Government funds LGBT senior resource center

The White House announced in February that it will award a three-year, $900,000 contract to a coalition of LGBT senior organizations, including Boston's LGBT Aging Project. The result will be the first-ever federally funded national resource center devoted to providing support and education for LGBT elders.

"We are delighted to be part of this groundbreaking collaboration," Lisa Krinsky, director of the LGBT Aging Project, said. "We are so pleased that the Administration on Aging has recognized LGBT older adults and caregivers. We look forward to working with our colleagues across the country to create this first-ever national Resource Center for LGBT elders."

Ten organizational partners, including the Aging Project, will assist lead agency Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE) -- the country's oldest and largest program dedicated to serving LGBT elders -- in carrying out the duties of the U.S. Administration on Aging's new Technical Assistance Resource Center: Promoting Appropriate Long Term Care Supports for LGBT Elders (Resource Center). Krinsky will serve as part of the core training staff working throughout the country.

The Center will work to educate mainstream service organizations about the existence and unique needs of the LGBT elder community; educated LGBT organizations about the existence of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender senior citizens; and educate the LGBT community about planning ahead for future care needs.

Other organizational partners include the Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging and Longevity at Hunter College of the City University of New York; Centerlink, a national association of LGBT community centers; Griot Circle, the nation's largest organization serving LGBT elders of color; Openhouse, a San Francisco agency with particular expertise in LGBT elder housing; PHI, a national organization addressing the needs of direct-care workers; the American Society on Aging, a national association of aging professionals; the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, representing local government agencies that oversee all programs funded under the Older Americans Act; the National Institute on Senior Centers of the National Council on Aging; and the Transgender Aging Network, a national resource for transgender aging.