Walmart PRIDE Associate Resource Group donates $10,000 to the Rainbow Honor Walk
Nathan Allen, Walmart Senior Manager Corporate Communications & Co-Chair of Walmart’s PRIDE Associate Resource Group
is flanked by Kathy Amendola and David Perry of the Rainbow Honor Walk during a “big check”
presentation on March 12 at Catch Restaurant of a $ 10,000 donation to the all-volunteer nonprofit Rainbow Honor Walk
(www.rainbowhonorwalk.org).
14 March 2018 – San Francisco, CA: What a difference a tour makes! Kathy Amendola, owner of the renowned Castro Walking Tours, is known for her informative and passionate tours of San Francisco’s historic Castro District including the iconic Rainbow Honor Walk (www.rainbowhonorwalk.org) of which she is a board member. After a recent tour, one of the attendees, Nathan Allen, approached her, moved by the history lesson he had just received. Allen, Co-Chair of the Walmart PRIDE Associate Resource Group, got to work. The result: a $10,000 donation for the all-volunteer nonprofit Rainbow Honor Walk. The donation was presented on Monday, March 12, 2018 during a reception at Catch Restaurant, adjacent to the Market Street segment of the Honor Walk.
“I’m absolutely thrilled that our PRIDE Associate Resource Group could help make this grant possible for the Rainbow Honor Walk,” said Allen. “This is such a fantastic organization, in how its honoring notable LGBT community members throughout history with sidewalk plaques in our beloved Castro neighborhood. Our company and our PRIDE ARG are committed to giving back to the communities we serve, and we couldn’t be happier to support the work of the Rainbow Honor Walk.”
On hand for the “big check” presentation were: Nathan Allen, Walmart Senior Manager Corporate Communications & Co-Chair of PRIDE Associate Resource Group; Cat Lopez Walmart Project Manager, People Experience – Community & Inclusion Lead for Walmart eCommerce; Louis Stern, Walmart Client Services Engineer, Associate Digital Experience & PRIDE Associate Resource Group Member; and Rainbow Honor Walk Board Members David Perry and Kathy Amendola.
When a volunteer committee of community members proposed the Rainbow Honor Walk, they received the unanimous support of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to create the sidewalk monument. Comprised of 3 foot x 3 foot bronze plaques embedded in the sidewalk, the Walk salutes the groundbreaking achievements of noted LGBT individuals throughout history. The first 20 honorees were announced in 2011. In 2012 the Rainbow Honor Walk board solicited design proposals from around the world. An independent jury of artists and cultural leaders selected the winning design by architect Carlos Casuso of Madrid, Spain. The plaques were manufactured by Mussi Artworks of Berkeley, California with creative oversight of the process spearheaded by Lawrence Noble, head of the sculpture department at San Francisco’s Academy of Art University. The first 20 plaques were installed in September 2014 with 8 additional plaques installed in November of last year. An additional 16 plaques are slated for inclusion by this year’s Pride Celebration.
The Rainbow Honor Walk will eventually extend from the Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy on 19th Street at Diamond down to Castro Street—the LGBT community’s “Main Street”—and will continue up Market Street with additional extensions on 18th Street. On Market Street, San Francisco’s main thoroughfare, the Walk will continue to the LGBT Center at Octavia Boulevard.
All funds for manufacture of the Rainbow Honor Walk are raised privately, with each plaque costing approximately $ 7000. A major source of income comes from the San Francisco Human Rights Campaign Action Center and Store (575 Castro Street) through the sale of commemorative mugs, t-shirts and lapel pins, which has generated over $20,000 for the Rainbow Honor Walk.
Individuals interested in contacting the Rainbow Honor Walk may do so by email at info@rainbowhonorwalk.org or by mail to Rainbow Honor Walk, 584 Castro Street, #113
San Francisco, California 94114. Contact can also be made via Facebook by searching “Rainbow Honor Walk”. Information can also be found online, and donations made, through the Rainbow Honor Walk website at www.rainbowhonorwalk.org.
About Walmart:
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