The Federation Legacy Awards will be presented at a reception on Saturday 5 October at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Cleveland.
The “Pioneer” Legacy Award will be presented to Jean-Nickolaus Tretter,
cofounder with Robin Karas of Team Minnesota for Gay Games I, the
largest city team from outside of California. Tretter was the creator of
the Gay Games’ first rules and regulations for sports events, now known
as the Gay Games Red Book for Sport, and launched the International Gay
Olympic Association, the forerunner of the Federation of Gay Games, and
its newsletter, the Gay BLEEP Games Bulletin, aka “The Bleep”, after
the name banned by the USOC. Tretter is a visionary whose legacy can be
seen in the very existence of the FGG, as well as in endeavors that we
have yet to follow through on, including his project for Winter Gay
Games.Tretter has always desired to share his commitment to LGBT issues and sport in particular, and his personal collection was the nucleus of the University of Minnesota’s Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection for GLBT Studies. For over a decade, Minnesota has presented the annual Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Gay History Award to high school students, established under Governor Jesse Ventura.
The Legacy Award for Advocacy will be presented to Susan McGreivy.
McGreivy unites sport and activism. A top swimmer, participating on the
United States Olympic swim team, she later became a lawyer,
specializing in civil rights law for organizations such as the Gay
Community Services Center in Hollywood and the ACLU of Southern
California, with a focus on gay and lesbian rights. She led the fight in
several important cases, including a discrimination case against the
Boy Scouts of America, a defense of the women known as the Norton Sound
Eight, and closer to us, thedefense of the Gay Games against the United
States Olympics Committee, a case that forced her to step down as part
of the group organizing Team Los Angeles for Gay Games I. Along with
fellow Olympian George Frenn, she lit the torch at the opening ceremony
of the Games.
The “Family Values” Legacy Award will be presented to Jerry Windle and Andres Rodriguez.
Windle, Rodriguez, and their son Jordan are a model of a family devoted
to sport, and are examples of a non-traditional family devoted to the
promotion of athletic excellence.Jordan Windle was adopted as an infant by Jerry Windle, who later met his partner Andres Rodriguez. Jordan was identified as a promising diver, and has since proven that judgment totally correct, competing at a high level in national and international events. He is now pursuing the dream of qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics. None of this would be possible without the support of his fathers. In presenting Jerry Windle and Andres Rodriguez with the Family Values Legacy Award, we acknowledge their contributions to the world of sport, and through them all parents who support their children’s athletic and artistic endeavors.
Each
year, the FGG recognizes outstanding contributions to LGBT sport and
culture by one of its member organizations. The Federation is
particularly pleased this year to show our appreciation for our brave
brothers and sisters in Russia. Since its founding only a few years ago,
the Russian LGBT Sports Federation has brought together gay and lesbian
athletes to comradeship in sport and culture. They have organized
competitions and training in Russia and supported the participation of
Russians in international competitions, the only time they have to
breathe free. Despite the worsening situation for LGBT people in Russia,
they continue to expand their activities. In particular, they are an
integral part of the Pride House International coalition fighting for
positive action from the IOC and other sports bodies and for the
creation of Pride Houses in support of freedom of expression at the
Sochi Olympics and beyond. We are honored to recognize the Russian LGBT Sports Federation with our Member Organization Legacy Award.
The
FGG also honors local organizations that support our mission of
equality through sport and culture. At the heart of many LGBT
communities are LGBT centers, and we are pleased to recognize a
particularly important one, the LGBT Center of Greater Cleveland, with our Local Organization Legacy Award.
The LGBT Center is an important partner for our host committee for the
2014 Gay Games presented by the Cleveland Foundation. The Center has
worked to advance the rightsof Northeast Ohio's LGBT community since
1975, making it one of the oldest LGBT centers in the United States. The
Center strives to foster a community that celebrates the inherent worth
and dignity of all people, regardless of their sexual orientation,
gender identity or gender expression by working collaboratively with
other LGBT and ally groups to identify and address community needs and
issues.The Center provides a variety of programs and services to the region's LGBT community, including counseling, health and wellness programs, and training for local organizations on important LGBT issues.
Also honored at the AGA will be the Federation’s Volunteers of the Year. This year, they are Ken Hundrieser, who has gone beyond his duties as a delegate from Team Chicago to contribute greatly to the logistics of site selection for the host of Gay Games X, and Jennell Bergwall, who has given generously of her time and talent to provide the FGG with her services as a talented graphic artist.
Finally, the Federation will be inducting a number of men and women as Honorary Life Members, some at the 2013 AGA, and others at next year’s awards ceremony at the 2014 Gay Games. Those chosen to join the list of men and women providing outstanding contributions as an FGG board member or delegate are outgoing board members Paul Oostenbrug (Albuquerque) and Emy Ritt (Paris), former board members Alan Lessik (San Francisco), Brent Minor (Washington), Laura Moore (New York City), Martyn Pickup (Berlin), and Kate Rowe (Sydney), and former delegate Michael Witt (Palm Springs, California).
Medals of Honor will be presented to the leaders of the five teams bidding to host Gay Games X, as well as to the volunteer site inspectors who have greatly contributed to the site selection process for Gay Games X. These awards will be presented just before Monday’s announcement of the presumptive host of the 2018 Games.
