Boston Pride announced it has named Reina Ysaguirre-Boersma as Director of Outreach and Development and Pierce Durkin as Director of Operations for the nonprofit organization.
The new hires were made after a strategic planning session of Boston Pride’s Board of Directors which determined that additional staffing is necessary to carry out the mission of the 49-year old LGBTQ organization.
In early spring, Boston Pride board of directors made the decision to add staff by its 2020 fiscal year and worked on job descriptions. The board was looking for people who have worked in LGBTQ+ organizations, have experience with large-scale event logistics, have managements skills, have a proven track record of success, and the passion to tackle such a large project.
“As Boston Pride has been growing, the Board of Directors has been working on a Strategic Plan to add staff to the organization. Over the years to prepare for this move, we have been fiscally responsible in reserving funds to allow us to make this move,” said Linda J. DeMarco, Boston Pride President. “With the help of our connections with other Prides and speaking with other LGBTQ+ leaders, we were able to acquire strong candidates to fulfill the needs of the organization.”
Reina Ysaguirre-Boersma has volunteered for 13 years at several Pride organizations including Boston and Bellingham, WA serving in various capacities in organizational management, strategic planning and fundraising. Previously, Reina worked in development at Housing Opportunities Made Equal, Inc., Buffalo, NY, a civil rights agency that advocates for fair housing where she was able to bring new streams of funding to the organization. She also worked as a manager at Rumors Cabaret, an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Bellingham. In her community involvement in Washington State, she worked on the campaign to pass Referendum 74 to legalize same sex marriage.
Pierce Durkin joins the Boston Pride team after 17 years of volunteering for Pride Organizations. Pierce has extensive business management experience and has led a staff of 50. Pierce served as Treasurer of New York City Pride (Heritage of Pride) where he played a major role in the recent successful World Pride celebration and in the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn Uprising. His former roles for Boston Pride include Logistic Chair, Chair of the Stuart Street Block Party, Chair of the Boston Pride Festival and served as Clerk of Boston Pride’s Board of Directors in 2005.