(Logo courtesy the LGBTQ Resource Center.)
GULFPORT, Fla. | The LGBTQ Resource Center is searching for its next board president following the completion of Susan Gore’s four-year term.
The organization initially launched in 2015 as a project of the Circle of Friends of the Gulfport Public Library. It exists today to promote the experiences, contributions and needs of the LGBTQ+ community and began operating as its own nonprofit under Gore’s leadership.
“Circle of Friends has a very local focus and we grew larger and more widespread in our outreach, just exponentially,” she told Watermark in 2019. “Everyone agreed it was a good idea for us to go out on our own.”
Gore’s tenure saw the creation or expansion of initiatives like ArtOUT, ReadOUT, BranchOUT and SpeakOUT, annual events and scholarships designed to elevate and support the arts and more. Gore reflected on her time at the LGBTQ Resource Center in the organization’s newsletter Jan. 8.
“Along with our signature events … the Resource Center hosted multiple smaller programs at the Gulfport Library and Hickman Theater,” she wrote. Gore noted that they will continue in 2024 with “onsite offerings at both venues … as we expand our online and onsite presence elsewhere.”
They’ll do so under new leadership, set to be announced at the LGBTQ Resource Center’s annual meeting Feb. 7. Gore is serving as interim board president until then and will subsequently serve as past president to assist in the transition.
Interested parties are invited to apply for the board president position by Feb. 2 and can do so online. The role requires a two-year term, which is renewable up to four years of maximum service, is volunteer-based and requires 5-10 hours per week with frequent outreach and community engagement.
The organization says its ideal candidate will be “passionate about inclusion,” have between three and five years of nonprofit volunteer board experience, budget management skills and be “committed to educate about, celebrate and inspire LGBTQ+ lives.”
“We will have further news to share at the February 7 annual meeting,” Gore also shared. “Please accept my abiding gratitude for the opportunity to have served as the LGBTQ Resource Center board president for the past four years. Term limits are good things. Organizations do not belong to individuals.
“The Resource Center’s value is measured in how well we have met our purpose, ‘promoting awareness of the experiences, contributions and needs of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or queer,’” she continued. “I am proud to be part of the growth of the Resource Center’s programs and wish everyone a new year filled with good health, happiness and resilience that grows out of an unquestioned belief that you are valued. Onward!”
For more information about the LGBTQ Resource Center, visit MyGulfport.us/LGBTQ-Resources. Read more about the board president position and apply here.
