A glamorous crowd of 350 guests and celebrities turned out for the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles’ inaugural “Voice Awards,†honoring leaders who use their voices to affect and advocate for social change.
This is the first time in its 33-year history that the esteemed chorus has staged a gala. The successful event raised more than $170,000 for “Alive Music Project,†GMCLA’s ongoing in-school outreach program promoting hope and anti-bullying through music, as well as a live national touring show it is currently developing in conjunction with the It Gets Better Foundation.
The honorees included Geoff Kors, the former Executive Director of Equality California who was instrumental in helping to shepherd the 2011 California Fair Education Act that compels California public schools to include the contributions of persons with disabilities and LGBT people in educational textbooks and social studies curricula.
Receiving the “Emerging Young Voice†award was 17-year-old Michigan high school student Katy Butler, who led a grass-roots campaign to change the rating of the documentary film “Bully†to from R-rated to PG-13-rated so more high school students, those most likely to benefit from its message, would be able to view it. In her acceptance speech she proclaimed, “This award belongs to everyone who’s true to themselves every day.â€
Additionally, Wells Fargo, represented by Jonathan Weedman, Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo Foundation and Wells Fargo & Company, was honored for its vital and on-going support of LGBT issues in California and beyond.
Adding an extremely poignant element to the benefit was special guest speaker James Clementi, whose 18-year-old brother Tyler, was a victim of cyber bullying while a freshman at Rutgers University and committed suicide in 2010. Clementi summed up the spirit of the evening when he said, “ Being gay does not mean sacrificing your dreams, but living them instead.â€
GMCLA Chair John Duran and LGBT Rights Activist Diane Abbitt co-chaired the event, which also featured a brief performance by members of the chorus, led by Artistic Director E. Jason Armstrong.
Celebrity presenters included comedian Bruce Vilanch; KTLA weekend anchor Wendy Burch, 2004 Miss American Shandi Finnessey, and actors Charlotte Rae, Marissa Winokur, Craig Ramsay, Carolyn Hennesy, Mike C. Manning, Doug Spearman, Amanda Baker, Brandon Liberati and Sharon Lawrence.
For more information on the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles: www.gmcla.org.
