Pittsburgh Equality Center (PEC) will host a gala this week. The organization will be recognizing its Pittsburgh Equality Award honorees at the event.
The organization, formerly known as the Gay Lesbian Community Center (GLCC), was founded in the 1970s and has done behind-the-scenes work for the LGBTQIA+ community. This includes community outreach and education, social justice advocacy, and more in order to achieve their vision “to cultivate a more collaborative, diverse, just, and empowered community.”
PEC’s mission is to act as a bridge that promotes advocacy, education, and social justice for the community across Western PA. The people that PEC will be honoring are those who have worked to do just that.
Ray Sidney-Smith, PEC’s president, explains that the board of directors wanted to provide an annual keystone to show the impact that the honorees have made.
“We found it would be helpful to have a Lifetime Achievement Award that really helped show somebody who has been doing this a long time and really give them the honor that they deserve for being able to put that time and energy and effort into and for the community,” Sidney-Smith says.
This year’s lifetime achievement award goes to Richard Alison, a board member for PEC and numerous other organizations.
“He’s an easy first awardee for the Lifetime Achievement Award for us to have chosen,” Sidney-Smith says. “The Ally of the Year and Community Member of the Year Awards are folks who we have noticed over the course of the last few years as being someone who is worthy of getting the award for their contribution to the community. That could be leadership and/or dedication to creating a more inclusive Pittsburgh.”
PEC wants to shine a light on the best of the region – people who step up to make the LGBTQIA+ community stronger and safer, and more vibrant, Sidney-Smith shares.
The Community Member of the Year Award is being given to Katie Siani, the owner of Love, Katie Distillery. The Ally of the Year is Amanda Neatour, a former candidate for city council.
“She is a staunch advocate for JEDI [justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion] and she has been a fantastic friend to the center, and a friend to the Three Rivers Business Alliance, which is the LGBTQ+ chamber [of commerce] in the region.”
For these two awards, the center had public voting, along with internal research, and the board of directors voted on who the honorees would be.
The gala, to be held on November 7, is PEC’s first time hosting. The theme is “Bridging the Future.”
“It’s really kicking off our capital campaign to open up a brand new facility in the next few years where we’re fundraising toward the opening of a new Pittsburgh Equality Center,” he says. “So this is our opportunity to both revitalize our role as a hub for the LGBTQIA+ advocacy programming and support in the region.”
The goal of the gala is to bring together all community members for a night of celebration, from elected officials to artists. The event will include dancing, food and drink, drag performances from local queens, and the awards ceremony for the honorees.
PEC works hard to ensure the LGBTQIA+ community is well-supported in the region, from connecting them to organizations to providing direct care like housing, employment discrimination, and more.
Any financial support and donations are appreciated by the center to help to continue to be a thriving community resource.