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PROMO sticks with Perkins as executive director

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – One of Missouri’s most influential advocates for the LGBT community has decided to remove the interim from the title of their acting executive director.

Steph Perkins will become the permanent ED of PROMO as of Wednesday, Feb. 24. Before he became the interim director, a role in which he has served for four months, he served as deputy director for five years under A.J. Bockelman.

“I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve as PROMO’s Executive Director at this pivotal time,” Perkins said in a statement. “In my tenure at the organization, we have come a long way, both as an organization, as a community, and as a movement. I am dedicated to continue our current work on things like nondiscrimination and health equity, with an intentional focus on transgender equality and intersectionality. I’m grateful to take these steps alongside an incredible team of staff, board members, and volunteers.”

Perks (right) with wife, Amanda (left) FACEBOOK
Perks (right) with wife, Amanda (left)
FACEBOOK

Perkins most notably fought against the repeal of an ordinance in Springfield, Mo. that gave discrimination protections to LGBT communities in the area. Although the fight was lost by Perkins and his allies, it was in one of the most conservative areas of the state.

His commitment to those issues, as well as his long history with the organization made Perkins an obvious choice for Kelly Hamilton, the chair of the PROMO and PROMO Fund Boards, and the rest of the board of directors.

“Steph will offer deep knowledge of PROMO, tremendous leadership skills and true passion for equality as Executive Director,” Hamilton said. “This is a pivotal time for PROMO and for our mission of securing full equality for LGBT Missourians, and we have absolute confidence that Steph is the right leader to guide our organization on this next step of our journey.”