, classes, and careers,” IGNITE adds.

Other featured speakers will be event co-host and IGNITE alumna Lames Abdalla and fellow IGNITE alumna Jeannette Martinez.

Averill was the first female vice president at Nordstrom, the first chief information officer at REI and recently departed lululemon as its chief information officer. In her memoir, she writes “of her corporate coming out as gay and what happened next,” according to a press release. Last year, she founded her company Gold Thread where she works as a leadership and AI consultant helping businesses and organizations.

For more information, visit https://www.igniteworldwide.org/ignite-the-future/