I serve on the AGE Board because I am passionate about the work AGE is doing. As a woman of color over the age of 40, I am deeply moved to be part of an organization that cares as part of their mission to bring representation to nonbinary and women of color, including those considered older (often a category that is invisible). I am also in the mental health field and see first-hand the difference it can make in terms of overall wellness and healing to feel represented in the broader culture-including the Arts. I am proud to be a part of AGE.
I've been on the Board of Directors of Advance Gender Equity In The Arts (or AGE) for over 7 1/2 years, and have therefore had a unique continuous perspective on AGE's remarkable progress from its inception to the present, including its extraordinarily seamless transition during COVID toward a focus on supporting BIPOC theater creators to attain influence, opportunity, and recognition in theatre that has historically been denied to them, with great intersectional sensitivity to LGBTQ+. As a white straight man, it has been my special privilege to learn how to be as strong an ally in that endeavor as I can, and I support AGE even more today than at the start.
I founded Advance Gender Equity in the Arts (AGE) 10 years ago. With the support of a dedicated board, staff, and countless donors and patrons in Portland and nationally, we have been flourishing. AGE empowers the artists whose voices have been silenced because of gender, race, and age. I have passed the leadership baton to a new generation of visionaries and am proud to be connected to AGE as a donor and advisor.