Sat. January 17, 2004
Chicago, IL -
Chicago continues to receive outpourings of support from organizations and individuals throughout the world for its bid to bring the Gay Games to Chicago.
“We are extremely gratified by the emails, letters and phone calls of support,” said Kevin Boyer, spokesperson for Chicago Games, Inc. “As we enter the final two weeks of our bid preparations, this support has strengthened our bidding team and enhanced the quality of our bid document. We are especially gratified by the concrete letters of support we are receiving from local sports and culture organizations. Sports and civic organizations have committed resources necessary to help ensure an adequate supply of volunteers to plan and implement a Chicago Gay Games in 2006.”
Chicago Games, Inc. announced some details of the surging support:
The number of people actively working on the bid document has more than doubled in the past week with the addition of more financial and legal professionals, local sports organizers and marketing experts.
A large Chicago law firm announced it is providing pro bono counsel to CGI on contracts, trademark and licensing.
Chicago’s umbrella GLBT sports organizations have reaffirmed their support, lending their volunteers and name to the effort. Chicago Metropolitan Sports Association, Windy City Athletic Association, Team Chicago and the Women’s Sports Association have each expanded their involvement in the effort.
In addition to the support received for the Gay Games from Team New York and Team Paris at the end of December, the following GLBT sports organizations have offered their formal support: Rehoboth (DE) Tennis Club, Lakeshore Marathon, Windy City Cycling Club, San Francisco Gay Basketball, and the Chicago Force, Chicago’s local pro women’s tackle football team. Local groups have committed to help with outreach, volunteering and/or fundraising and the Rehoboth Tennis Club has announced that a portion of the proceeds from its August tennis tournament will go to the host of Gay Games VII.
Cultural organizations from all segments of Chicago’s diverse community have offered their support including: Mountain Moving Coffee House (local women’s music collective), Aldo Castillo Gallery (latino/gay owned art gallery), P.O.W.-W.O.W. (local artists organization focusing on performance opportunities for LGBT and people of color), Resources Unlimited Foundation (faith-based organization that has committed $30,000 in pro bono labor to help develop and support volunteer efforts), the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (committed to offering GLBT films during the Gay Games), and D/E Entertainment (local promoter that includes Grammy-award-winning DJ Frankie Knuckles).
“The outpouring of support validates our budget model,” said R. Sue Connolly, Senior VP at the Northern Trust Bank and part of the CGI budget committee. “With CGI focusing specifically on the core sporting and cultural competitions, we avoid the resource misallocation that plagued previous Gay Games hosts and resulted in deficits. Local and international organizations will manage a diverse array of complementary social and cultural events. This will enhance the Gay Games experience for those who choose to participate but will not detract from the financial viability of the body planning the event.”
About the Gay Games
The Gay Games is a quadrennial athletic and cultural event which brings together people from around the world. Based on the principles of inclusion and participation, the Gay Games welcomes all people without regard to their sexual orientation, gender, race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, political belief(s), athletic/artistic ability, age, physical challenge, or health status.
For more information about Chicago Games, Inc., visit www.chicagogamesinc.org. Gay Games® is a registered trademark of the Federation of Gay Games. For more information about the FGG, visit www.gaygames.org.
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