THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST'S VISION OF TOMORROW'S FASHION

Rhonda “Rho” Pollard moves through the world like a quiet spark. Part boardroom strategist, part golf-course disruptor, and part fashion muse with a mission. Ask Rho what ties it all together, construction, sports, philanthropy, fashion, and she doesn’t hesitate.

In a world that often celebrates the loudest voices, Mackenzie Cole is proof that quiet grace still turns heads. She’s the kind of woman whose calm presence fills a room before she ever says a word as a modern-day Grace Kelly with the grounded spirit of an athlete and the heart of a coach.

Long before Elijah Arroyo was a tight end for the Seattle Seahawks, before he wore The U across his chest in Miami, before the cameras and the combine, he was just a boy with a dream and a question that mattered more than anything else in the world.

On Saturday night, a group of models tiptoed their way down a three-foot-wide runway at the Covington Aquatic Center. The lights reflected off water, fringe, and wings. Seattle’s Ascend fashion show promised elevation, inspiration, and artistry. What unfolded was something far more complicated.