Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund to Honor Local Heros at 2nd Annual Houston Brunch

Mon, Mar 26th 2007, 12:50

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Denis Dison (202) 842-7308, denis.dison@victoryfund.org

HOUSTON, TX & WASHINGTON, DC – Victory's 2nd Annual Houston Brunch on February 19th will feature five openly LGBT elected officials who represent breakthroughs for the LGBT community.  U.S. Representative Barney Frank (MA) will be the featured speaker, along with Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, the nation’s first openly lesbian, Latino sheriff and San Antonio City Councilmember Elena Guajardo.  Recently elected Houston City Councilmember Sue Lovell and Houston Controller Annise Parker will both be presented with the Local Hero Award by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.

On December 10th, Victory Fund-endorsed candidate Sue Lovell won the runoff election for an At-Large seat on the Houston City Council.  In this breakthrough election, Sue follows in the steps of Victory Fund-endorsee and Houston Controller Annise Parker, who also served three terms as an At-Large Councilmember prior to being elected Controller.

"In a state that recently passed an anti-gay amendment, the election of qualified candidates like Sue and Annise represents hope and progress for LGBT equality," said Chuck Wolfe, president & CEO of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund. "By having a voice at the table we can fight back against this kind of discrimination."

Victory's 2nd Annual Houston Brunch will be held at the Renaissance Houston Hotel, 6 Greenway Plaza and begins at 11:30 am on Sunday, February 19. Victory Fund’s Houston Board Members David Arpin, Janine Brunjes and Bill Colburn will be serving as hosts of the event. The cost is $100 per person.  To RSVP or for more information visit www.victoryfund.org/events.

The Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund provides strategic, technical and financial support to openly LGBT candidates and officials. It is the sole national organization committed to increasing the number of openly LGBT public officials at federal, state and local levels of government.  Victory Fund is the nation’s largest LGBT political action committee and one of the nation’s largest non-connected PACs.  In 14 years, Victory has helped the number of openly LGBT officials grow from 49 to over 300.