An Open Letter to the LGBT Citizens and Allies of Pennsylvania from EqualityPA
Philadelphia, PA - This is an open letter on behalf of the board, staff and volunteers at EqualityPA (formerly Equality Advocates Pennsylvania). We felt that the time was right to bring you, our constituents, allies and supporters up-to-date on all the progress we have made to date in restructuring, rethinking, and remaking EqualityPA into a truly statewide organization!
First, as the new Board of Directors of Equality Pennsylvania, we would like to introduce ourselves. Although we are all new to this organization, we are no strangers to advocacy and the championing of equal civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Pennsylvanians. We are energized by the charge of EqualityPA and anxious to add our skills to those currently working on behalf of full equality in Pennsylvania.
More than ever before, we come from across the state. We live in Scranton, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and elsewhere. We are business people, educators, professionals, and non-profit leaders and we are excited about the potentials EqualityPA. We look forward to developing a comprehensive plan with supporters from around the Commonwealth that will lead to LGBT equality statewide.
There is also no question that LGBT organizations across the nation are struggling with decreasing grants and diminishing donor bases. EqualityPA is no exception. We have struggled in the past to secure the funding and the support we need to be as effective in Harrisburg, and throughout the Commonwealth, as we feel is necessary.
We would also like to take this opportunity to send our well-wishes for a safe and speedy recovery to our Managing Director, Jake Kaskey who has was hospitalized at the beginning of the year. Jake has been discharged and is home with friends and family while he recovers. Anyone who has worked with him, knows that Jake has been an integral part of LGBT equality in Pennsylvania since joining Equality Advocates, and we look forward to seeing him back in the halls of Harrisburg as soon as possible.
There is plenty of good news as we begin 2010. We have paid close attention to what Pennsylvania needs from its statewide LGBT advocacy organization and we have made a number of key adjustments. First, EqualityPA successfully transferred its Legal Clinic to Philadelphia’s renowned Mazzoni Center at the end of 2009. The transfer ensures that the resources and programming at the clinic remain available and provides new opportunities for expansion.
Another piece of exciting news is that EqualityPA has entered into an agreement with the Central PA LGBT Community Center Coalition and will be opening a Harrisburg Office in April of this year! Our goal of advocating for policies that positively effect LGBT Pennsylvanians starts in Harrisburg and our ability to participate effectively in the Capital will truly be strengthened by this expansion. We hope to add an office in Pittsburgh by the end of the year.
Along with the new name and updated mission, EqualityPA has contracted to build en entirely new website at www.EqualityPa.org. In the next few weeks and months we plan to unveil the new, redesigned site which will help LGBT Pennsylvanians better access information across the state and in their own neighborhoods. We expect to be able to provide even more information than ever before and to create a place where the issues and information relevant our community are easy to access and even easier to share.
Most importantly, we have begun the exciting and challenging task of interviewing a new Executive Director. In a very short time, this organization has made significant institutional changes to adapt to and address the policy and advocacy needs of the entire Commonwealth. It is now time that we look nation-wide for a candidate who can lead EqualityPA with the dedication, passion and magnitude that the position demands.
Our search is just now beginning and although we intend to take a measured, thoughtful approach, the incredible degree of talent that has assembled from across the state to conduct the search guarantees that the process will be timely. Along with several members of our Board, members of the Search Committee include State Representative, Dan Frankel (D-23rd), past Board President, Hon. Dan Anders, and the Director of Diversity at Geisinger Health System and the President of the North Eastern Pennsylvania Diversity Education Consortium, Arthur Breese. Additionally, our friend Stephen Glassman, Chair of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission will be actively advising the Committee throughout the search process.
If you know of a potential candidate, please have them contact one of our Search Committee Co-Chairs, Chris Gatesman at chris.gatesman@gmail.com or Paul Nardone at outrageousonline@gmail.com for a copy of the job posting or visit the websites of The Equality Federation, The Victory Fund, or Idealist to see our job posting and description. We have begun accepting applications and expect to move quickly once our top-tier candidates are identified.
This is both an exciting time for EqualityPA and also an amazingly important process that we are undertaking. More than ever, we look to our community and our allies across the Commonwealth to encourage the work that we are doing and the changes that we are making. We ask for your support and understanding during this process and we move forward with the knowledge that Pennsylvania needs and deserves the strongest LGBT advocacy organization it can create.
Very Truly Yours,
Board of Directors - EqualityPA
- Brian Sims, President - Philadelphia
- Mark Usry, Vice-President - Bloomsburg
- Saida Agostini - Philadelphia
- Joyce Avila - Tobyhanna
- Lauren Barr - Harrisburg
- Jeff Brauer - Scranton
- Syngred Briddell - Harrisburg
- Chris Gatesman - Mechanicsburg
- Ted Martin - Harrisburg
- Paul Nardone - Scranton
- David Price - Pittsburg
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