By Teanna Gentry

Building & Buzzing 

Take about a heat wave! This week in the Seen I wanted to see what's new and exciting around our town. My first stop led me to connect with a local gal and another Teanna, to learn about the business of building character in young athletes. Being a past collegiate track athlete myself, this is an organization to keep an eye on! 

LEAD (Ladies Elite Athletic Development) 

In my interview, I chatted with Teanna S. Blees, who is the Executive Director of LEAD. Here's what she had to share. 

Q: Any new hires recently? 
A: Maddy Graves – current student at UW majoring in Business. She came on as Director of Strategic Partnership – taking over outreach and developing the companies brand.

Teanna Blees – Soon to be PhD in Industrial Organizational Psychology, came on as Director of Operations, specifically focusing on building out LEAD Women.

Q: What special dates or events do you have coming up?
A: We have a movie event coming up, publicizing a short film called “TOMBOY”, which elevates the conversation around gender and sports. Is the term “tomboy” an accurate depiction of female athletes? The event will show the short film and open up conversation around labels and women in sports! I’ve attached the flyer – the event is Wednesday, 8/9 @6-8pm at Soma Towers of Bellevue – it’s free! We HIGHLY encourage parents with young female athletes to come out and bring their voice!

Q: Have you added any new equipment or services in the past 6 months?
A: We are in the process of rolling out LEAD Women. Right now, LEAD is a developmentally-contextualized elite-fitness program focused on serving girls ages 12-18. The focus is on progress in two equally vital and highly-connected areas: athletic development and character building. Our goal is to provide a safe space where aspiring competitors develop their athletic capability to reach the top of their game, as well as leverage a supportive forum to develop crucial leadership and communication skills. In the next month, we hope to roll out a similar program for women of all ages and from all corners of the world; a holistic program that brings out the leader in every woman and to help uncover the deeply rooted connection between leadership and fitness.

Q: What else is new and exciting at your business? Why should people come see you?! 
A: Each and every month we highlight a different topic that targets leadership development. Every session, we sweat hard for about 30 minutes, then dive deep into topics meant to develop our LEADers from every angle; from character, to personal brand, to positive body image! We want our LEADers to be internally strong and well equipped to tackle anything that crosses their paths with confidence, poise, respect, and conviction. 

What an awesome organization! Definitely check them out and for more information visit their website at www.getyourleadon.com. 

B-Town Bees

I got to sit down with this "buzzing" new business with owner Bryce Billington. "Honey Bees are incredible. It's fun to watch them bring resources in to the hive and send out scouts to find more. I show my hosts as much as they're willing to see and learn about these insects. Some prefer to help honey bees while watching the inspections at a distance, others want to stand right there, hold frames, and try to find the queen. I love teaching people about these creatures and watching their eyes light up with fascination over this little bug that has kept people amazed for centuries."

Q: What's been happening at your business recently?

A: In the last few months I've bought all of our equipment. Enough to house 6 full hives of bees.

Q: What's special about your business?

A: Honey Bees are fascinating! Imagine having 50,000 pets in your back yard that are literally saving the world!

"My business plan is to team up with local Burien residents (and other south sound folks from West Seattle to Des Moines) who are passionate about the environment, worried about the problems bees face today, and want to help in a big way. Most commercial beekeepers move their operations to rural, uninhabited areas for the space. They build up colonies and then transport them all over the country to pollinate crops. My passion is here at home. Our plants, flower beds, and vegetable gardens are in just as much need of pollination as food crops. But with most outfits moving out to rural areas, neighborhoods and cities often get forgotten."

If you want to know more, go to BTownBees.com or follow them on facebook for more frequent content. Thanks for reading what's happening in and around Burien. Until next time! 

Biography
Teanna Gentry is a health and wellness guru from the Pacific Northwest who has a passion for helping people find freedom in movement. She was an all conference Track and Field athlete at Eastern Washington University from 2003-2007 and has since coached and trained athletes and clients of all ages in the greater Puget Sound area in running, yoga, speed/agility/quickness, and total wellness. Teanna is a certified yoga and barre instructor, as well as an avid lover of the outdoors. She is most often seen around Hot Feet Fitness or running around town with her husband and toddler.