341 Millennium - A Marquis Who’s Who Magazine SOCIAL SERVICES AND NONPROFIT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR African American Office of Gay Concerns Newark, NJ GARY PAUL WRIGHT Influenced to make a difference in the LGBTQ+ community while living in Los Angeles during the height of the AIDS crisis, Gary Paul Wright relocated to New York City, where he volunteered with the Gay Men’s Health Crisis. Hired shortly thereafter by the institution, he met his husband Peter, and together, they developed the African American Office of Gay Concerns (AAOGC) in Newark, New Jersey. Established in 2000, the AAOGC provides HIV/AIDS preventative services for gay men and transgender women of color, as well as provides resources for others in the LGBTQ+ community. Through the AAOGC, Mr. Wright and his husband have created such projects as The B.R.O.T.H.E.R. (Brothers Reaching Out Through Health Education), a program dedicated to individuals at risk for HIV infection; T.G.I.F. (Thank Goodness I’m Fabulous), which gives young Black and Latino transgender girls and sex workers safe boarding and resources; and the Status is Everything Project, an educational campaign aimed to increase HIV, and other STI and STD, testing. For his advocacy, Mr. Wright was honored among the Top 10 Insighters on the New Jersey LGBT Power List in 2020 and 2021.
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