2022 Board of Directors & STAFF
Philadelphia Family Pride has had an active, volunteer board consisting of 16 members.
We adopted of our bylaws in 2007 and expanded the board in 2015 with the addition of the Event Planning Committee Chair, and then again in 2017 to add an additional six board members to the existing ten. In the summer of 2019, we added two more who are graduates of the first-ever Community Leadership Pipeline. In early 2022, we changed the board leadership structure from a Chair/Vice-Chair to two Co-Chairs.
The board members serve for one year terms, except the co-chairs who serve for staggeredtwo year terms. The elections are held at our annual Winter Wonderland party each January. The elections in 2021 and 2022 were held on Zoom.
All email addresses for board members are their first names @phillyfamilypride.org.
We adopted of our bylaws in 2007 and expanded the board in 2015 with the addition of the Event Planning Committee Chair, and then again in 2017 to add an additional six board members to the existing ten. In the summer of 2019, we added two more who are graduates of the first-ever Community Leadership Pipeline. In early 2022, we changed the board leadership structure from a Chair/Vice-Chair to two Co-Chairs.
The board members serve for one year terms, except the co-chairs who serve for staggeredtwo year terms. The elections are held at our annual Winter Wonderland party each January. The elections in 2021 and 2022 were held on Zoom.
All email addresses for board members are their first names @phillyfamilypride.org.
executive committee
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Tiffany Byrd, she/her
Board Co-Chair tiffany@ Board member since 2020. Tiffany Byrd (she/her) is a native of Philadelphia and works as the Senior Director of Permanency at A Second Chance, Inc. She lives in a nearby suburb of Philadephia, Drexel Hill with her son Miccah (age 5) and little sister Zoe (age 14). I joined PFP as a new mom looking for community. I wanted my son to experience images of his "normal" within the world around him. What I gained was community and much more!" |
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Gina Rose, she/her
Board Co-Chair gina@ Board member since 2016. Gina is the proud Mama to these two gorgeous kiddos and also an executive at American Reading Company, a K-12 education company. She lives with her partner and their family in Roxborough. “To me, participating in PFP is a precious opportunity to celebrate our community of Queer/LGBT families as we seek to make a more just world for the next generation.” |
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Hunter McCorkel, she/they
Secretary hunter@ Board member since 2019. Hunter is a nurse by training, but currently a stay-at-home parent. Hunter is a gardener and nature lover, and lives in Mt Airy with their wife and kid.
“We are the first of our close friends to have a baby, so when we got pregnant we knew we would need to build new community. Philadelphia Family Pride has been a fantastic way to meet other queer families, and Philly is lucky to have this organization.” |
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Jadzia Axelrod, she/her
Treasurer jadzia@ Board member since 2019. Jadzia is a writer and cartoonist who lives in West Philly with her wife and daughter. When we first became parents, we looked around for a warm, welcoming community that our queer family would feel at home in. PFP has been that community since the day we joined.” |
committee chairs
Michael Galvan, they/them
Education & Advocacy
michael@
Board member since 2022.
Michael R. Galvan currently serves as the Policy Director at Breaktime, and has spent their career working to advance public policy for youth and young adults. Michael currently resides in Germantown with their partner, son, two dogs, and two cats.
Education & Advocacy
michael@
Board member since 2022.
Michael R. Galvan currently serves as the Policy Director at Breaktime, and has spent their career working to advance public policy for youth and young adults. Michael currently resides in Germantown with their partner, son, two dogs, and two cats.
Lori Keslowitz, she/her
Events Planning
lori@
Board member since 2019.
Lori (pictured right) works in education, loves to garden and read. She lives in South Philly with her wife and 2 kiddos.
Events Planning
lori@
Board member since 2019.
Lori (pictured right) works in education, loves to garden and read. She lives in South Philly with her wife and 2 kiddos.
My wife and I were so happy to find out about PFP after moving here from NY. It’s always been very important to us that our kids grow up around other queer families.”
Naomi Washington-Leapheart, she/her
Membership
naomi@
Board member since 2021.
Naomi is a faith organizer and PFP parent. Naomi was our conference keynote speaker in 2018.
Membership
naomi@
Board member since 2021.
Naomi is a faith organizer and PFP parent. Naomi was our conference keynote speaker in 2018.
Members at Large
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Tariem Burroughs, he/him
tariem@ Board member since 2017. Tariem is completing his PhD in Sociology at Temple University. He lives with his husband, his son, two cats, and a dog in West Philadelphia. I originally joined PFP because I could not think of a better group, or should I say family, to become a part of when my husband and I took the next step in expanding our family. Now, as a father of energetic little boy, I’m excited to continue to learn from the people involved in this great organization and to expand our community.” |
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Sherri Graham, she/her
sherri@ Board Member since 2022. I am so excited to be a part of this organization and to help more families find out about us and what we do!” |
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Sebastian Miller, they/he
sebastian@ Board member since 2020. Sebastian (pictured, right) and his husband made the move to Philly from Florida while they were expecting their second child. Sebastian is the gestational parent of both of their kids - ages 4.5 and 3 year old (as of 2022), and the kiddos are their greatest gifts.
PFP to me means a chosen family and being understood and accepted. So much of parenting is cis/het oriented, and it's refreshing to have a queer space to be at ease with ourselves." |
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Rebecca Levin Nayak, she/her
becca@ Board member since 2019. Becca lives in Mt. Airy and is a family law attorney. “I became involved in PFP before starting my family and found the conference and other events a great place to learn. Now that I have a son, PFP has been a great place to build connections and community!” |
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Sherley Olopherne, she/her/they
sherley@ Board member since 2022. A creative in the past life, and educator in the current, and hopefully a parent in the future . I think the supports & services PFP offers are of value and I want to help highlight all that is available to those of us on this journey of parenthood." |
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Adam Podowitz-Thomas, he/him
adam@ Board member since 2017. Adam, his husband Stephen, and their kids, Edith and EJ, live in Wynnewood. Adam is a lawyer and researcher in the field of democracy protection, having previously dabbled in higher education and environmental law.
PFP to me means a chosen family and being understood and accepted. So much of parenting is cis/het oriented, and it's refreshing to have a queer space to be at ease with ourselves." |
Skott Stotland, he/him
skott@
Board member since 2021.
skott@
Board member since 2021.
Mikah Thomas, he/him/they/them
mikah@
Board member since 2020.
Mikah Thomas is a transplant to Philadelphia by way of Alabama. By promoting his lived experiences as a transgender person, Mikah strives to ensure opportunities for success for the TLGBQ+ Philadelphia community.
Mikah continues to acknowledge the intersections of both his own gender & sexuality, parenthood, and mental health and those of others. Mikah aims to be very hospitable while creating safe and affirming spaces for the community.
Mikah hopes the work helps to provide visibility to the trans community, combat stigma, and create community. Additionally, Mikah is on the board of Transgender Coalition of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Family Pride, alongside as a Brand Ambassador for the National Trans Visibility March. Mikah has been working diligently on a workshop, “Breaking the Binary between Studs and FTMs,” a workshop to hit 2021 conferences.
mikah@
Board member since 2020.
Mikah Thomas is a transplant to Philadelphia by way of Alabama. By promoting his lived experiences as a transgender person, Mikah strives to ensure opportunities for success for the TLGBQ+ Philadelphia community.
Mikah continues to acknowledge the intersections of both his own gender & sexuality, parenthood, and mental health and those of others. Mikah aims to be very hospitable while creating safe and affirming spaces for the community.
Mikah hopes the work helps to provide visibility to the trans community, combat stigma, and create community. Additionally, Mikah is on the board of Transgender Coalition of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Family Pride, alongside as a Brand Ambassador for the National Trans Visibility March. Mikah has been working diligently on a workshop, “Breaking the Binary between Studs and FTMs,” a workshop to hit 2021 conferences.
Our Staff
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Stephanie Haynes, she/her
Executive Director stephanie at phillyfamilypride.org Staff since 2009. Pictured here (left) with her wife and kids in May 2019. Stephanie is in her 14th year with PFP. She is a full time, stay at home, homeschooling parent and a volunteer on the Philadelphia Mayor's Commission for LGBT Affairs. She also enjoys running and photography. My wife and I joined PFP shortly after our twin boys were born. We knew one other two mom family, but wanted to expand the opportunities for our children to meet other LGBTQ families. Attending PFP events has been a great way to connect and normalize our family for them." |
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Shanay Rowe, she/her
Assistant Director shanay at phillyfamilypride.org Staff since 2022. Pictured here (left) with family. Shanay, a Philadelphia native, is a queer parent of an 11 year-old, lives in Delaware County near West Philly, and is engaged to be married this summer. She is a social worker and Clinical Case Manager on the autism/neuro divergent unit at Belmont Behavioral Health and doctoral candidate. |
