Local
Comings & Goings
Barutta assisting flood victims; Rutstein moves to Compass
The ‘Comings & Goings’ column chronicles important life changes of Blade readers.
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 and thanks to Daniel Barutta who is now in Baton Rouge, La., working as a member of Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) Disaster Services Team as Cadre Staff helping the victims of the historic flooding there.
Davild Barutta
Barutta moved to D.C. to take a job with the Peace Corps as a Placement Officer placing secondary school English teachers all over the world as volunteers. Six years later, he began work with the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) as an AmeriCorps Program Officer. Barutta says his portfolio of grantees includes state commissions in Washington, California and Idaho and national programs such as the Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest, the Notre Dame Mission Volunteers and Catholic Charities, USA.
When asked about his current work he said, “In 2008 I became a member of CNCS’ Disaster Services Team as Cadre Staff. When the president declares a national disaster and FEMA is activated, CNCS and FEMA sign a mission assignment agreement that allows us at AmeriCorps to send our wonderful AmeriCorps members who do all sorts of service for people including: mucking and gutting homes, debris removal, setting up of Volunteer Recruitment Centers, staffing food banks, sheltering people, etc. As the Cadre member I deploy to FEMA to coordinate all our members. It’s a pretty big assignment involving 12-hour days and lots of trouble shooting.”
Other deployments have included in 2013 helping Alaska flood victims on the Yukon and in 2015 helping people recover after flooding in South Carolina.
Barutta is from California but D.C. has been his home for the past 22 years. After college he joined the Peace Corps serving three years in Jamaica and West Indies working with youth and their families. He served two years as a VISTA Volunteer with Catholic Charities in San Francisco working with runaways and the homeless. In 1991, he became the first executive director of the first LGBTQ youth center in San Francisco.
Soon after moving to D.C., Barutta joined Dignity Washington. He has been in the choir for 22 years. In 2010 he was elected to the board, becoming president in 2012, a position he held until this past June.
Congratulations also to Mark Rutstein who has brought his team, the Evan and Mark Team to Compass Realty, a company operating with agents coast to coast. Prior to joining Compass, Rutstein worked with Coldwell Banker where he was part of the top-producing sales team in 2015 and into 2016. Over the years, Rutstein has had a couple of careers that included success in the hospitality industry. Many may have first met him through his real estate work or when he worked as the manager of Cobalt.
He went into the real estate business in 2002 and brought with him a passion to help clients achieve financial independence through home ownership. Since that time he has won numerous awards and made many media appearances showcasing his love of the business. He was voted the Best Realtor in D.C. in the Washington Blade’s annual Best of Gay DC contest in 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014. His media appearances include HGTV’s “Get it Sold,” Discovery Channel’s “Double Agents,” and multiple local news appearances.
Rutstein was born in Miami and attended the University of Mary Washington. He is an active member of the community volunteering his time with multiple community organizations and events. He is married to Stephen Rutgers, who works as the Washington Blade’s sales and marketing director.
Mark Rutstein
Baltimore
More than 15K people attend Baltimore Trans Pride
Baltimore Safe Haven organized annual event
More than 15,000 people attended Baltimore Safe Haven’s annual Trans Pride on Saturday.
“Last year we had maybe 2,500, and the year before that, we had 5,000,” Renee Lau, administrative assistant for special projects coordinator for Baltimore Safe Haven, said. “In today’s political climate, it’s absolutely amazing.”
Lau said allies and other groups “went into hiding” for about a month or two after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, but then all at once, different organizations started to reach out.
“The community has really come together to support us,” Lau said. “It was a fun, exciting day.”
Baltimore Safe Haven Executive Director Iya Dammons in a press release said the “historic turnout” showed the transgender community’s strength, as well as their unity to fight for justice and equality for all LGBTQ people.
At the event, attendees were seen waving flags and shouting “Trans Lives Matter,” showing their support for the community.
On Friday, before Trans Pride, Baltimore Safe Haven opened their new building to the public, gathering notable attendees like the Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohan, Council Member Antonio Glover, and representatives from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation.
“(It) was historic in itself because … we’re the only direct service providers for people in the LGBT community,” Lau said.
Providing housing for 18- to 24-year-olds, Lau said the new building also serves as a community hub and has office spaces for workers.
With only a few hiccups of arguments between attendees and fixing street blockades during Trans Pride, Lau said the event showed what the community can do.
“It was amazing that so many people came out and had that much fun. We were all giddy by Sunday morning,” Lau said. “(It gave) Safe Haven exposure and continuity. We are not just an LGBT organization, we are an organization that supports the entire community.”
District of Columbia
Juvenile arrested for anti-gay assault in D.C.
Police say suspect targeted victim in house with Pride flags
D.C. police announced on June 16 that they have arrested a 13-year-old juvenile male on a charge of Assault With Significant Bodily Injury for allegedly throwing a rock through the window of a house in Northeast D.C. and “striking the victim in the face.”
In a statement announcing the arrest, police said the incident took place on Friday, June 6, and “LGBTQ+ flags were displayed at the front of the home.”
A separate D.C. police incident report obtained by the Washington Blade states, “Victim 1 reports he was sitting in his living room at the listed location watching television when a rock came through the front window and struck him about his left eye. Victim 1 suffered a laceration under his left eye.”
The report adds, “Victim 1 states he observed Suspect 1 running away.”
According to the June 16 statement issued by police, “On Sunday, June 15, 2025, officers located the suspect and placed him under arrest. [A] 13-year-old juvenile male of Northeast D.C., was charged with Assault With Significant Bodily Injury (Hate/Bias).”
The statement says the house where the incident occurred is located on the 400 block of 20th Street, N.E.
Similar to statements D.C. police have issued regarding LGBTQ bias-related cases in the past, the statement announcing this case says that while the case is being investigated as being potentially motivated by hate or bias, that designation could be changed at any time during the investigation.
It adds that a hate crime designation by D.C. police may not be prosecuted as a hate crime by prosecutors. Under D.C. law, juvenile cases are prosecuted by the Office of the D.C. Attorney General.
Since court records for cases involving juveniles are sealed from public access, the Blade could not immediately determine whether prosecutors designated the case as a hate crime.
It also could not immediately be determined if the juvenile charged in the case was being held in detention while awaiting trial at juvenile court or whether he was released to a parent or guardian and whether a judge set any conditions for release.
The police statement concludes by saying that the department’s Special Liaison Branch, which includes the LGBT Liaison Unit, is assisting with the investigation.
Milton, Del., will host its Pride Fest this Saturday with the theme “Small Town, Big Heart.” The town’s population of just over 3,000 is in its sixth year hosting Pride.
The event is hosted by Sussex Pride and Milton Theatre and will take place from 4-8 p.m. in the area surrounding the theater. Admission is pay-what-you-can and proceeds will support the Milton Theatre’s education wing campaign, an initiative dedicated to expanding arts education and creating spaces for the next generation of performers and artists.
The musical act schedule includes Goldstar at 4 p.m., Magnolia Applebottom and Friends at 5:30 p.m., and Mama’s Blacksheep at 6:45 p.m. There will be vendors, food trucks, and a Kids Fest with an inflatable obstacle course.
“In our little corner of the world, LOVE leads the way! Milton Pride 2025 is a celebration for EVERYONE — neighbors, families, allies, and friends — because acceptance, kindness, and community belong to us all,” Milton Theatre’s website reads. “Whether you’re here to cheer, learn, or simply feel the joy … you’re welcome exactly as you are. Let’s come together and celebrate Milton, a SMALL TOWN … with a BIG HEART!”
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