New Beginnings and Continued Leadership
DC Center Elects New Board Members and Officers at Annual Meeting
February 1st 2017 – The Board of Directors of the DC Center for the LGBT Community elected new board members and officers at its annual meeting on January 9th, 2017. Returning to the Board of Directors are Michael Fowler, Tonya Turner, Chuck Chesson, and Mindy Michaels. The newly elected Board members are: Lance Macon, W. Taylor Monson, Bryan Murrell, and Jonathan Gilad.
The DC Center Board of Directors also elected new officers the 2017 Executive Committee. Returning officers for 2017 include: Michael Fowler as chair, Tonya Turner as vice chair, and Chuck Chesson as Chief Development Officer. Joining the Executive Committee is Lance Macon as Treasurer, W. Taylor Monson as Secretary and Jonathan Gilad as chief Communications Officer.
“ We are delighted to have such a diverse, qualified, and energetic Board to lead us going forward into 2017. I’m confident that Lance, Taylor, Bryan and Jonathan will be excellent additions to the Board” said David Mariner, the DC Center Executive Director.
Lance Macon is a seasoned real estate executive with nearly 23 years of diversified experience, and the founder and Director of Client Services for Metro Home Managers, a locally based real estate services firm. Be it one unit or 1,000 units, Lance brings this wealth of experience in all property types to bear in order to help his clients reach the goals they have for their real estate assets. Lance is also a licensed real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty in Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Lance believes in giving back to the community and has previous board experience with an emerging non-profit organization that offers transitional shelter for the homeless, and a national non-profit that promotes educational equality.
Lance holds Bachelors of Business Administration from Florida A&M University, and earned a Masters of Science in Management at the Sloan School of Business at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Additionally, he is proud to be a Robert Toigo Fellow.
W. Taylor Monson is currently the Manager for Research and Innovation at the American Gastroenterological Association, where he manages a biomedical research grants portfolio worth approximately $3,000,000 annually. Mr. Monson has lived in Washington DC for 5 years and has worked with several locally-, nationally-, and internationally-focused health and science nonprofits in a variety of roles ranging from research, policy, and project management. Outside of his career Mr. Monson is an avid volunteer in the LGBT community with organizations such as Capital Pride, Whitman Walker Health, the DC Center, and the Gay District conversation group. Mr. Monson came to DC after completing a Master’s Degree in Cognitive and Social Psychological Processes at Ball State University, where his research focused on LGBT-issues and health disparate populations. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Alabama, where he was twice awarded the Elliot Jackson Jones Memorial Scholarship for LGBT activism for his work leading the student LGBT organization. Mr. Monson is originally from a family farm in Wetumpka Alabama and can be seen enjoying the cityscape while walking his rescue dog, Zeak.
Bryan Murrell currently works as Principal PPM (Project & Portfolio Management) Consultant & Trainer with iSystems Group, LLC. He has worked as a Senior Project Server & SharePoint Systems Administrator and Information Technology Consultant for such organizations as General Atomics, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, CareFusion, L-3 Communications and LeonardoMD. He’s additionally been assigned to projects for clients including Department of Treasury and Federal Reserve Thrift Investment Board, since retiring from the military as a Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant and former Drill Instructor after 20 years and 3 days of active service where he took part in making over 10,000 Marines, founding one of the first data communication units in the military and participating in several combat deployments. He has been a Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) since 1999. Bryan also volunteered, working with the Junior Naval ROTC program at Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California for over 10 years. He now lives in the Washington, DC. Bryan was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee and spends his free time road cycling and perfecting the art of baking cheesecakes.
Jonathan Gilad has been active in the Washington DC Jewish LGBT community since moving to DC over eight years ago. He served as Chair of Nice Jewish Boys DC (NJB), a social group that serve GBT men in their 20’s and 30’s in the Washington DC area. While chair of NJB, Jonathan initiated innovative and inclusive programing towards welcoming new members and partnering with other organizations. Jonathan has also been on the Programing Committer of the Washington DC Jewish Community Center’s Kurlander Program for LGBTQ Engagement since 2009. Aside from volunteering in the Jewish LGBTQ community, Jonathan was also elected co-Chair of the Senate LGBTQ staff association (GLASS caucus) in 2010 and continued in that role until leaving the Hill in 2012. Professionally Jonathan is a freelance communications consultant focusing on social media and membership engagement. He has a masters from the George Washington University Graduate of Political Management where he focused on digital advocacy. Jonathan moved to DC after completing his bachelors in political science in 2008 from Queens College, City University of New York, where he received the Chaney-Goodman-Schwerner Civil Rights Award for his work combating homophobia and all forms of bigotry on campus. He is also an active member of the Matzo Balls, a Thursday Stonewall Kickball team, which he helped create in 2013.
“We are delighted to welcome such distinguished members of DC’s LGBT community to the Board of Directors and are excited to see a new leadership team take the helm in 2017. Their diverse backgrounds, experiences and interests demonstrates is a true testament to the diversity of the DC LGBTQ community and the people we serve,” said David Mariner.