University District Board Member Steve Trabun is CCS Volunteer of the Year

Friday, June 24, 2016

Steve Trabun of Avista has been named Community Colleges of Spokane Foundation’s 2016 Volunteer of the Year. CCS Foundation Executive Director Tony Higley made the announcement at the CCS Board of Trustees meeting on June 21.

Trabun is in the first year of his second term as a CCS Foundation board member. He has been a driving force in the partnership between Avista and the foundation and has provided ongoing support to the foundation as they worked to raise more than $200,000 for the Avista Center for Entrepreneurship at Spokane Community College. The funds raised will help create long-term financial sustainability for the program and support program graduates in receiving the training and tools necessary to launch their own businesses. As a regional business manager at Avista, Trabun continues his community involvement, working closely with area municipalities to drive economic vitality and maintain strong collaborative working relationships in the communities served by Avista. He is an entrepreneur himself and has tremendous passion and energy for new ideas and concepts. He has successfully developed start-up organizations since 1996, including a micro-boutique winery, Barili Cellars, in downtown Spokane.

Trabun attended Washington State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science, as well as Gonzaga University, where he earned a Master of Business Administration degree. He has lived in the Spokane area since 1980, and he and his wife, Dana, have three children.

“The efforts of volunteers like Steve enable the Community Colleges of Spokane to provide students with the tools to launch their own businesses, which in turn, benefits the entire community and region as these new businesses create new jobs and revenue streams,” said Higley. “We are pleased to honor Steve Trabun with the 2016 Volunteer of the Year award.”

About the CCS Foundation

Since its inception in 1972, the foundation has been committed to supporting the Community Colleges of Spokane and its students. The foundation’s core priorities are providing scholarships and program support while pursuing new opportunities and initiatives to improve educational access and enhance programs and services at Spokane Community College and Spokane Falls Community College. See release.