Hoping to expand social events in the Castro, and perhaps elsewhere in the city, grants were announced last week to four people through And Castro for All's New Venture Seed Fund program.
The recipients were named Thursday, October 18 at a celebration and fundraiser at the Edge bar in the Castro.
This is the pilot year for the New Venture Seed Fund, which "seeks to encourage and support enterprising entrepreneurs to create new social ventures whose formats are explicitly inclusive and affirming of women, people of color, and other underserved LGBT sub-communities – and at the same time, welcoming of all LGBT people," according to a concept paper written by Aimee Forster, an And Castro for All board member.
The recipients will each receive between $1,000 and $2,000 from And Castro for All, as well as tailored training sessions, advice, and assistance with fund development through the San Francisco LGBT Community Center's economic development program. They will also gain access to small business and entrepreneurship programs from the Small Business Administration and the San Francisco Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center.
John Newsome, one of the founders of And Castro for All, explained that the exact award amounts each person will receive has yet to be determined, and will be based on how much money was raised at last Thursday�s event.
"They will all get a minimum of $1,000 and it will range up to quite likely $2,000 and there is potential for each of them, depending on their planning and depending on their needs over the next few weeks, to each receive more funding from [And Castro for All] and from others," said Newsome.
Cindy Emch, 33, founder of Queer Open Mic, is one of the award recipients. In addition to outreach and advertising to bring in as diverse an audience as possible, Emch would like to be able to have a set fee she is able to pay Queer Open Mic's featured readers.
"I really believe that artists should get paid for what they're doing because I think it encourages people to keep making more art," she explained. The Queer Open Mic takes place at the center's Three Dollar Bill Cafe the second and fourth Fridays of every month; the next one is October 26 at 8 p.m.
"More than three quarters of our featured readers are usually people of color," said Emch, who identifies as queer. "We tend to get a really diverse audience as well. We are a really welcoming audience."
Saleem Azzouqa, 45, who goes by Saleem, is a Los Angeles resident who is well known in the Bay Area as a DJ, dancer, and promoter, as well as the author of Salam Shalom, a play that was produced at the New Conservatory Theatre in 1995 and in 2003. Saleem identifies as an Arab American gay man, and produces a DJ event in Los Angeles called La Zeez. He wants to use the venture seed funds he receives to bring the party to San Francisco. La Zeez brings together music, food, and dancing from South America, the Mediterranean, South Asia, India, and the Middle East.
"It's a very specialized event," Saleem explained. "The idea is to do it on a regular basis. And it's not going to be only for the Middle East and South Asian gay and lesbian community, it's actually for everyone who wants to try something new or different. We're open to everyone who appreciates that kind of culture and wants to experience something different in terms of DJ dancing." Saleem hopes to hold the event once a month or once a quarter.
Ondine Kilker, 40, who identifies as a lesbian, is co-chair of Center Women Present, a program of the community center that addresses women's community issues and holds three monthly ongoing events.
"We try to create programs for self-identified women at the center and so we're going to use [the venture seed] monies to continue with movie screenings, poker nights, game nights, and socials, but also we're going to focus in 2008 on social justice and activism within the community, whether it be health and wellness or other issues that we think are either underrepresented or creating tension in our community," said Kilker.
Bill Doggett, 52, is a gay man who organizes the monthly potluck socials for black gay men at Magnet, the health center in the Castro. He will use his grant to hold black gay men's business mixers.
"I'm building on the success of the Magnet [mixers], which I inaugurated in February of this year during Black History Month, with the launch in February 2008 of a black professional gay men's mixer," said Doggett. "It is envisioned to grow and to eventually formalize as a black gay men's chamber of commerce."
Doggett hopes his events will "bring together the rainbow of black gay professionals, all of these people who have a presence in our community that can be so much more if we are willing to come together to get to know each another, to do business with one another as well as to make a difference in our community."
Black gay professionals are dispersed, explained Doggett. "We're out there, but not as a unit and this is an opportunity for us to find a place at the table, to be more visible," he said.
"We and others recognize that there is a real hunger for more interesting, more diverse, and more innovative social outlets and gatherings in our community," said Newsome of And Castro for All.
Newsome added that it's hoped the seed fund can "create more of a pipeline of entrepreneurs and to make sure the pipeline is as reflective of the diversity of our community as possible.
He noted that the community center, which acts as the fiscal sponsor of And Castro for All, has been a very strong partner in creating the venture seed fund initiative.
"[And Castro for All] would of course appreciate more long-term support from everywhere in our community and encourage everyone to hold on to that glimmer of long-term possibility. We're investing in the Castro in five years, or 10 years, when this community will truly have something for everyone."