FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ATLANTA, Ga., November 19, 2020 –– OUT Georgia Business Alliance is proud to announce the winners of the LGBTQ+ chamber’s 2020 Community Honors spotlight awards, highlighting Georgia’s LGBTQ+ businesses, nonprofits, and leaders who are charting significant impact for our community.
“Congratulations and thank you to our winners and finalists on driving meaningful progress and impact during an exceptionally challenging year,” said Chris Lugo, Executive Director of the OUT Georgia Business Alliance.
“Our winners represent the best-of-the-best, and I ask you to join OUT Georgia in congratulating and recognizing our Community Honors award honorees for 2020!”
Business Leader of the Year
This award is given to the LGBTQ+ business leader in our community who has made an outstanding and sustained contribution to their organization, as well as to the OUT Georgia Business Alliance and the LGBTQ+ business community.
Matt Keith is the Business Strategies & Initiatives Executive supporting the Local Market Organization at Bank of America, with a long-standing commitment to advancing the LGBTQ+ community, diversity, and inclusion. Matt previously served as Co –Chair and now serves as the executive sponsor for Bank of America’s LGBT + Pride Georgia chapter, along with the enterprise executive LGBT + Pride council.
Matt is a member of the City of Atlanta Mayor’s LGBTQ Advisory Board and active in Atlanta’s LGBTQ+ community.
Community Leader of the Year
This award recognizes a Community Leader who demonstrates a commitment to serving and advancing the LGBTQ+ community by having created or contributed significantly to the success of one or more local nonprofit organizations or community efforts.
Rev. Kim Jackson is first black, LGBTQ+ person ordained as a priest in the Episcopal diocese of Atlanta and now the first black, LGBTQ woman elected to the Georgia State Senate, serving District 41. As the Vicar at the Episcopal Church of the Common Ground, Kim co-creates Church with people who are unhoused in downtown Atlanta.
Next Gen – Emerging LGBTQ+ Leader of the Year
This award is given to a young LGBTQ+ leader, professional, or entrepreneur who has demonstrated exceptional performance and an innovative drive that has benefited their organization and the LGBTQ+ community.
Dionne Kettl is a dynamic Millennial who focuses her considerable talents on creating workplace equity and inclusion for trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) persons of color.
Dionne is on the City of Atlanta Mayor’s LGBTQ Advisory Board, works with Transformation Journeys Worldwide, and she also serves as co-founder and Deputy Director of TRANScending Barriers Atlanta, a Black trans-led nonprofit with a mission to uplift and empower Georgia’s TGNC community.
Nonprofit of the Year
This award is given to a nonprofit organization that works tirelessly in order to positively impact the health, happiness, and general welfare of those in the LGBTQ+ community.
Founded by Mary Anne Adams, ZAMI NOBLA National Organization of Black Lesbians on Aging is dedicated to building a national base of power for Black lesbians 40 + centering Service, Advocacy, and Community-Action Research.
ZAMI NOBLA aims to empower, affirm, and serve the lives of lesbians of African descent as a resource for the latest research on the issues that affect us the most.
Corporate LGBTQ+ Ally of the Year
This award is given to the Corporate Partner or Member that has shown exemplary support of their LGBTQ+ employees, LGBTQ+ businesses, the larger LGBTQ+ community, and to the OUT Georgia Business Alliance.
Cox Enterprises
Empower People Today to Build a Better Future for the Next Generation
Cox has always been committed to taking care of our employees, serving our customers and improving the quality of life in the communities we serve. We’re here because those who came before us were dedicated to building a better future, and we’re committed to doing the same for the next generation.
Small Business of the Year
This award is given to the LGBTQ-owned business here in Georgia that has shown exemplary support to and representation of the LGBTQ+ community.
Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours
First opened in late 2014, transitioning locations in 2016, Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours’ first iteration was voted best new restaurant in Atlanta by the Georgia Voice, ranked among the best new openings in Atlanta by Thrillist and has been featured on the Cooking Channel’s ‘Late Nite Eats’ and Genius Kitchen’s ‘Carnivorous.’ Chef Deborah VanTrece has been featured as one of Zagat’s Most Badass Female Chefs in the U.S. alongside spotlights in Creative Loafing, NBC News, Eater and on Cherry Bombe Radio and NPR’s WABE. Chef VanTrece was awarded the Atlanta Business League’s 2017 Super Tuesday Conference Award for Creative Style while her recipes have been showcased at the James Beard House and in the American Cuisine Cook Book.
As a female entrepreneur, helping to promote the paradigm shift of female and African American representation in the culinary industry, Chef VanTrece’s journey has become a 25-year career, but her passion for food and feeding people has always been the foundational piece of her life.
New Business of the Year
This award is presented to the LGBTQ-owned small business that is less than two years old and already building a track record of excellence, innovation, and impact.
Glass House Guide
Glass House Guide helps agents inform, excite and involve buyers to a whole new level. Our purpose is to help listing agents sell more homes and provide buyers with a more pleasant home buying experience.
At Glass House Guide, we want to provide listing agents with the best possible tools to help them sell their homes. We allow our agents to put custom information about their listings into their Alexa device, helping them close more deals. We strive to make this process as simple as possible for the listing agent, and provide maximum transparency for both the buyer and the agent during the sales process.
Member of the Year
This award is presented to the LGBTQ+ or allied business owner that has shown innovation in their business practices resulting in the advancement of their organization. In addition, this award recipient will also have advanced the mission, goals, and purpose of OUT Georgia Business Alliance, resulting in a truly positive impact for the LGBTQ+ business community.
Bruce Logue, PalmerHouse Properties
I believe that the customer’s needs and concerns are my number one priority. My objective is to be available and readily accessible to my clients and to always work with their best interest in mind.
As a highly skilled and licensed real estate sales associate backed up by experienced brokers, I spend my time focused on you and your needs. I’m dedicated to helping you achieve your real estate goals with rigorous standards and extraordinary integrity. Expect me to provide a sound and seamless real estate experience for you now and in the future!
From our very first meeting to the day of closing, I’m here to provide you with best-in-class service to help you buy or sell a home. Equipped with the finest tools and technology, I’ll guide you through every step of the real estate transaction.
Pivot of the Year
COVID-19 has impacted all of us here in Georgia, especially our BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and Minority-owned businesses. OUT Georgia’s Pivot of the Year recognizes the organization that not only navigated COVID-19, but one that did an exceptional job of adapting its business and positively impacting its community.
Out on Film
The mission of Out on Film is to inform, entertain, educate, and enrich the LGBTQ culture by showcasing films by, for, and about the LGBT community and its allies. Out on Film promotes LGBTQ film, video and digital art forms and recognizes the creative work of artists and professionals, many with local connections, who tell the stories of all facets of the LGBTQ community.
About OUT Georgia Business Alliance
OUT Georgia Business Alliance proudly serves as Georgia’s only LGBTQ+ and Allied Chamber of Commerce.
Since 1994, OUT Georgia Business Alliance (formerly the Atlanta Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce) has served the LGBTQ+ and Allied business community by advocating for the most inclusive and equitable business environment; providing support and resources to fuel economic growth; and driving meaningful community connections and impact across the State of Georgia.
OUT Georgia Business Alliance is a 501(c)(6) not-for-profit headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., and is a proud affiliate of the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce. For more information, contact us at OUTGeorgia.org or info@OUTGeorgia.org.