Capital Pride Alliance Shines Spotlight on LGBTQ+ Community Achievements at Annual Gala

The Capital Pride Alliance announces the recipients of the 2018 Capital Pride Heroes Award, Engendered Spirits, and awards named for late founding board members, Bill Miles and Larry Stansbury. The recipients will be honored at the Capital Pride Heroes Gala, on Thursday, June 7, beginning at 7:00 PM, on the outdoor, rooftop venue 880 P. (880 P Street NW, Washington, D.C.), which is generously hosting the event. Complete honoree bios can be found here.

“We’re excited to honor the volunteers, advocates, and activists that continue to raise the bar of community engagement, leadership, and giving in the national capital region,” said Ryan Bos, Executive Director of the Capital Pride Alliance. The Heroes Gala honorees are nominated each year directly by members of the community, based on the criteria of having advanced the causes of LGBTQ+ rights. A committee of Capital Pride’s Board of Directors recommends nominees to the full Board, which then approves recipients, along with the Engendered Spirits, who were recommended by the Trans Pride Committee.

The following awards will be presented on June 7:

Capital Pride Heroes are dedicated individuals whose body of work has had a positive, significant, and lasting impact on the LGBTQ+ community.

• Gregory A. Cendana – President and Co-Founder of Can’t Stop! Won’t Stop!, a consulting firm of and for people of color, an advocate for the representation, dignity, and rights of members of the LGBTQ+ community, and recipient of many awards including 30 Most Influential Asian Americans Under 30.
• Jesse Garcia – Appointed by the Obama Administration to the Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families, promoter of LGBTQ+ civil rights and immigration reform, and host of “The Jesse Garcia Show,” a weekly 30-minute podcast.
• Patrick Grady – Winner of the Mr. Double L Leather contest in Rehoboth Beach, organizer of the Mid-Atlantic Leather Weekend for the past 12 years, who helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for numerous LGBTQ+ non-profits throughout the DMV, and proud member of the Centaur Motorcycle Club.
• Jorge Hernandez – Creator of Sylvanna Duvel, a fierce and beautiful drag queen, advocate for informing the LGBTQ+ youth about preventing HIV and the art of drag, and the youngest event club promoter in the DMV, bringing to the area the first-ever Latino Drag Brunch.
• Samantha Master – Serves as a board member of Serving and Mentoring Youth Advocates and Leaders (SMYAL), a safe space for queer and trans youth in DC, Maryland, and Virginia, and director of strategic initiatives at Black Women’s Blueprint, an organization dedicated to ending sexual and interpersonal violence in Black communities through a human rights framework.

Engendered Spirits are those individuals who have made significant contributions to the Transgender community.

• Karen Kendra Holmes – Recognized by LGBTQ Nation as one of the “Top 50 Successful Transgender Americans You Need to Know, ” a board member with the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), and chapter president of the Transgender Veterans Support Group (TVSG).
• Linda Roberts – Serves as Board Member and Treasurer of DignityUSA and Co-Leader of the Transgender Support Caucus, has provided her story via an open letter entitled “Created Male and Female,” challenging people to understand what it means to be transgender, and has traveled around the world with volunteer trips with Global Volunteers delivering lectures on Transgender 101.

The Bill Miles Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service acknowledges exemplary contributions to the annual Capital Pride celebration. Dr. Miles was a dedicated volunteer, an active member of the DC LGBT community, and a founding member of the Capital Pride Alliance.

• Bianca Humady Rey – Passionate about normalizing the visibility of the transgender community, appointed the Chair for Capital Trans Pride, and was recognized as one of Tagg Magazine’s Enterprising Women in 2017.

Larry Stansbury Award for Outstanding Service to the LGBTQ+ Community

• Pixie Windsor – Named one of Tagg Magazine’s 2018 Enterprising Women for her success in opening a vintage furnishing store, Miss Pixie’s, gives back to the community by supporting Casa Ruby, Food Rescue US, Martha’s Table, and many more, and is an advocate for education and support about HIV, breast cancer, homelessness, transgender struggles, and other issues that affect the LGBTQ+ community.

Heroes Gala Event Advocates are Hilton, Capital One, Gilead, and Pepco. Complete event information including tickets prices can be found here.