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Comings & Goings
Roane named COO of Lambda Legal
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 John Roane appointed Lambda Legal’s Chief Operating Officer. On his appointment he said, “I’m delighted and honored to join Lambda Legal and its dedicated team of lawyers, paralegals, and support staff at this critical time in our movement. The forces that oppose our civil rights are organized and formidable, and Lambda Legal is our last line of defense.”
Prior to joining Lambda Legal, Roane was Vice President and COO at AIDS UNITED, Inc. He has also served in that role for the Association of American Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine and with the Association of American Veterinary Colleges. He was Associate Director, Program Support Services with the DC Association of American Medical Colleges.
In his volunteer capacity, Roane was past chair of the board of directors, Finance and Administration Roundtable (FAR); former board secretary, Us Helping Us; and active with the Society of Human Resource Management, American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Food and Friends, and Dog World Rescue. He has also volunteered with CAMP Rehoboth.
Congratulations also to Jimmy Rock for being named a partner at Edelson PC, opening the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. Rock said, “I’m thrilled to be joining this team helping to redefine what it means to be part of the plaintiffs’ bar.” His work focuses on consumer protection and environmental cases. He is also the lead for the firm’s Public Client Litigation.
Prior to joining Edelson PC, he was with the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia where he helped to start OAG’s Office of Consumer Protection. He also served five years as an Assistant Deputy Attorney General managing OAG’s Public Advocacy Division. Rock received the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award for Trial of Affirmative Litigation in 2015. He has served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center; and as faculty at the National Attorneys General Training Institute’s “Trial of a Complex Consumer Case.” He has presented at numerous conferences.
Congratulations to Torey Carter-Conneen honored with a Business of Pride award from the Washington Business Journal. On accepting the award, he said, “I am humbled and honored to receive this recognition and be among an accomplished group of fellow leaders, and especially as we celebrate Pride.”
He is currently CEO of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Prior to joining ASLA, he served as COO of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and previously he was the Senior Vice President and CFO for the Center for American Progress, COO and later acting president and CEO at the LGBTQ Victory Fund and Institute.
Outside of work, Carter-Conneen sits on the executive committee of the board for Shepherd’s Table in Silver Spring, Md., and serves on the board of the American Immigration Council. He and his husband Mike are fathers to two children, Drew and Aiden.
District of Columbia
Billy Porter, Keke Palmer, Ava Max to perform at Capital Pride
Concert to be held at annual festival on June 9
The Capital Pride Alliance, the group that organizes D.C.’s annual LGBTQ Pride events, announced this week the lineup of performers for the Sunday, June 9, Capital Pride Concert to be held during the Capital Pride Festival on Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. near the U.S. Capitol.
Among the performers will be nationally acclaimed singers and recording artists Billy Porter and Keke Palmer, who will also serve as grand marshals for the Capital Pride Parade set to take place one day earlier on Saturday, June 8.
The Capital Price announcement says the other lead performers will be Ava Max, Sapphira Cristal, and the pop female trio Exposé.
“The beloved pop icons will captivate audiences with upbeat performances coupled with their fierce advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights, echoing the vibrant spirit of this year’s theme, ‘Totally Radical,’” according to a statement released by Capital Pride Alliance.
“With Billy Porter and Keke Palmer leading the parade as Grand Marshals, we’re not only honoring their incredible contributions to the LGBTQ+ community but also amplifying their voices as fierce advocates for equality and acceptance,” Capital Pride Alliance Executive Director Ryan Bos said in the statement.
“The concert and festival serve as a platform to showcase the diverse array of LGBTQ+ talent, from the chart-topping hits of Ava Max to the iconic sounds of Exposé and the electrifying performances of Sapphira Cristal,” Bos said in the statement. “Capital Pride 2024 promises to be a celebration like no other.”
The concert will take place from 12-10 p.m. on the main stage and other stages across the four-block long festival site on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier and fireworks show returning June 8
The annual Pride on the Pier Fireworks Show presented by the Leonard-Litz Foundation will take place on Saturday, June 8 at 9 p.m.
The Washington Blade, in partnership with LURe DC and The Wharf, is excited to announce the 5th annual Pride on the Pier and fireworks show during D.C. Pride weekend on Saturday, June 8, 2024, from 2-10 p.m.
The event will include the annual Pride on the Pier Fireworks Show presented by the Leonard-Litz Foundation at 9 p.m.
Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Southwest waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older. Local DJ’s Heat, Eletrox and Honey will perform throughout the event.
3 p.m. – Capital Pride Parade on the Big Screen
3:30 p.m. – Drag Show hosted by Cake Pop!
9 p.m. – Fireworks Show Presented by Leonard-Litz Foundation
The event is free and open to the public. The Dockmasters Building will be home to a VIP experience. To learn more and to purchase tickets go to www.prideonthepier.com/vip. VIP tickets are limited.
Event sponsors include Absolut, Buying Time, Capital Pride, DC Brau, DC Fray, Burney Wealth Management, Infinate Legacy, Leonard-Litz Foundation, Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, MISTR, NBC4, The Wharf. More information regarding activities will be released at www.PrideOnThePier.com
Maryland
Trone discusses transgender niece
Blade interviewed Md. congressman, Angela Alsobrooks last week
Editor’s note: The Washington Blade last week interviewed both U.S. Rep. David Trone (D-Md.) and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. The full interviews with both Democratic candidates for retiring U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.)’s seat will be on the Blade’s website later this week.
Maryland Congressman David Trone last week discussed his transgender niece during an interview with the Washington Blade about his U.S. Senate campaign.
Trone, who is running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), on May 1 told the Blade during a telephone interview that his niece transitioned when she was in her early 20s. Trone also noted she attended Furman University, a small, liberal arts university in Greenville, S.C.
“I was concerned about how she would be able to transition there,” said Trone.
Trone, who founded Total Wine & More, attended Furman University as an undergrad and is on the school’s board of trustees. Trone told the Blade he donated $10 million to the university to “build out their mental health capacity, which I felt was a way that she could have the best mental health care possible when she worked her way through (her) transition.”
Trone’s niece graduated from the university after she spent five years there.
“She had a great relationship with Furman,” said Trone.
Trone and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks are the leading Democrats running to succeed Cardin. The winner of the May 14 Democratic primary will face former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in November.
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Trone discusses transgender niece
