LakeMUN 2026 Conference Information

Keynote Speaker

Joy Hollingsworth, Seattle City Council President and District 3 Representative

Joy Hollingsworth is a fourth-generation Seattleite, born and raised in Seattle's historic Central District. She attended Seattle Public Schools at Stevens Elementary, TOPS at Seward, and Meany Middle School, while spending her summers at Garfield Community Center.

She is the product of lifelong educators, civil rights leaders, and small business owners. Joy's mother, Rhonda, spent her career connecting families to housing; her father, Raft, worked for more than 30 years in the Parks Department; and her grandmother, Dorothy Hollingsworth, was a fierce advocate for children and families.

After a standout high school basketball career at Seattle Preparatory School, she went on to play for the University of Arizona and later professionally in Athens, Greece. Joy returned to Seattle to earn a Master of Education from the University of Washington and then spent three seasons at Seattle University as an assistant women's basketball coach.

In 2014, Joy's brother Raft started Hollingsworth Farms, a family-owned cannabis and hemp company on the Olympic Peninsula. Joy joined the family business in operations, helping grow one of the few Black-owned independent farms in Washington State. After that chapter, she served as a program coordinator at Northwest Harvest, where she focused on food access and food security across the state.

In November 2023, Hollingsworth was elected to the Seattle City Council to represent District 3. As a small business owner, nonprofit leader, and community connector, Joy focuses on practical outcomes and the bold basics that strengthen neighborhoods. In January 2026, she was unanimously voted in as council president by her colleagues.