PFLAG
Cleveland
(Parents,
Friends,
Families
&
Allies
United
with
LGBTQ
People
to
Move
Equality
Forward)
has
honored
Baldwin
Wallace
University
with
the
2019
Bruce
G.
Kriete
Community
Award.
PFLAG annually presents the award "to an individual, organization or group that has promoted understanding and acceptance of Northeast Ohio's gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender citizens, and their families and friends." Past recipients have included both Ohio U.S. Senators, journalists, activists and everyday citizens.
PFLAG
Cleveland
officers
presented
the
award
at
a
November
11
ceremony
on
the
BW
campus
attended
by
students,
faculty,
BW
Trustees,
families
and
friends.
PFLAG President Tom Falcone cited BW's leadership "especially as it relates to standing with LGBTQ individuals for greater inclusion and equality at BW and in our world."
President Bob Helmer accepted the award on BW's behalf, noting that the University was founded on the value of inclusion. "We have tried to live out that value for all of our 174 years in many ways," he said.
In honoring BW, PFLAG noted a vote by BW Trustees to end United Methodist Church affiliation in response to church prohibitions on same-sex marriage and exclusion of LGBTQ people from clergy as a tangible demonstration of BW's unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Along with that stand, BW recently appointed professor Ana Boe as LGBT services coordinator and continues to build resources and support for LGBT students ranging from Safe Zone training to LGBT scholarships.
The
PFLAG
award
ceremony
took
place
on
the
same
day
that
the
BW
Conservatory
of
Music
invited
high
school
Gay/Straight
Alliance
(GSA)
members
and
other
LGBT-focused
youth
group
members
and
their
families
(including
PFLAG)
to
the
final
dress
rehearsal
for
the
nation's
first
academic
production
of
"Kinky
Boots."
The themes from "Kinky Boots," which runs Nov. 12-24, have provided a jumping-off point for diversity dialogues this fall at BW, including BW's annual Arts Innovation Summit, which focused on how Cleveland artists and arts organizations, supported by Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC), work to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in their art, audiences and the communities they serve.
Jane Daroff, LISW & Dr. Jes Sellers established the PFLAG Cleveland chapter in July 1985. PFLAG is a volunteer, non-profit self-help organization founded nationally in 1981. We are an inclusive group of family members, friends, and individuals who are straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender. PFLAG is committed to advancing equality through its mission of support, education, and advocacy. PFLAG has more than 350 chapters and 200,000 supporters crossing multiple generations of American families in major urban centers, small cities, and rural areas in all 50 states. To learn more, visit http://www.pflagcleveland.org.
