Local

D.C. 2024 Olympics bid lacks LGBT board member

Local gay sports activists back bid despite omission

Published

12 years ago

September 24, 2014

2024 Olympics, gay news, Washington Blade

2012 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations. (Photo by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

A campaign launched by a newly formed organization of prominent business and civic leaders to advocate for holding the 2024 Olympics in the Washington, D.C. metro area enjoys the support of the local LGBT sports community, according to longtime LGBT sports activists Brent Minor and Vince Micone.

“We are all for the Olympics in D.C.,” said Minor, executive director of Team D.C., an umbrella coalition of LGBT sports groups and teams in the D.C. area.

But gay activist and blogger Michael Rogers has expressed concern that no out LGBT person was selected to serve on the 19-member board of Washington2024, the group that’s preparing an Olympic bid for the D.C. area before the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Rogers said he opposes having the Olympics here on grounds that it would be a “financial disaster.” However, he said having an LGBT member on the Washington2024 board would better showcase the group’s claim on its newly launched website that it represents the full diversity of the people of the D.C. area.

Penny Lee, Washington2024’s communications director, told the Washington Blade on Tuesday that the composition of the group’s board is still evolving and more people would be named to the board in the coming weeks and months.

“We’re continuing to find ways in which to engage all communities and be as diverse as absolutely possible,” she said.

Minor and Micone, who played a lead role in D.C.’s unsuccessful bid for the 2014 Gay Games, said they know some of the Washington2024 board members and supporters and believe the organization will be fully supportive of the LGBT community.

Among the board members are former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams, a longtime LGBT rights supporter; and Paul Tagliabue, former commissioner of the National Football League and chair of the Georgetown University board. Tagliabue contributed $1 million in 2011 for an LGBT student life program at Georgetown and contributed $100,000 for the referendum campaign supporting Maryland’s same-sex marriage law in 2012.

Minor noted that Bob Sweeny, the former director of the Greater Washington Sports Authority and a lead adviser for Washington2024, was a strong supporter of the effort to bring the Gay Games to D.C. Minor and Micone called Sweeny a strong LGBT community ally who would push for LGBT inclusion in an Olympics bid.

“I don’t interpret the board’s makeup as a slight,” Minor said. “I’m certain that if the time comes that D.C. wins the Olympic bid they will be fully inclusive of the LGBT community.”

Micone echoed Minor’s sentiment, saying he too is certain that the Washington2024 organization will work closely with LGBT sports activists in its effort to secure D.C.’s selection by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Under longstanding procedures for selecting an Olympic Games host in the U.S., the U.S. Olympic Committee solicits bids from interested U.S. cities. In the current process, the committee has narrowed its selection to four cities or regions – the D.C. metro region, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco. A selection of one of those cities is expected to be made sometime next year.

Whichever city is selected by the U.S. Olympic Committee would then compete with cities in other countries, with the International Olympic Committee making a final selection at a later date.

Jay Fissette, chair of the Arlington County Board who’s gay, has also spoken out in favor of bringing the 2024 Olympics to the D.C. metro area.

“We agree with Washington2024 that this is an historic opportunity for our region to be part of the Olympic movement,” Fissette told Channel 4 News.

Up Next

Same-sex couples featured in Metro ads on discrimination

Don't Miss

Partygoers dressed as Madonna set record

FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM

Baltimore

Popular Mount Vernon gay bar Leon’s to temporarily close after owner’s death

Ron Singer passed away on July 7

Published

2 days ago

July 17, 2026

Baltimore Banner

Leon’s Backroom Bar in Mount Vernon. (Photo by Jessica Gallagher for the Baltimore Banner)

By WESLEY CASE | Leon’s Backroom, Baltimore’s oldest gay bar, temporarily shut down after service on Wednesday night, according to a post on the business’s Instagram page.

The announcement comes a little more than a week after the death of the Mount Vernon bar’s owner, Ron Singer, who died at 66 on July 7.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

Local

Comings & Goings

New garden center offers array of products in Rehoboth

Published

2 days ago

July 17, 2026

Peter Rosenstein

Bay Laurel Home & Garden is located just outside Rehoboth on Route 1.

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].

Congratulations to Stuart Ortel and Scott Marker, and Dave Lyons and Rick Hardy, on the recent opening of their garden center on Route 1 in Rehoboth Beach, in the former Farmer Girl site. It is called Bay Laurel Home and Garden and debuted earlier this year. The four owners are all well known to the denizens of Rehoboth Beach.

Stuart and Scott have been active members of the Rehoboth Beach community since 1999. Stuart is a landscape architect, and has established relationships with many local folks in the building and landscape industry. When this opportunity for Bay Laurel Home & Garden presented itself, and they had the perfect team of people in place, he and Scott were committed to making it a reality. So, when Scott and Stuart introduced this opportunity to create a new garden center to Dave and Rick, they embraced the chance to cultivate a business where beautiful plants, inspiring home and garden products, and outstanding customer service come together. Dave and Rick knew about owning a business in Rehoboth as they previously owned Coho’s Market, where they discovered firsthand the value of serving their community, and the rewards of running a locally owned business.

The garden center launched with a refreshed brand identity, updated merchandising, and expanded product lines, all designed to create an inspiring and welcoming environment for your home. Bay Laurel Home & Garden offers a beautifully appointed garden center and curated home and gift shop.

The new center features a full nursery with annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, and seasonal selections; a garden center offering pottery, fountains, and garden ornamentation, and essential tools and garden supplies. It has a garden shop featuring unique indoor/outdoor furnishings and accessories, and a gift shop featuring botanical and coastal style items for home and entertaining.

Rehoboth Beach

Celebrate Pride in Rehoboth Beach this weekend

‘A vital space for community, healing, and connection’

Published

4 days ago

July 15, 2026

Thomas Weaverling

Rehoboth’s Pride festivities kick off Friday. (Washington Blade file photo by Daniel Truitt)

Pride in Rehoboth Beach is kicking off this week on Friday, July 17, with events happening throughout the weekend.

“Rehoboth Beach Pride is more than a festival — it is a vital space for community, healing, and connection,” said David Mariner, director of Sussex Pride, which organizes many of the events.

The weekend will begin with the Grand Opening & Community Preview from 1-4 p.m. on Friday, July 17, celebrating the opening of Novus Medical Services and the new Sussex Pride Community Center.

This will be followed by an Interfaith Pride Service at 6 p.m. at the Metropolitan Community Church Rehoboth to gather for healing and the affirmation of queer spirituality with Rev. Carla Christopher, chair of Sussex Pride Faith.

Members of the community are then invited to head over to join the Rehoboth Beach Bears at the Pines to have dinner, mingle, and give back to local initiatives.

End the first night of Pride in Rehoboth at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub with music by DJ Joey P from 9 p.m.-1 a.m.

Rehoboth Beach Pride Festival will take place on Saturday, July 18, 2026, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. inside the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. A full list of events is available at rehobothbeachpride.org.

Roxy Overbrooke will host on the main stage as live performances take place throughout the day, featuring music from DJ MK and Tribe 9 Entertainment.

The festival will include educational workshops, community meetups, and a raffle dedicated to raising funds for unhoused LGBTQ+ youth across Delaware.

Feature workshops include panels discussing topics such as unhoused LGBTQ+ youth in Delaware, the needs of trans and non-binary youth, as well as the increase in HIV and syphilis diagnoses amid federal budget cuts, in a panel moderated by Blade Editor Kevin Naff.

Saturday night will also feature an evening comedy and entertainment show at the Convention Center presented by the Gay Women of Rehoboth. Performers will include comedians Suzanne Westen h oefer and Karen Mills as well as musician Kristen Merlin. Tickets are available at gaywomenofrehoboth.org.

The Rehoboth Beach Pride Ride will take place at 10 a.m. on Sunday, July 19, hosted by the Dykes on Bikes Rehoboth Beach Women’s Motorcycle Club, starting at Lefty’s.

Goolee’s Drag Brunch will also take place on Sunday from 12-2 p.m at Goolee’s Grille. This is a family-friendly event hosted by Regina Cox and Ruby, featuring Aurora Sterling, Michelle Leigh Sterling, Scarlet St. Cartier, and Joanna Blue. Tickets can be purchased online.

Pride in Rehoboth will conclude at 2 p.m. with the official Rehoboth Beach Pride Closing Party at Aqua Bar & Grill, celebrating the venue’s landmark 20th anniversary with DJ Biff until 7 p.m.

Due to an influx of visitors for the summer season, those coming from out-of-town are encouraged to use the Park & Ride.