The National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame will announce some of the inaugural inductees for the Class of 2013 next week. The entire class will be announced in July and the ceremony for honorees is set for Aug. 2, at the Center on Halsted, in conjunction with Out At Wrigley the following day.
The National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame, the first of its kind in the U.S., is a 501 (c) (3) organization based in Chicago—and the brainchild of Chicago resident Bill Gubrud, the group's executive director.
This Hall "will recognize those who stood up to stereotypes and worked to break down the walls of differences to bring people together for the good of the games," Gubrud said.
Gubrud, 40, lives in Lakeview, and owns and operates MTM Chicago, an online resource for the LGBT community. He was born and raised on Chicago's Northwest side and has been partnered with Jon Larson for more than six years. Gubrud plays softball in the predominantly gay Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association (CMSA).
"When I started working [in the] gay press in the early 2000s, the first sales call that I made was to the Chicago Cubs, hoping [the team] would place an ad, particularly because I'm a diehard Cubs fan and also gay," Gubrud said.
Ultimately, the Cubs became one of the first major professional sports teams to place an ad in a gay newspaper in the country. And Gubrud originated Out At Wrigley in 2001.
"I always had it in the back of my mind to do something like this [Hall of Fame], but I didn't know when the time was right," he said.
Last November, Gubrud started filling out paperwork for the IRS and the State of Illinois. He also then brought on others who are very sports-savvy to be part of the Board of Directors for the Hall.
"I want to promote history as far as sports in the gay and lesbian community," Gubrud said. "I think it's very big, and not a lot of people, straight or gay, know a lot about the history of gay sports, or the history of people in sports who happen to be gay, or people in sports who have helped gay people along the way.
"Who knows if [NBA player] Jason Collins would have come out if he didn't see all of the support around him."
Gubrud said the National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame will honor individuals, corporations, leagues, teams and more.
"The Hall of Fame will work to preserve the history of gays and lesbians who have impacted professional and amateur sports on a national setting," he said. "A major objective of the organization will be to provide outreach and education programs to the sporting world so that gay and lesbian youth all across the nation feel welcome and safe to participate in any and all athletic-related activities."
Honorees also will include straight allies, he said.
"This project means the world to me personally," Gubrud said. "Growing up and playing sports, I remember what it was like when people joked around in locker rooms [with anti-gay comments]. When I was growing up, I never thought I could come out [in my teens]. There are people all over the country who, even now for them, coming-out is not OK; they feel they cannot come out.
"We want to be the organization that shows role-models, people who have paved the way for people in sports. I think that will give people the boast of confidence to be who they are."
Gubrud said the Hall eventually wants to have its own building and be a tourist destination for vacationers coming to Chicago. In the meantime, honorees will be displayed on the walls at the Center on Halsted.
For more information on the National Gay & Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame, including information on nominating potential honorees, go to www.gayandlesbiansports.com .
