bios

TOBY DONNER

Toby Donner is a Washington State Certified Mediator specializing in neighborhood, landlord-tenant, parent-teen and family disputes. She is a wife, mom, step-mom, “Nana” to four grandchildren, and involved in the care of three sets of elderly “parents”. With a Bachelors Degree in Sociology from UCLA and a Masters Degree in Education from USC, Toby has taught special education at the middle and high school level and been an elementary educator.

An ardent volunteer with a strong commitment to community giving, she has been a member of the Washington Women’s Foundation since 2003 where she has served as past chair of the Membership Committee and served on both the Grants and Impact Assessment committees. A recipient of Washington State’s Evergreen Award, Toby also has mentored young women of all ages in both the business and personal arenas. A recent undertaking focused on teaching conflict resolution to 4th graders. An avid reader, she also loves to travel, cook and support such projects as the Seattle Film Festival and “Meatloaf with a Cause”, cooking for the homeless.

NORMA ROSENTHAL

A wife, mother, “grammy”, daughter-in-law and daughter, Norma Rosenthal is also the owner of Norma Rosenthal Public Relations, LLC, specializing in promoting hospitality industry related businesses, books and authors. A freelance food, wine and travel writer, she appeared on KIRO TV’s “7 Live” as a restaurant reviewer, and has taught numerous cooking classes.

Her passion for food and wine has taken her to a cooking school in France’s Loire Valley, as well as to Italy and New York for training. Norma was honored to be co-winner of the 1993 HSMAI Golden Bell Public Relations Award, a recipient of the coveted Evergreen Award, and was featured by NW Hospitality Magazine as one of six “2000 Spotlight Women in Hospitality”. A member of Les Dames d’Escoffier, she often speaks to groups and organizations on Public Relations and does extensive volunteer work in the Seattle culinary community. In addition, she is a partner in ShinShinChez, LLC, a Seattle based business committed to a collaborative approach in publishing, marketing, and business and community development.