Joe Hollendonerwho was once in executive leadership roles at AIDS Foundation of Chicago and Howard Brown Health as well as a Windy City Times 30 Under 30 honoreewill officially succeed Lorri Jean as CEO of the Los Angeles LGBT Center when she retires in July 2022.
The Los Angeles LGBT Center's nearly 800 employees provide services for more LGBT people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services and global advocacy that span four broad categories: Health, Social Services and Housing, Culture and Education, and Leadership and Advocacy.
Before Jean retires, Hollendoner will assume the role of executive director on July 6, 2021, and work with her.
"It is an honor of a lifetime to be selected to lead the Los Angeles LGBT Center following such an iconic leader as Lorri Jean. I look forward to working with the Center's board, staff, and partners to ensure that the Center not only continues to be a trusted provider of care to the communities it currently serves but that we deepen our work to address the racial disparities and systemic racism that prohibits all members of the LGBTQ+ community from thriving," said Hollendoner. "I also remain committed to maintaining and expanding the Center's role as a national and global LGBTQ+ movement leader."
Hollendoner has led San Francisco AIDS Foundation since 2016. During his tenure, he spearheaded the adoption of a new five-year strategic plan in 2019 that prioritized the expansion of health and social services and established racial justice as a fundamental principle to guide the organization's growth.
Longtime AIDS activist and Black AIDS Institute founder Phill Wilson praised the board's selection of Hollendoner, saying, "Joe is one of the few people in the country with the skills, experience, and passion required to lead this organization into the future. Joe is a friend and colleague who I trust. I am confident, with our support, he will be the kind of leader the Center and we need at a time like this."
Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur issued a separate press release saying, "Under Joe Hollendoner's leadership, San Francisco AIDS Foundation has been an incredible partner in the fight to end the HIV epidemic, increase access to life-saving HIV medication and address longstanding disparities in health and well-being faced by people living with HIV. I have no doubt he will bring the same energy and tenacity to his role at the Center, and we look forward to working closely with him to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ Angelenos and to achieve full, lived equality for all LGBTQ+ people."