Paid for, staffed, and vouched for.
A free evening reaches people because someone covered it, someone ran it, and someone put their name on it. This page is the receipt.
A free evening reaches people because someone covered it, someone ran it, and someone put their name on it. This page is the receipt.
In the days after the garden, this community shared what the evening meant to them — publicly, and in their own words.
“I’ve attended many networking events where the energy felt transactional… the environment Katoya cultivated exuded warmth and undeniable vibrancy. It felt like a big happy family coming together to support and learn from one another. Reciprocity was at the heart of the event.”Brad Blackburn III, Identity UnboxedLinkedIn · August 24, 2026
“Thank you to our host @katoyapalmer of @toyboxconsulting for curating such an intentional, thoughtful, and vibrant space.”Zara Jo Beauty SupplyInstagram · August 25, 2026
“A huge thank you to @toyboxconsulting @katoyapalmer for hosting such a vibrant event and bringing this incredible community together.”MELA GiftsInstagram · August 24, 2026 · vendor
“What an amazing event! A special thank you to @toyboxconsulting for having us — we truly appreciate you more than you know. Keep supporting small businesses and local entrepreneurs!”The Sauce by Tyrone JonesInstagram · August 24, 2026 · vendor
“Many golden moments unfolded. We can’t wait to be there next year and support this event as it grows.”SPLASHForwardFacebook · August 24, 2026 · community table. Disclosure: Katoya Palmer serves as SPLASHForward’s Treasurer.
“I loved working alongside my beautiful friend Kitaka Makarin at the front door, checking people in… This was my first time experiencing Bellevue Botanical Garden.”Darnesha LoveInstagram · August 25, 2026 · volunteer
Golden Hour Unboxed happened because these partners put their names on it. Year two is in motion — start a conversation.
Symetra
Championed by Beth Osborne
Sync Seattle
Seattle-based speaker, social impact expert, and event curator. Co-founder of Sync Seattle, a community-driven events company that has hosted 125+ experiences connecting people to one another, to local businesses, and to Black-led causes. Through her storytelling, Substack (Vibing Through Grief), and greeting card line (Lingering Love Notes), she helps people feel seen and choose joy.
Seattle-based technology and product leader with 20+ years shaping enterprise data platforms, security programs, and AI-driven solutions. A member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and co-founder of Sync Seattle alongside his wife Tanise, he is dedicated to mentorship and community servant leadership.
Converge Media
Converge Media is an Emmy Award‑winning, Seattle‑born producer of news, shows, and films that center Black voices across the Pacific Northwest — and they’re helping tell the story of Golden Hour Unboxed.
Eastside for All
Eastside For All is our nonprofit partner for this event. A DBA of Alliance for a Just Society, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, they are an East King County organization led by and for Black and brown community members, organizing for a safe, welcoming, and just Eastside. They receive, receipt, and safeguard every charitable gift made to Golden Hour Unboxed. eastsideforall.org
Conversations welcome at any level. Review the one-sheet and partnership deck, or just reply with what you're thinking.
Producer, host, and event management — the people stewarding the evening from concept to closing toast.
Strategist, cultural producer, and Bellevue-based small business owner. Builds at the intersection of community, equity, and execution.
Voice of the evening. Multimedia journalist and storyteller carrying the program from sunset to twilight.
Operational backbone of the evening — vendor coordination, run-of-show, and day-of logistics.
Golden Hour Unboxed happened because these people said yes, and then showed up.
ToyBox Consulting & Management — Katoya R. Palmer, Producer
City of Bellevue Cross-Cultural Center without Walls — programming partner
Symetra — championed by Beth Osborne, received through Eastside For All, our nonprofit partner
An anonymous donor — event decor
Sync Seattle — marketing & promotions partner; Derrick and Tanise Love judged the pitch showcase
Converge Media — covered the event, hosted Katoya live on the show, and Deaunte Dampier gave it airtime on We Live in Color
Erik “Kaligraphy” Wilson, Co-Founder of Converge Media — photography; also of Contemporary Love Affair
Primo’s Bellevue — caterer
Eastside For All — nonprofit partner
Besa Gordon — emcee
Jermaine Murray, Fathers Against Human Trafficking — pitch showcase; receives a ToyBox consulting engagement
Melissa Margain — “Keep the Receipts,” commissioned spoken word, time donated
Charmaine Madden — event coordinator
Terri Palmer — volunteer coordinator
Darnesha Love, Kitaka Makarin & LaCretiah Claytor — the front door
And the volunteers, vendors and guests who broke the room down together at the end of the night.
Identity Unboxed — podcast; Brad Blackburn III & Tiana Cole and the Black Roots Coalition — Black Hair Care Drive, hosted at the Zara Jo Beauty Supply table
Pack the Box — every guest who brought a box
City of Bellevue — proclamation, August 4
King County Executive Girmay Zahilay — proclamation and recorded welcome
Angela Phan, King County Executive Office — attended
Bellevue Chamber of Commerce — Member News and the Chamber calendar
Northwest Newsradio — Aaron Wright had Katoya on air August 22
Disclosure: Katoya Palmer serves on the Bellevue Chamber board.
Public servants who saw the vision early and lent their offices to lift Black Business Month on the Eastside.
"Bellevue welcomed me with wide open arms, and made room for me at table after table. I want every Black business owner building in this city to feel that — because every entrepreneur deserves that kind of welcome."
— Katoya R. Palmer, accepting the City of Bellevue's proclamation declaring August 2026 as Black Business Month, delivered by Deputy Mayor Dave Hamilton on behalf of Mayor Mo Malakoutian and the Bellevue City Council.
"Black Business Month takes on particular meaning on the Eastside, where a new generation of Black founders, makers, and small business owners is reshaping the cultural and economic fabric of our communities."
— King County Executive Girmay Zahilay, proclaiming August 2026 as Black Business Month and recognizing Black Entrepreneurship on the Eastside. Angela Phan, East County Relations Manager in the King County Executive Office, attended in person.
King County Executive Girmay Zahilay could not be in the garden, so he sent a welcome ahead of the evening. It played at 6:22, right after the City of Bellevue proclamation. Here it is, as the room saw it.
▶Vimeo · King County Executive’s OfficeA welcome from Executive Girmay ZahilayClick to play. Nothing loads from Vimeo until you do.
