Local
Comings & Goings
Goines takes new post at Victory Fund


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 Ron L. Goines on his new position as Managing Director of Development with the Victory Fund & Victory Institute. Upon accepting the position he said, “For nearly a decade, I have supported the work of Victory Fund and Victory Institute because of their impact on American politics and the movement for LGBTQ equality. I am thrilled to build upon my history with the organizations at a time when the importance of leadership is so evident. LGBTQ leaders are needed now more than ever and I am ready to ensure these elected officials and candidates have the programs and resources they need to succeed.”
Prior to joining the Victory Fund, Goines was Director of Major Gifts and Corporate Relations with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights in D.C. Before that he was with Planned Parenthood Southeast, Atlanta, as Vice President of Development and had worked for a number of Planned Parenthood offices in Texas. He also worked with AIDS Foundation, Houston and the Human Rights Campaign in Texas.
Goines has his bachelor’s in politics with a minor in African-American Studies from Oberlin College in Ohio.
Congratulations also to Stephen Belcourt who joined Talis (a SAGE Publishing Company) as Sales Manager, North America. Belcourt said, “We work with over 100 institutions globally, helping them reach strategic goals around teaching & learning, learner analytics and student experience. Our products are Talis Aspire, an online resource list that integrates seamlessly with your Learning Management System and Library Management System; and Talis Elevate, a universal content player that enables collaboration, engagement and insight into resources.” Universities and colleges throughout North America will be Belcourt’s market.
He previously worked for ProQuest and RefWorks-COS as an Account Manager. He has his MSc International Management, University of Liverpool, Laureate International Universities.

Congratulations also to Bryant Sanders, director and co-founder of the new company Grassroots Analytics Non-Profit (GANP). The company aims to disrupt traditional event-based and high-dollar donor fundraising models to more efficiently generate consistent revenue for mission-focused organizations. Sanders said, “I’m looking forward to using the power of data and analytics to support progressive organizations, which takes the guesswork out of fundraising. We want to help nonprofits meet goals they may have previously found out of reach.”
GANP uses a vetted and prospected proprietary database of more than 17 million donors and can accurately and efficiently identify new prospective donors and the best mission-aligned messaging to cultivate those donors into long-term giving relationships.
Prior to co-founding this company, he worked for The Center for Voter Information and Voter Participation as Deputy Director of Development. Before that he was with Victory Fund & Victory Institute as Corporate and Foundation Gifts Manager. He has also worked as a Donor Relations Manager for the D.C. Central Kitchen and for U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand as a staff assistant.
He has his bachelor’s in Public Affairs with a concentration in Ethics and a minor in German from Wells College, Aurora, N.Y.


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!”
District of Columbia
Drive with Pride in D.C.
A new Pride-themed license plate is now available in the District, with proceeds directly benefiting local LGBTQ organizations.

Just in time for Pride month, the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles has partnered with the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs to create a special “Pride Lives Here” license plate.
The plate, which was initially unveiled in February, has a one-time $25 application fee and a $20 annual display fee. Both fees will go directly to the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Affairs Fund.
The MOLGBTQA Fund provides $1,000,000 annually to 25,000 residents through its grant program, funding a slew of LGBTQ organizations in the DMV area — including Capital Pride Alliance, Whitman-Walker, the D.C. Center for the LGBTQ Community, and the Washington Blade Foundation.
The license plate features an inclusive rainbow flag wrapping around the license numbers, with silver stars in the background — a tribute to both D.C.’s robust queer community and the resilience the LGBTQ community has shown.
The “Pride Lives Here” plate is one of only 13 specialty plates offered in the District, and the only one whose fees go directly to the LGBTQ community.
To apply for a Pride plate, visit the DC DMV’s website at https://dmv.dc.gov/

The nation’s capital welcomed WorldPride this past weekend, a massive celebration that usually takes place in a different city every two years.
The Saturday parade attracted hundreds of thousands of people from around the world and the country. The state of Delaware, a few hours drive from D.C., saw participants in the parade, with CAMP Rehoboth, an LGBTQ community center in Rehoboth Beach, hosting a bus day trip.
Hope Vella sits on the board of directors and marched with CAMP Rehoboth. Vella said that although the parade took a long time to start and the temperature was hot, she was “on a cloud” from being there.
“It didn’t matter to me how long it took to start. With the current changes that are in place regarding diversity and inclusion, I wanted my face there,” Vella said. “My life is an intersection. I am a Black woman. I am a lesbian, and I have a disability. All of these things are trying to be erased … I didn’t care how long it took. I didn’t care how far it was going to be. I was going to finish that parade. I didn’t care how hot it was.”
The nearly two mile parade route didn’t feel as long because everyone was so happy interacting with the crowd, Vella said. The group gave out beads, buttons, and pins to parade watchers.
“The World Pride celebration gave me hope because so many people came out. And the joy and the love that was between us … That gave me hope,” Vella said.
Vella said that people with disabilities are often overlooked. More than one in four Americans have disabilities, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vella said it was important for her “to be out there and to be seen in my wholeness as a Black woman, as a lesbian, as a woman with a disability and to not be hiding. I want our society to understand that we exist in LGBTQ+ spaces also.”
Retired Maj. Gen. Tammy Smith is involved with CAMP Rehoboth and marched with a coalition of LGBTQ military members. Smith said they were walking to give transgender military members visibility and to remind people why they are serving.
“When we are not visible, what is allowed to take our place is stereotypes,” Smith said. “And so without visibility, people think all veterans are conservative and perhaps not open to full equality. Without visibility, they might think a small state with a farming background may be a place that’s unwelcoming, but when you actually meet the people who are from those places, it sets aside those stereotypes and the real authenticity is allowed to come forward.”
During the parade, Smith said she saw trans military members in the parade make eye contact or fist bump with transgender people in the crowd.
“They were seen. Both sides were seen during that parade and I just felt privileged to be able to witness that,” Smith said.
Smith said Delaware is a state that is about freedom and equality and is the first state for a reason. The LGBTQ community is engrained as part of life in the Rehoboth and Lewes areas.
“What pride means to me is that we must always be doing what is necessary to maintain our dignity as a community,” Smith said. “We can’t let what people with negative messaging might be tossing our way impact us and the celebration of Pride. I don’t see it as being self-promoting. I see it as an act of dignity and strength.”
-
World Pride 20252 days ago
WorldPride recap: Festival, parade, fireworks, and Doechii
-
U.S. Federal Courts3 days ago
Judge temporarily blocks executive orders targeting LGBTQ, HIV groups
-
Photos3 days ago
PHOTOS: WorldPride Parade
-
Photos3 days ago
PHOTOS: WorldPride Street Festival and Closing Concert