Welcome to our campaign launch! 

Our celebration will feature traditional Khmer dance, inspiring speakers, and delicious cuisine from Vien Dong and Skorpion Grill, creating a space where neighbors can connect and share their vision for our diverse Eastside and South End communities—all are welcome to this family-friendly event that honors our past while building toward a future where Tacoma continues to offer opportunity to everyone who calls it home.

We will also commemorate 50 years of Cambodian resilience since the Khmer Rouge takeover of Phnom Penh on April 17, 1975. This meaningful date, which forever changed millions of lives including my family's, now becomes a symbol of hope as we work toward potentially electing Tacoma's first refugee councilmember.

Thank you for joing us!

RSVP not required but preferred. We'll register you at the door. Thank you!

Event Details

Thursday, April 17, 2025

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Blanco Tacoma

6302 E McKinley Ave, Tacoma, WA 98404

We're extremely grateful to Eden, owner of Blanco Tacoma, who's been providing the freshest fades on the Eastside for 15 years for opening up his space for our campaign launch. This isn't just a barbershop, it's a community hub created by someone who began cutting hair at 13 in East L.A. and has built something truly special in Tacoma.

Blanco Tacoma represents what our campaign stands for - building bridges across differences and fostering genuine community. 

After moving to Eastside Tacoma as a teenager, Eden noticed a lack of Mexican barbers in the area. His shop has become a vibrant gathering place for people from all walks of life. Without traditional barber shop logos or listed prices, he considers himself an artist rather than a barber.

The shop creates common ground where diverse clientele—different races, social backgrounds, and political views—come together respectfully. Eden values community so deeply that he would offer free haircuts to any youth in exchange for chores around the shop.

Though gentrification is changing the neighborhood, Eden's defines the success of the shop by the happiness and the loyalty of his customers.