Center on Halsted

Last updated
Center on Halsted
Founded1973;52 years ago (1973)
Type Nonprofit organization
51-0178807 [1]
Legal status 501(c)(3) [1]
Location
Coordinates 41°56′57″N87°38′59″W / 41.949064°N 87.649628°W / 41.949064; -87.649628
Joli Robinson [2]
Chief Program Officer [2]
Editha Paras [2]
Chair [2]
Victor Ravago [2]
Revenue$5,789,604 [3] (2020)
Expenses$5,841,775 [3] (2020)
Endowment $4,647,591 [3] (2020)
Employees101 [3] (2019)
Volunteers400 [3] (2019)
Website www.centeronhalsted.org
Formerly called
Gay Horizons,
Horizons Community Services

Center on Halsted is a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) community center in Chicago, Illinois.

Contents

The center is located in the Lakeview neighborhood on the corner of Halsted Street and Waveland, attached to Whole Foods Market. It is open every day from 8 am to 9 pm. Patrons participate in the diverse public programs and social services offered at Center on Halsted — ranging from volleyball and cooking classes to rapid HIV testing and group therapy.

History

Center on Halsted Center on Halstead, Chicago, IL.jpg
Center on Halsted

In 1973, Gay Horizons was established by a group of volunteers. Over time, the organization evolved and changed its name to Horizons Community Services, becoming a comprehensive LGBT social services agency. In 2003, Horizons Community Services was renamed Center on Halsted. The core programming of Horizons Community Services remained while new services were envisioned and realized.

After a $20-million capital campaign involving 2,000 donors, Center on Halsted opened its 175,000 sq ft (16,300 m2) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified building in 2007 with Whole Foods as an anchor tenant and two levels of underground parking. A major contributor was Miriam Hoover (of The Hoover Company) who donated $1 million. [4]

Major funding for the center came through private/corporate donations, with additional funding and support from the City of Chicago. The support of Chicago's then-mayor was recognized by the construction of the Richard M. Daley Rooftop Garden.

In 2019, after protests about the previous security firm employed by the Center on Halsted, the organization changed security vendors. [5] [6]

Programs and services

Center on Halsted develops and hosts an array of public programs open to the public that provide fun, educational and enlightening opportunities for members of the LGBT community and allies. These include:

Center on Halsted works with city and state governments and an array of local providers to provide comprehensive social services to LGBT and ally community members in need including:

The center works in collaboration with other Chicago nonprofits. Collaborators in the past have included the Museum of Contemporary Art, After School Matters, The Chicago Historical Society, The University of Chicago, The Chicago Architecture Foundation, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Garfield Park Conservatory, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Chicago Cubs.

Center on Halsted also hosts a number of smaller community organizations in its space as Resident Partners. These include the Association of Latino Men for Action, Athletic Alliance of Chicago, IMPACT Program at Northwestern University, Lakeside Pride Music Ensembles, NAMES Project, Northalsted Business Alliance, Windy City Performing Arts and Windy City Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Center on Halsted Archived 2021-12-02 at the Wayback Machine ". Tax Exempt Organization Search. Internal Revenue Service. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Staff & Board". Center on Halsted.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Form 990: Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax Archived 2021-12-02 at the Wayback Machine ". Center on Halsted Internal Revenue Service. June 30, 2020.
  4. Center on Halsted Fall 2005 Newsletter Archived September 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  5. Peacock, Tim. "Center on Halsted seeks to replace Walsh Security after community pressure," Archived 2022-11-14 at the Wayback Machine Windy City Times (Oct. 5, 2019).
  6. Wittich, Jake. "LGBTQ center moves to replace security firm owned by cop accused of racist attack: The Center on Halsted said it will seek a new firm to provide security services that has 'experience working directly with LGBTQ people of all ages from a diverse racial, ethnic and socioeconomic background,'” Archived 2022-11-14 at the Wayback Machine Chicago Sun-Times (Oct 5, 2019).
  7. "Welcome to the Anti-Violence Project". Center on Halsted. March 12, 2018. Archived from the original on March 13, 2018. Retrieved March 12, 2018.