SERVICES & ADVOCACY FOR GAY LESBIAN BISEXUAL & TRANSGENDER ELDERS INC. (SAGE)
We refuse to be invisible.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Care Program
SAGE’s Care Management Program currently offers case management, family caregiving support, friendly visiting, support groups and bereavement counseling and other services to LGBTQ+ older adults (60+) and their caregivers. Specialized programs have been developed for HIV+ individuals (SAGEPositive) and veterans (SAGEVets) who are 50+, as well as a health management, support and education program done in conjunction with Columbia University’s School of Nursing, called the Elder LGBTQ+ Intercollaborative Care Program, or E-linc. These services, along with mental health screenings and referrals, were developed as a comprehensive health and safety net specific to aging and LGBTQ+ identities, which utilizes an asset-based approach to maximize the independence of our clients. SAGE’s Care Management Department engages the full range of its New York City constituency, from the oldest, the underserved and the homebound, to the more mobile and resourceful boomers.
SAGENet
In communities across the country, SAGENet—SAGE’s network of local affiliates around the country—is building a movement to reduce isolation, improve financial security and enhance the quality of life for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ+) older adults.
SAGENet is comprised of 29 affiliates located in 21 states plus Washington DC. SAGENet affiliates range in size, geographic coverage, budget and staff size. SAGENet affiliates advance SAGE’s mission on a local level by offering programs and services that address the most urgent issues facing LGBTQ+ elders—from unemployment, to housing, to LGBTQ+-affirming healthcare and more. And they're creating advocacy initiatives where LGBTQ+ elders advocate on their own behalf—at the local, state and federal levels. Additionally, SAGENet connects leaders in the LGBTQ+ aging field from different parts of the country, providing a network of peers and a pool of collective professional experience.
Advocacy
SAGE advocates for LGBTQ+-inclusive federal aging policies that account for the unique needs of LGBTQ+ older adults
SAGE Centers - NYC
SAGE Centers are accessible, inclusive and welcoming gathering places throughout New York City where LGBTQ+ people age 60+ take classes, get connected to resources and information, socialize and enjoy nutritious meals.
SAGECare
SAGECare is SAGE’s training and consulting social enterprise. SAGECare is a national training program in which SAGE-certified trainers facilitate cultural competency sessions with aging services providers. The trainings are facilitated through different mediums including live distance learning; interactive e-learning and in-person. These trainings have been evaluated for efficacy by a third-party evaluator and have evidenced changes of increased knowledge, attitudes and skills for seniors services providers about LGBTQ+ aging. Agencies trained through SAGECare are also eligible to receive an annual training credential, based on the percentage of staff who have completed their training.
National Resource Center on LGBT Aging
SAGE’s National Resource Center on LGBTQ+ Aging is the country's first and only technical assistance resource center aimed at improving the quality of services and supports offered to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBTQ+) older adults. Established in 2010 through a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Resource Center on LGBTQ+ Aging provides training, technical assistance and educational resources to aging providers, LGBTQ+ organizations and LGBT older adults. The center is led by Services & Advocacy for GLBTQ+ Elders (SAGE) in collaboration with 18 leading organizations from around the country.
Where we work
External reviews
Videos
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
SAGE's vision is a world in which LGBT older adults can thrive because they are valued and have boundless opportunities. Our current strategic plan has 4 specific themes: a) Taking Care of Our Own; b) Living Fully; c) Creating Ties Across Generations; and d) promoting LGBT and age-friendly communities.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
SAGE'S capabilities enable us to execute strategic actions which drive excellent consumer services to ensure we achieve our vision while delivering on our Mission.
Specifically, SAGE will:
• Develop impactful services and customer-driven programs responsive to the fundamental needs of a diverse LGBT Older Adult community (physiological, safety, belonging and self-esteem)
• Develop services and customer-driven programs responsive to the higher-level needs and wants of a diverse LGBT Older Adult community (cognitive, aesthetic, self-actualization, self-transcendence)
• Facilitate cross-generational, cross-cultural LGBT connections
• Promote LGBT Older Adult-friendly (age and LGBT) communities
• Increase influence policy arenas
• Build grassroots movement to advance LGBT Older Adult issues
• Educate LGBT, aging sector and public about LGBT Older Adult issues
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
As the oldest and largest organization devoted to issues concerning LGBT older adults, SAGE is uniquely poised to accomplish its goals. We will do this by building on the four parts of our current plan (described above):
• Taking Care of Our Own: SAGE has been providing programs to LGBT older adults in New York City since 1978. SAGE now operates 5 centers in New York City. In addition, SAGENet, SAGE's network of affiliates provides services to LGBT older adults in 29 communities in 21 states. SAGECare trains service providers outside of SAGE's own centers and network to provide culturally competent care. Our National LGBT Housing initiative seeks to make sure that all LGBT older adults can have a safe and secure home.
• Living Fully: With its unique reach deep into both the LGBT and aging communities, SAGE is uniquely poised to support LGBT older adults to make the most of their later years. Programs like SAGE's Aging Well, and our insistence that “We refuse to be invisible," help ensure that LGBT older adults can not just survive, but thrive in their later years.
• Creating Ties Across Generations: SAGETable, a convening of intergenerational LGBT individuals and allies at meals across the United States launched this aspiration in a major way. The rapid advances in human rights for the LGBT community amplify the importance of developing these connections to ensure that community history is not lost. Because of its unique relationship with LGBT older adults, SAGE is uniquely poised to bring these groups together.
• Promoting LGBT and age-friendly communities: SAGE has deep ties in both the aging and LGBT worlds, working closely with organizations like AARP and Lambda Legal to name just two. SAGE is in a good position to ensure that LGBT events are age friendly—for example, we don't want older adults who attend Pride events to have to stand in hot sun for hours. Similarly, we will help ensure that LGBT people requiring assisted living facilities aren't required to go back into the close to receive them.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
SAGE was founded in New York City in 1978 by a small group of LGBT activists of all ages who recognized that LGBT people did not have the supports they needed to age in good health and with financial security.
In its early years, SAGE created numerous original programs for LGBT older adults. These programs, which are still in existence and have been duplicated around the country, include:
• The nation's first friendly visiting program for LGBT older adult
• The nation's first LGBT drop-in center
• The nation's first support group for older adults living with HIV/AIDS
• The nation's first municipally funded caregiver respite program for LGBT elders
Over time, a robust network of organizations and individuals emerged across the country to address the widespread social isolation, financial insecurity and health care disparities facing LGBT older adults. This network increasingly turned to SAGE for its pioneering programs and work to improve the lives of LGBT elders. SAGE began to build a nationwide presence, becoming a vital leader on LGBT aging issues. Today, SAGE:
• Has 29 SAGENet affiliates in 21 states and the District of Columbia, providing services, programs and advocacy for LGBT elders in local communities across the country;
• Is the first and only LGBT organization to join the Leadership Council on Aging Organizations, the group of more than 60 prominent national aging advocacy organizations that represents millions of older Americans; and
• Leads (in partnership with the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force), the National LGBT Aging Roundtable, a consortium of 50 organizations from around the country interested in improving the overall quality of life for LGBT older adults.
From the beginning, SAGE recognized that it was not enough to provide programs and services to LGBT older people. In order to create lasting change, we needed to ensure that policymakers—from city halls and state capitols, to Capitol Hill—take into full account the needs of LGBT older adults when creating aging policies. Some of SAGE's accomplishments include:
• Receiving a historic grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Administration on Aging to seed the creation of the National Resource Center on LGBT Aging, the country's first and only training and technical assistance resource center for LGBT aging issues.
• Advocating for inclusion of LGBT older adults in the Older Americans Act, the country's leading vehicle for funding services and supports to older people across the U.S.
• Establishing the Diverse Elders Coalition with six other leading national organizations that address the needs of elders of color and LGBT elders—who together will soon be the majority of older Americans
• Becoming the first official LGBT delegate to the White House Conference on Aging in 2005—and in 2012, playing a vital role in the first ever White House LGBT Conference on Aging.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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SERVICES & ADVOCACY FOR GAY LESBIAN BISEXUAL & TRANSGENDER ELDERS INC. (SAGE)
Board of directorsas of 11/27/2023
Kevin Williams
Pfizer, Inc.
Ruth Eisenberg
Harmon, Curran, Spielberg & Eisenberg, LLP
Philip Lumpkin
Barbara Peda
The Wells Group
Laurie Peter
Cindy Rizzo
Arcus Foundation
Linda Scott
JPMorgan Chase
Scott L. Bennett
Ian Lee Brown
Darrell Burks
Realogy Holdings Corp. Coldwell Banker Realty Hollywood, Florida
Lorraine Carlson
Jonathan Carter
Sullivan & Cromwell LLP Partner
Rahul Culas
New York Network Management IPA Co-CEO
Jeffrey Erdman
Scali Rasmussen Partner
Dawn Fischer
Carlene Jadusingh
Law Office of Carlene Jadusingh
Roy Jimenez
Tredway, Lumsdaine & Doyle Partner
Zak Karim
Bank of America Senior Vice President, Human Resources Executive
Bruce Lederman
President & CEO Charles E. Smith Life Communities
Molly Lenore
Moey, Inc. President
Mady Schuman
Elliott Sernel
Mark Sexton
Teresa Verges
Securities and Exchange Commission Miami Regional Office Regional Trial Counsel
Drew Werner
Johnson & Johnson Executive Infectious Disease Specialist
Sue Wilder
Board leadership practices
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data