Assemblywoman Lisa Calderon and county Supervisor Janice Hahn, front center, marked the first anniversary of the Greater Whittier LGBT Community Center at the Dec. 16 Board of Supervisors meeting. Calderon secured $4.2 million in state funds for the center, which operates out of a county building that had been unused since 2020.
Courtesy photo
Wave Staff Report
WHITTIER — The county Board of Supervisors celebrated the first anniversary of the Greater Whittier LGBT Community Center Dec. 16 during its weekly meeting.
Supervisor Janice Hahn marked the first full year of operation of the center with a presentation honoring diverse partners that made the opening of the center possible. Among Hahn’s honorees was Assemblywoman Lisa Calderon, who in 2021 secured funding in the amount of $4.2 million from the state budget to fund the center’s construction.
“I am so proud of the work we’ve done and so grateful to this extraordinary coalition of partners who helped make our vision a reality,” Hahn said. “It was not an easy process. I remember seeing the dilapidated building and hearing the pushback from some in the community who did not want this center in their neighborhood.
“But we had a vision and saw the need, so we pushed forward,” Hahn added. “One year later, this center has already helped so many.”
Since opening in fall 2024, the center, located at 7630 Painter Ave., has served more than 1,000 clients with a range of services that include mental health and substance abuse services, legal assistance, health and wellness support, support groups and more. The center, which is operated by the Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol & Drug Abuse, also hosts social and cultural events.
“When the center opened, we set out to create a safe and welcoming space for all, one that affirms dignity and belonging for everyone and anybody who walks through the doors,” Calderon said during the morning presentation. “In the first year alone, the center has become a lifeline for so many individuals and families.
“I look forward to continuing our partnership as we expand the center’s reach and ensure it remains a vibrant, inclusive welcoming place for all,” Calderon added.
Hahn also presented county scrolls to the center’s director, Damonté Watson, as well as to Michael Owh, director of the county’s Internal Services Department which designed and built the center. The space — a set of offices in a county-owned building that had been unoccupied since the beginning of the pandemic — was identified by Hahn to build the center, the first dedicated LGBT space in that region of Los Angeles County.
