Love Makes a Family Celebrates Success;
Plans to Close at End of Year
Executive Director Anne Stanback to Resign in July

Hartford-- Standing with a dozen other Connecticut lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) and allied leaders at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford, Executive Director Anne Stanback announced today that, with marriage equality secure and other LGBT issues now in the forefront, Love Makes a Family will cease operations on December 31^st.

“With GLAD’s victory in the Kerrigan Supreme Court decision and with the knowledge that same-sex couples’ right to marry is secure, we can officially close our doors at the end of the year. We want to conclude our work on a high note: celebrating our successes, completing our advocacy work over the next nine months, and sharing our organizational resources with others to further empower the Connecticut community for the future,” said Stanback.

Love Makes a Family initially formed in 1999 to pass legislation to allow same-sex couples to legally adopt.  Since the enactment of an adoption law in 2000, the organization has led the campaign for marriage equality in Connecticut.

 “Family recognition issues like marriage and adoption are now secure, but LGBT residents of Connecticut still face discrimination and challenges,” stated Stanback. “Love Makes a Family will encourage our nearly 20,000 supporters to join the efforts of the many other strong Connecticut organizations whose fine work continues.”  

Robin McHaelen, Executive Director of True Colors, the state’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth organization, was one of the organizational leaders who attended today’s press conference. “Love Makes a Family has been a model of lobbying, grassroots advocacy, education and community empowerment over the last decade. Connecticut is a better place to live for all people because of their accomplishments.”

Stanback laid out an the organization’s plan for its remaining nine months:

• Ensuring smooth enactment of the marriage equality law, including codifying the high court’s marriage ruling into state statute this legislative session
  
  
• Lobbying the state’s Congressional delegation to support a repeal of DOMA, the federal law that denies married same-sex couples the right to critical federal benefits such as Social Security spousal benefits
  
  
• Working with coalition partners to lobby for passage of legislation to prohibit discrimination against transgender individuals

• Ensuring a pro-equality legislature for the future through a continuation of the Love Makes a Family Political Action Committee

• Documenting the successful strategies from the Connecticut marriage equality campaign to share with other states.

Stanback, who will step down as Executive Director on July 1^st, called her nearly nine years at Love Makes a Family the highlight of her career. In the short term, she plans to spend time with her wife, Charlotte Kinlock. They were married on February 14, 2009 after 25 years together.

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Love Makes a Family is a statewide coalition of organizations and individuals leading the campaign for marriage and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender equality in Connecticut.