February 14, 2017 - Fort Lauderdale, FL - Today, the Board of Directors of CenterLink announced that it has appointed Lora Tucker as the organization's new Chief Executive Officer.
CenterLink is a national member-based coalition to support the development of strong, sustainable LGBT community centers.
"Lora's extensive experience and passion for leadership development, public relations, and organizational strategy make her an extraordinary fit to lead CenterLink," said CenterLink Board Co-Chair Paul Moore. "The future of CenterLink is exciting and I am confident that her skills and strong core values - combined with our robust and extensive member network - will take our LGBT community center movement to the next level."
Tucker will succeed Terry Stone, who led CenterLink for 10 years. When he assumed leadership of CenterLink, the organization was based in Washington, D.C., and had 45 members. Today the organization is headquartered in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and has over 189 member centers across the U.S., Canada, Australia and China.
"Terry's leadership and accomplishments have strengthened CenterLink's role in the LGBT movement, as the organization that supports strong and healthy LGBT community centers," said Cece Cox, Co-Chair of the Board of Directors. "With Lora's leadership and vision, CenterLink is positioned for even greater success in serving its members. A unified team of board and staff have ensured that Lora will hit the ground running at this critical time in the LGBTQ movement, when strong and vibrant centers, who are the heartbeat of their local communities, are needed more than ever."
Tucker, a graduate of Boston College, joins CenterLink with a rich background in organizational and team leadership. Most recently, Lora held posts with the Girl Scouts, including as CEO of the Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana. Before that, she served 25 years as a soldier and officer for the U.S. Army, earned the Bronze Star Medal, and retired as a US Army colonel.
"I am honored and humbled to lead this exceptional organization in partnership with the board of directors, staff, and phenomenal LGBT community center leaders and volunteers," said Tucker. "The mission and work of CenterLink is vital to our LGBT communities across the country, and the world. I have never been more excited or ready to help lead an organization into its future. I look forward to continuing Terry's success in support of strong and healthy LGBT community centers, at one of the most critical times in our history."
About CenterLink
CenterLink was founded in 1994 as a member-based coalition to support the development of strong, sustainable LGBT community centers. A fundamental goal of CenterLink's work is to help build the capacity of these centers to address the social, cultural, health and political advocacy needs of LGBT community members across the country. CenterLink plays an important role in addressing the challenges centers face by helping them to improve their organizational and service delivery capacity, access public resources and engage their regional communities in the grassroots social justice movement. www.lgbtcenters.org .
