Published: October 6, 2005

Singers Spencer Day and Shayna Steele headlined at the 25th anniversary gala for Horizons Foundation, the world’s first LGBT community foundation. Over 1,200 people attended the gala, held at the Regency Center, which also featured aerial performances by Circo Zero; the world premiere of Reaching New Horizons from Citizen Film; and a brief program unveiling the foundation’s new permanent fund for the LGBT community. Horizons is a community foundation rooted in and dedicated to the LGBT community, and exists to mobilize and increase resources for the LGBT movement and organizations that secure the rights, meet the needs, and celebrate the lives of LGBT people; empower individual donors and promote giving as an integral part of a healthy, compassionate community; and steward a permanently endowed fund through which donors can make legacy gifts to ensure our community’s capacity to meet the future needs of LGBT people.

Circo Zero opened the ceremonies. Directed by former Horizons grantee Keith Hennessy, Circo Zero is a diverse team of artists who create spectacles with circus arts, dance, language, and music. Their work has been called “physical poetry” and “a stunning paradox: a spectacle with soul.” Circo Zero participates in local and global struggles for justice, functioning as a collective space and public laboratory for investigations of spiritual, artistic, sexual, and political concerns. That night they interpreted the meaning of commitment—especially the struggle for marriage rights—through man-on-man headstands, handstands, and basically defying gravity with each other. There were also scary, funny clowns to demonstrate the need for a sense of ridiculousness and laughter during times of oppression. After some wild, slightly naughty poetry, they drew attention to the screen above, where Citizen Film’s Reaching New Horizons traced the 25-year history of the foundation and its influence in—and its occasional role in shaping—the LGBT community. The short film included interviews with current and past grantees, board members, staff, and community leaders.

Horizons Executive Director Roger Doughty gave a brief synopsis of what was going on when the foundation was established in 1980, including the following: “Harvey Milk’s assassination was barely a year ago; mustaches lined Castro Street; the first rainbow flag was just flown; no one had heard of AIDS; and a few people had a vision of the world’s first LGBT community foundation.” He stressed, “This is not yet a victory celebration, for our struggle for equality, freedom, and dignity—that stretches from the Daughters of Bilitis to the Mattachine Society; from Stonewall to ACT UP; from Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell to I Do; from courtrooms to family rooms—is not over.” He added, “We’re not just going through a phase here, people. We’re here forever; so let’s start planning to be here forever.”

Doughty said Horizons has a vision for the next quarter century and beyond, of a permanent community endowment that generates millions of dollars every year for the queer community. “The endowment fund is being built to bequest and plan gifts—the legacy of generous donors, rich and not so rich, all united in one common vision of pride, permanence, and power for our community.” He said the goal is a permanent endowed fund of $100 million. He said already more than a hundred donors have included Horizons Foundation in their estate plans, and in a few months the fund will receive a gift of one and half million dollars.

Upstairs in the Lodge, Shayna Steele and Spencer Day entertained. Steele’s vocal style and original songs combine R&B, soul, and jazz, inspired by diverse talents such as Ella Fitzgerald, The Temptations, and Aretha Franklin. Her big break came at age 20 when she was selected to join the cast of the Broadway production of Rent; since then she has performed in musical theater around the country. Recent credits include backing vocals on Moby’s latest CD. That night she sang “Save Your Love for Me,” “Movin’ On,” “The Very Thought of You,” and “Stormy Weather.”

The San Francisco Chronicle’s “2004 Discovery of the Year,” Spencer Day has received international attention for his rich baritone voice and blend of jazz, folk, and contemporary music. He was a finalist on CBS’s Star Search in 2003, and has headlined at the World AIDS Day Music Festival in Melbourne, Australia and the National Earth Day event in Washington, DC. Later this year Day will perform at Lincoln Center in New York. That night he did a Nancy Sinatra cover, “Bang Bang, My Baby Shot Me Down;” “Devil’s Gonna Come for You” (a song he wrote about murder in the deep south); and then he sat at the piano to play and sing his moving composition about a dear friend of his who passed away, “The Movie of Your Life.” He followed with a George Gershwin favorite, “Lady Be Good.” He finished off on keyboards with a composition he wrote about his brother driving in a car in Arizona.

In addition to the live performances and video, the gala included casino gaming, a silent auction, DJ dancing, and gourmet food and drinks. The evening closed with Jenni Olson’s “Sing-Along San Francisco” accompanied on the Regency’s 1909 pipe organ by Warren Lubich, who plays regularly at the Castro Theater.