NEW YORK, N.Y. — Monday, SAGE, the nation’s largest and oldest organization dedicated to improving the lives of LGBT elders, held its 22nd Annual Awards & Gala, which celebrated SAGE’s national achievements and honored three leaders.
SAGE also offered a moving tribute to beloved hero and pioneer Edie Windsor and announced the renaming of SAGE Center Midtown to the Edie Windsor SAGE Center.
Hundreds of influencers, friends, partners, and allies of the LGBT community filled the ballroom at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City to pay tribute to three SAGE supporters, allies, and friends who have made a remarkable difference in the lives of older LGBT elders nationwide.
Honorees this year included:
- Cleve Jones, activist, lecturer, and author of When We Rise: My Life in the Movement, was presented the Joyce Warshow Lifetime Achievement Award. Jones’ book inspired the ABC TV mini-series that was broadcast in February. Mentored by the legendary Harvey Milk, Jones co-founded the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 1983 and founded in 1987 The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, one of the world’s largest community arts projects.
- Lorraine Cortés-Vásquez, Senior Advisor to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, was given the Jack Watters Corporate Advocate Award. Cortés-Vásquez was honored for her work in supporting diverse communities and LGBT elders through leadership roles at the Mayor’s Office, Emblem Healthcare, and AARP. Cortés-Vásquez was also New York State’s 65th Secretary of State and the first Hispanic appointee to serve in that role.
- Citi, which received the Corporate Leadership Award. Thanks to Citi’s ongoing collaboration with SAGE, thousands of service providers have received LGBT training; affordable, LGBT-housing across the nation is becoming a reality; and the lives of LGBT trailblazers are improving. For many years, Citi has been a pioneer supporting the LGBT community. Citi was one of the first financial institutions to sign amicus briefs in the historic Supreme Court cases, U.S. v. Windsor and Obergefell v. Hodges.
Bob Annibale, Global Director of Citi Community Development and Inclusive Finance, accepted the Corporate Leadership Award for Citi. “For the more than three million LGBT individuals age 60 and above, access to safe and welcoming housing and financial advice services is critical for planning and security,” Annibale said. “Citi’s collaboration with SAGE on the LGBT Elder Housing Initiative, SAGE Finance and other efforts help ensure that LGBT seniors and other minority groups have the support to live in a secure and inclusive community.”
”This room, here tonight, is full of light,” said Michael Adams, SAGE CEO, to the sold-out event. “SAGE exists for our elders – people who have always found light through the darkest times. People who were the light, through decades upon decade of oppression and bigotry and discrimination. People who refused to stay in the closet. People who, through it all, refused to be invisible.”
