WDCEP welcomes 26 District leaders as ambassadors ahead of 2019 SXSW

The Washington DC Economic Partnership (WDCEP) welcomes 26 Washington, D.C., area leaders as part of its inaugural WeDC Ambassador Program in collaboration with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED). For the first time, the ambassadors will represent the District at a variety of national and local events and conferences throughout the year, including SXSW.

As Technical.ly DC previously reported, during the program, ambassadors can expect to:

• Engage D.C.’s most passionate businesses, community leaders, entrepreneurs, influencers, etc. to share positive coverage about D.C.’s business ecosystems, their perspectives and insights.
• Share relevant information with their networks to amplify D.C.’s key messages to a larger audience
• Provide testimonials about doing business in the city to be shared on social, used on the website, incorporated into presentations, promo videos, etc.
• Act as a WeDC representative at events (both WDCEP and others they are attending) and conferences nationally and internationally.
• Be an unofficial spokesperson for the city and WDCEP.
• Drive awareness and attendance to WeDC programming throughout the year including the WeDC House.

“WeDC stands for ‘We the People of Washington, DC,’” Keith J. Sellars, president and CEO of WDCEP, said in statement. “Ambassadors reflect the diversity of our city, highlighted by best-in-class leaders who act in a volunteer capacity as unofficial representatives of the District. We’re proud to announce our first year-round program as we continue to establish Washington, DC as a leading global city for doing business.”

Here’s a list of the 2019 WeDC ambassadors, including some familiar faces in #dctech:

• Ben Adams, ​cofounder and managing director at Advoc8
• Michael Akin,​ president of LINK Strategic Partners
• Dominic Bonaduce, ​general manager of Alley Powered by Verizon
• Kirsten Brecht Baker, ​CEO and cofounder of Jeenie
• Madia Brown,​ chief storytelling strategist at TomahWares
• Stephen Buko,​ CEO of Kerb
• Ruth Chandler Cook, ​CEO of HireHer
• Alex Cohen,​ founder of TwentyTables
• Maria Patricia Corrales, ​president of Fiesta DC, Inc
• Josh Daniell,​ campus director at the Flatiron School
• Amelia Friedman, ​COO of Hatch Apps
• Michael Holstein, ​chief content officer and director of communications for The Content Farm and DC
  SCORES
• Giuseppe Lanzone,​ cofounder and COO of Peruvian Brothers
• Vernon Lee, Jr.,​ managing member of Marathon Foundation Partners, LLC
• Shannon Lynch,​ associate producer at SiriusXM
• Mike Malloy,​ program manager of the Halcyon Incubator
• Jennifer Motruk, ​director of corporate marketing and communications for The Menkiti Group and KW Capital Properties.
• Kelly O’Malley, ​Regional Director of the Vinetta Project
• Aaron Saunders, ​CEO of the Inclusive Innovation Incubator
• JC Smith,​ co-owner of Bailiwick Clothing Company
• Furard Tate, ​owner and cofounder of Inspire Hospitality and DMV Black Restaurant Week
• Jeffery Tribble,​ founder and CEO of The MusicianShip
• Timur Tugberk,​ chief imagineer at Designing the District
• Kia Weatherspoon,​ president and Design Advocate, at Determined by Design, LLC
• Roxanne Williams,​ president of Urban Ed, Inc.
• Deloris Wilson, ​head of strategy and operations at BEACON DC