Polish the brass and bring out the candles: The Sunbreak turned four this weekend! Four Bumbershoots ago, The Sunbreak launched under the esteemed editorial tutelage of editor-in-chief Michael van Baker and managing editor Audrey Hendrickson—and what a fine, fine four years they’ve been. But as you may have heard—ahem, read—the time has come for Michael and Audrey to grab their jackets from the hook, kiss the face of the birthday girl (did we decide on a gender?), and finally leave the party. Their destinations? The U.K. and St. Paul, MN.
So like any awkward first date, everything goes smoother with a proper introduction. Please allow me to make your acquaintance.
My name is Rachel Breiwick. I am a born-and-raised Seattle native with an obsession with my city. Black coffee courses through my veins like that of an old Ballard Swede, I deeply care about developments with Big Bertha, and I swear I could fund a small country for a year with the fees I’ve paid to the Seattle Municipal Court. (I’m sorry, but we need more parking spaces.)
I am a daytime blogger of food, wine, cultural interest, and whatever it is that week I’m into, and a nighttime watcher of Seinfeld and Girls. Most recently, I’ve been writing and editing for Seattle Metropolitan, and you can check out my work here.
In the past few years I’ve traveled in three different continents, learning and writing through all of them. I studied at the University of Kent in Canterbury, U.K. while abroad, and I graduated from Seattle’s own little darling, SPU, with a degree in creative writing. Like any respectable English major, I’ve been hired for many an obtuse thing—think plumbing warehouse worker and deckhand on a cruise fleet; see the correlation? Neither did my parents. But, during all those circus shows, and even though 90 percent of the time it was for free, I kept writing. Because these things still matter.
As a fourth generation Seattleite, I live and breathe for this emerald city. And lately, Seattle’s future has never looked brighter! Macklemore and Ryan Lewis are winning awards everywhere, we have a freaking Great Wheel, a new mayor may be on the way, and gosh, we really kinda skirted right past that recessional slump. For four years The Sunbreak has covered topics and thoughts that count, and we are poised and ready as ever to continue this tradition with the same standards of excellence and integrity. It’s the changing of the colors this September 2013, and I am elated to step into the heels of editor-in-chief.
Taking over for managing editor is a former colleague of mine, Bekah Graham, a cool-headed journalist and excellent manager of chaos, who does it all with the disarming grace of a ballerina. Read about the extension of my right arm, here.
It’s going to be an exciting year, Seattle. Let’s do this.
Thank you for reading,
Rachel Breiwick, Editor-in-Chief
