Yvette Christofilis has been executive director of The LOFT: the LGBT Community Center of the Lower Hudson Valley since December 2002, and has worked for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights for over 20 years.
During her tenure, The LOFT’s staff has more than doubled, its budget has increased with new and ongoing grant awards, and the organization’s public profile has increased significantly, not only regionally, but also statewide. Additionally, two major programs have been launched: Silver Connections, The LOFT’s program for LGBT people 55 and over; and The LOFT’s Freedom to Marry Project, which seeks marriage equality for same-sex couples in New York State.
Prior to joining The LOFT, Yvette was Vice President, Graphics Services, for Sudler & Hennessey, the pharmaceutical advertising division of Young & Rubicam. This position capped a 20-year career in publishing, sales promotion & advertising. As VP, Graphics Services, Yvette, among other things, managed the graphic services studio profit center and staff, producing print and Web ads, brochures, visual aids, and direct mail pieces, increasing net revenues from $600 a year to $2 million a year.
While building a career in the for-profit sector, Yvette volunteered for a number of nonprofit organizations, all dealing with LGBT and HIV/AIDS causes. Whether it be volunteering in several organization during the AIDS crises or traveling to Albany to lobby for the passage of the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act (SONDA), throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Yvette worked on causes that were important to her—full civil rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, and for the equal treatment of those living with HIV & AIDS.
Her appointment to executive director of The LOFT on December 1, 2002, saw the coming together of these two parts—the career and the causes. As executive director, Yvette is committed to making the focus of the LGBT community center of the lower Hudson Valley one of advocacy and education, which is a continuation of the work she started more than 20 years ago.
Yvette holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Philosophy with a minor focus in Religious Studies. She is a writer and has seen some of her fiction and poems published as well as some nonfiction pieces. A Naturalized American citizen from Nassau, Bahamas, Yvette lives in White Plains, NY, with her partner of 30 years, Karen Carr.