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Leonard-Litz Foundation Joins Partnership to Support LGBTQ COVID-19 Vaccine Clinics 720 480

Leonard-Litz Foundation Joins Partnership to Support LGBTQ COVID-19 Vaccine Clinics

Leonard-Litz Foundation has partnered with Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center, a nonprofit organization in Pennsylvania, to increase the capacity of LGBTQ community centers to host COVID-19 vaccination clinics. Five LGBTQ community centers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic have been selected to receive a grant from the Leonard-Litz Foundation and technical assistance from Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center. The five centers are: The Frederick Center (Frederick, Maryland) The Lancaster LGBTQ+ Coalition (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) LGBT Center of Greater Reading (Reading, Pennsylvania) The LOFT LGBTQ+ Community Center (White Plains, New York) Pride Center of Vermont (Burlington, Vermont) The five participating centers are organizing leading-edge vaccine promotion strategies, even adding incentives such as drag performances and additional health services to the vaccine sites. Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center has been offering LGBTQ COVID-19 vaccine clinics since mid-March and has arranged over 1,000 doses through clinics held on-site. This partnership seeks to ensure that LGBTQ community centers across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic are prepared to offer COVID-19 vaccines for the LGBTQ community in their service areas. “Vaccine hesitancy is the number one issue we need to address if we want to return to living our lives,” said Elliot Leonard, founder of the Leonard-Litz Foundation. “The LGBTQ community has…

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Leonard-Litz Welcomes New Executive Director 198 198

Leonard-Litz Welcomes New Executive Director

The Leonard-Litz LGBTQ+ Foundation is thrilled to welcome Colin Hosten as its new Trustee and Executive Director as it continues to expand its work of supporting life-affirming advocacy, programs, and services for LGBTQ+ people. Colin brings a wealth of diverse skills and resources to the role. He is a former Councilmember and Chairman of the Board of Education in the City of Norwalk, Connecticut. He is also a writer and teacher with a professional background that includes children’s book publishing and digital media. An MFA graduate of Fairfield University, he studied English Literature at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA, before earning his first graduate degree, in Publishing, at NYU. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Triangle Community Center for three years. Originally from Trinidad and Tobago, Colin self identifies as “very gay,” and is committed to fighting for the human rights of LGBTQ+ people everywhere. Colin replaces Daryl Duarte, who is returning to oversee his husband’s landscape architecture company after leading the Leonard-Litz Foundation through its first rounds of grant disbursements. The Leonard-Litz LGBTQ+ Foundation was created to help fund organizations that advance the interests and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community, with particular emphasis on…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid Relief Grant to The LGBT Community Center in New York 1200 635

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid Relief Grant to The LGBT Community Center in New York

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce it has awarded a Covid Relief grant to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center in New York. Based in Manhattan, The Center is the leading resource for New York City’s LGBTQ community, delivering programs for health, wellness and community connection. The $15,000 grant will supplement The Center’s LGBTQ life-saving services for community relief including family assistance, youth programs and enhanced support for seniors. The Leonard-Litz Foundation was established to fund partner organizations in the northeast U.S. that are working to improve the lives of the LGBTQ+ population, with an emphasis on intersectional LGBTQ+ advocacy. The Center, operating in- and serving- one of the world’s most diverse regions, strives toward a future of justice and equity for LGBTQ New Yorkers that recognizes and advocates for all intersections of LGBTQ identities. Brad Synder, Director of Strategic Giving, notes, “Since February 2020, services increased by 61%, with 48% to transgender and non-binary people, and 40% to people of color. We operate an LGBTQ+ Community Relief Fund to prevent people from sliding into homelessness. Our LGBTQ+ Youth Program also continues via multiple weekly Zoom meetings, a group chat and one-on-one check ins by staff. In…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid-19 Relief Grant to GLAAD 1000 563

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid-19 Relief Grant to GLAAD

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce the award of a Covid Relief grant to GLAAD. Based in New York City, GLAAD is a non-governmental organization working in media monitoring, and it was founded to protest the defamatory coverage of LGBTQ people. They later extended into the entertainment industry to help curate a positive narrative for LGBTQ people that amplifies visibility and accelerates acceptance. GLAAD will use the $15,000 grant to create online programs for New England’s Black and Brown queer journalists, online activists and community leaders to promote connection amid the mass closings of LGBTQ Centers during the pandemic. The Leonard-Litz Foundation was established to fund partner northeast U.S. organizations that are working to improve the lives of the LGBTQ+ population, with an emphasis on intersectional advocacy. GLAAD Media Awards honor TV shows, films, artists, journalists and other media that depict fair, accurate and inclusive representations of LGBTQ people and issues. Bruce Morrow, Senior Director of Institutional Giving at GLAAD notes “When Covid-19 shut down the GLAAD Media Awards, it exacted $2 million from community engagement and outreach.” The 32nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards ceremony premiered this month and is viewable here. Over recent years, not only have we…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid-19 Relief Grant to New York’s Caribbean Equality Project 2048 1284

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid-19 Relief Grant to New York’s Caribbean Equality Project

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce it has awarded a Covid Relief grant to the Caribbean Equality Project. Based in Queens, the non-profit organization is a principal resource for Black and Brown queer and transgender people who have been significantly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic that has ravaged New York City. The Caribbean Equality Project will use the $15,000 grant to provide emergency relief to its LGBTQ community, including those who are undocumented, refugees, asylum seekers, unemployed, homeless, and those experiencing food insecurity. The Leonard-Litz Foundation was established to fund partner organizations in the northeast U.S. that are working to improve the lives of the LGBTQ+ population, with an emphasis on intersectional LGBTQ+ advocacy. Caribbean Equality Project, serving one of the world’s most diverse neighborhoods and regions, advocates for LGBTQ+ and immigrant rights, gender equity, racial justice, mental health and ending hate violence in the Caribbean diaspora. Mohamed Amin, Executive Director of the Caribbean Equality Project, notes, “Many of our community members have lost their employment, but don’t qualify for unemployment based on their undocumented, refugee, and/or asylum status. Many have little to no family support and are living in the NYC shelter system.” The Caribbean Equality Project was…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid Relief Grant to LGBT Life Center 2048 1463

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Covid Relief Grant to LGBT Life Center

The Leonard-Litz Foundation has awarded a Covid Relief grant to the LGBT Life Center. The recipient has continued to provide myriad health and wellness programs and services to the LGBTQ+ community in Hampton Roads, despite the challenges resulting from the pandemic. The Foundation’s $15,000 grant to the nonprofit organization will ensure its infrastructure for emergency services remains operational. Among many health and wellness programs, LGBT Life Center offers medical case management, housing, meals, transportation, outreach, prevention, education and HIV/STI testing. Since the advent of the pandemic, the need for these services has risen precipitously. Stacie Walls, CEO of LGBT Life Center, notes “Mental health, LGBTQ senior services, emergency food pantry and emergency housing assistance have all increased dramatically during Covid-19. Mental health services experienced a 145% increase in the number of people needing services, and food distribution has increased over 80K lbs. compared to the prior year.” Established in 1989, the LGBT Life Center remains a leader in disseminating resources and support for LGBTQ+ people to strengthen families and communities, and preserve healthy, connected lives for LGBTQ+ individuals. We invite you to learn more about these organizations and help us support the important work they are doing for our community.

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Funds Grassroots Nonprofit, Eastern PA Trans Equity Project 800 533

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Funds Grassroots Nonprofit, Eastern PA Trans Equity Project

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to have awarded a Covid Relief grant to the Eastern PA Trans Equity Project, a grassroots nonprofit with a mission to empower transgender people and advocate for social justice across Pennsylvania. Read the full press release here…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Two Grants to New England LGBTQ+ Nonprofits, Out in the Open Inc. and Outright Vermont 1440 1080

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Two Grants to New England LGBTQ+ Nonprofits, Out in the Open Inc. and Outright Vermont

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce it has awarded Covid Relief grants to two nonprofit organizations in Vermont: Out in the Open Inc. and Outright Vermont. These recipients’ innovative LGBTQ+ programs and services are focused in rural New England, where the Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on an already marginalized community. The organizations were each awarded a grant in the amount of $15,000 to assist their ongoing efforts. The Leonard-Litz Foundation’s mission is to fund partner organizations in the northeast U.S. that improve the lives of the LGBTQ+ population, with an emphasis in intersectional LGBTQ+ advocacy. Out in the Open and Outright Vermont exemplify the types of organizations the Foundation seeks to support, because they are empowering LGBTQ+ people, including subsegments of the LGBTQ+ youth population, in isolated regions and during a period in which it is particularly challenging to come by funding. Out in the Open fosters connections and advocacy for LGBTQ+ people in Brattleboro, Vermont and, in addition, operates throughout the region of New England to amplify visibility and support for rural LGBTQ+ people. Ain Thompson, Director of Development and Outreach at Out in the Open, notes, “Our already isolated community of rural LGBTQ people…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Two Grants to LGBTQ+ Nonprofits, NLGJA and Washington Blade Foundation 2560 1708

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Awards Two Grants to LGBTQ+ Nonprofits, NLGJA and Washington Blade Foundation

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce its program grantees in Washington, DC: the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists and the Washington Blade Foundation. The recipients promote the interests and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community through their innovative programs and services and were each awarded a grant in the amount of $15,000 to support their ongoing efforts. The primary purpose of the Leonard-Litz Foundation is to fund partner organizations in the northeast U.S. that improve the lives of the LGBTQ+ population, with an emphasis in intersectional LGBTQ+ advocacy. These two nonprofits are empowering LGBTQ+ people during a period in which it is particularly challenging to come by funding. The NLGJA: An Association of LGBTQ Journalists is a nonprofit organization of journalists, media professionals, educators and students from within the news industry that foster fair and accurate coverage of LGBTQ issues. One of the NLGJA’s principal efforts is to ensure no student faces a barrier because of their financial standing. As such, the grant will be used to assist their annual program CONNECT: Student Journalism Training Project, which brings together 10 students from across the U.S. to build a newsroom from the ground up and cover the events of its…

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The Leonard-Litz Foundation Funds LGBTQ+ Inclusive Summer Program, Odyssey Teen Camp 2048 1365

The Leonard-Litz Foundation Funds LGBTQ+ Inclusive Summer Program, Odyssey Teen Camp

The Leonard-Litz Foundation is pleased to announce that it has awarded $25,000 to the Odyssey Teen Camp (OTC) summer program. The Foundation’s grant to OTC is part of its ongoing efforts to support programs that serve LGBTQ+ youth with impactful, life-affirming services. The OTC is a nonprofit overnight camp for teens ages 12-18 who seek an inclusive, non-judgmental environment where they can express their true selves. Sixty percent of OTC campers identify as LGBTQ+, and the camp offers them an opportunity to focus on connecting, away from sexuality/gender-based bullying. The OTC will use the Leonard-Litz grant to support its scholarship program, which is targeted at low-income families and aims to bring more LGBTQ+ teenagers of color to attend the camp and benefit from its positive impact. “We have seen that when LGBTQ+ youth experience unconditional love and support from their peers, they leave emotionally stronger, more resilient, and with more self-confidence,” said Adam Simon, founder of the Odyssey Teen Camp. “This funding from the Leonard-Litz Foundation will enable us to expand the families we are able to serve and make our camp more diverse. We are profoundly grateful for the Foundation’s support.” Since its launch in Fall 2020, the Leonard-Litz…

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