GAY PEOPLE'S

Chronicle

ICG 228-6555

HAIRCUTTING & DESIGN

ནྟི ཙིཏྟཏཾ ཨརཊིས

Ohio's Newspaper for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community www.GayPeoplesChronicle.com

Ben DJ and DJ Hopkins of Cleveland Heights get into the spirit of Dancin' in the Streets.

Late-afternoon Dancin' brings crowds and record donations

by Anthony Glassman

Cleveland-The 27th annual Dancin' in the Streets benefit for the AIDS Taskforce of Greater Cleveland featured a later start time, a voluntary donation at the gate and surging attendance, bringing the event back to the fore as a major summer party in Cleveland.

"I'm going to say we had an

attendance of about 4,000 people throughout the course of the day," said organizer John Katsaros.

The start time was postponed until 3 pm this year. In previous years, it started earlier but had sparse attendance in the first few hours. "From one to four or five, we were really kind of dead, so we opened at

BRIAN DEWITT

three this year and as soon as we started, it was packed," he noted. "I've never seen it that crowded that early."

"It was a nice, nice group of people, I have to say," he enthused. According to AIDS Taskforce chief executive officer Tracy Jones, continued on page 10

Inside This Issue

Gay Games suit is settled; city to pay Synergy $475K

Volume 27, Issue 4 August 12, 2011

Jan Cline leaves helm of LGBT Center

He returns to Virginia food bank

by Anthony Glassman

Cleveland-After 16 months, Cleveland LGBT Center executive director Jan Cline is stepping down to return to the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia.

His last day is August 12. The center's board of directors was unable to reach consensus on an interim replacement for Cline at their meeting on August 9. They will meet again on August 15, said board president Bob Sferra.

Sferra added that, after speaking with the employees before the board meeting, "The staff seems to be in control of the scheduled hours. They feel as though they're fine steering the ship until the middle of next week."

Cline was first in the organization's development department in the 1990s, before eventually rising to the position of associate director. He took the reins on an interim basis when former director Linda Malicki left in 2002.

He then went on to head an LGBT youth leadership development group, Outright Maine, before working in public relations and grant writing for the Food Bank in Norfolk, Va. He also spent a year and a half working for the Gordon Square Arts District after returning to Cleveland.

Two major factors played a role in his decision to return to Virginia: First, that is where his family lives, and second, the volunteer director position there greatly appealed to him after he revamped the volunteer program at the Cleve-

land LGBT Center during his 16month tenure at the helm.

Cline also discussed his passion for dealing with hunger, a topic that often goes ignored in one of the wealthiest nations on earth.

"It's going to be an awesome opportunity. I have a growing interest in feeding hungry people,” he said. "It's a growing concern, something I'm very passionate about."

"There is enough food in this country to feed people, it's just a matter of getting it form where it's being held or wasted to the people who need it," he concluded.

Cline assumed the mantle of executive director in late March, 2010, less than four months after Sue Doerfer ended her tenure for a stint leading Equality Ohio.

During his time at the Center, Cline initiated changes in the structure of the staff, in part necessitated by the loss of a $30,000 grant that was not renewed after 2009. He also started a strategic planning process to examine the direction of the organization moving forward.

Sferra expressed regret that Cline will not be there to see those efforts come to fruition.

"The main thing that comes to my mind is, we're disappointed that Jan won't be able to see through any of the initiatives or the strategic planning that he has been so involved with for the last 16 months," the board president said.

Jan Cline

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News Briefs

Charlie's Calendar

Blazing his own trails

Page 6

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