Sunday, December 2, 2012

Out Spotlight

Today's Out Spotlight is an architect, activist, billionaire philanthropist and a leading funder of national and international LGBT organizations. Today's Out Spotlight is Jon Stryker.


Jon Lloyd Stryker was born in 1958, and raised along with his two sisters in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He is the grandson of Homer Hartmen Stryker, founder of the medical supply company Stryker Corporation. His father, Lee died in an airplane crash in 1976. Stryker is an heir to the Stryker fortune and a major shareholder in Stryker Corporation, ahospital and surgical equipment manufacturer. In 2010, his net worth was estimated at $1.2 billion.

Stryker received his Bachelor's of Arts/Science from Kalamazoo College in 1982. He later served on the college's Board of Trustees and was recipient of their 2010 Distinguished Service Award. He received his Master of Architecture from University of California at Berkeley.


In 2000, as he was coming out, he founded and solely funded the Arcus Foundation, the largest grantmaker for LGBT issues. The foundation’s mission also includes conservation of the great apes.

In addition to the foundation, Stryker has personally donated more than $247 million to LGBT causes and great ape conservation. He is also a founding board member of the Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya, Save the Chimps in Fort Pierce, Florida and the Greenleaf Trust in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Stryker is also a Platinum Council (US $50,000 and over annual contributions) donor to the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.

In 2010, the newly-discovered Myanmar Snub-nosed Monkey was named Rhinopithecus strykeri in his honor; the Arcus Foundation had supported the primate research teams who discovered the colobine, already known and hunted for food by natives in Northern Myanmar on the Maw River, during the course of a survey of Hoolock Gibbons.

In 2009, Kalamazoo College received a $200,000 planning grant from  Arcus Foundation to prepare for the establishment of a social justice leadership center.In January 2012, the College announced that they had received a $23 Million Grant from the Arcus Foundation to fund the now functioning Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership. Visual artist Nan Goldin's work in Pictures by Women: A History of Modern Photography has been supported by the purchase and exhibition of silver dye bleach prints "through the generosity of" Stryker.

In August 2006, he formed the political action committee Coalition for Progress to fund election campaigns for Michigan Senate and Michigan House of Representatives district candidates, particularly from the Democratic Party. Stryker personally contributed $4.7 million while sister Pat contributed $500,000 by November 2006. In the 2006 Michigan gubernatorial election, Jennifer Granholm was re-elected as Governor of Michigan over Republican opponent Dick DeVos, the subject of advertising paid for by the Coalition In early August 2012, Stryker donated $325,000 to the group, Freedom to Marry Minnesota, which is working to defeat a referendum that would place a state constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in Minnesota.

Since 2004, he has been a Global Philanthropists Circle Member. In 2008, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force awarded Stryker the Creating Change Award.

 In 2011, he was listed among The Chronicle of Philanthropy’s top 50 donors. The following year, Forbes named him one of the “400 Richest People in America.”

 Stryker is divorced and has two children.


I don't like the term "reframing." I see LGBT rights as part of the spectrum of human rights -- the freedom to define your relationships, the freedom to define yourself and how you present yourself to the world. I think those are basic freedoms. When I talk to people about these issues, they often don't realize what the day-to-day reality is like for gay men and lesbians in many parts of the world. People don't realize that there is just one country in Africa where homosexuality is protected by the constitution. They don't know that there are seven countries in the world where homosexuality is punishable by death. When people hear those facts, it becomes much easier to see the connections between human rights and LGBT rights.

 “It’s about supporting people who are trying to live in peace as openly gay or lesbian or transgender people.”

20 comments:

  1. What a fascinating Spotlight. I've never heard of him, although oddly enough I was in NJ earlier this week and was with someone who pointed out one of Stryker's facilities and mentioned what they make. I'd never heard of the company before, so funny coincidence to now learn about the founder's grandson.

    Great story Tom about Joan Rivers. That is really wild. For anyone who is a fan I highly recommend the documentary about her that came out in the last couple of years.

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  2. I have not had a chance to view all the recent interviews yet. Too much to do and getting on a plane again tomorrow. I'll try to get to them while in my hotel room.

    Good spotlight as usual. I Can remember going to Maui a long time ago, when Joan Rivers was still a young comedian. We had one of her recordings on tape and 4 of us passed it around while at the pool. Without fail whoever was listening that day laughed out loud almost non stop. It was hilarious just watching that unfold.

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  3. Only Phyllis Diller could make me laugh as hard as Joan Rivers.

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  4. Ian McKellan just admitted on Kelly and Michael that someone tweets on his behalf. Finally good to hear someone admit that.

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  5. Love reading about Jake and benevolent rich people who help us. Jake looks gorgeous of late...happier and more handsome if that's possible. Loved seeing pics of him about town with Austin...happy them.

    Great article! I've turned many a patient in a Stryker frame bed, but never knew anything about Mr Stryker personally or professionally.

    I feel quite comfortable coming here,though I don't know how much you'll welcome me after the following post, which is honest to goodness gossip pure and simple.

    Being the gregarious sort, I haven't been out and about much these last few years, so please indulge me. I know you like these boys, as do I and my son keeps me current so here goes.:lol

    I saw a post on buzzfeed.com with pics of 1direction's Harry Styles and Taylor...He looks vvv uncomfortable...he doesn't touch her... and he touches everyone in most of photos I've seen... and. and.and...

    Taylor and Harry pics

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  6. Sass, I'm always happy to talk about gossip like this. It's such a shame that someone so young like Harry is doing something like this, it really isn't necessary anymore.

    And wow, Taylor is sure intent on keeping her status as a professional beard. It's almost comical.

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  7. Speaking of things others may not be so keen to discuss, I figured there must be something out there causing it to be so quiet at OMG. Well, after some digging--because I honestly don't follow these things the way others do here, especially Twitter--I guess some people are not happy about the fact Austin was seen with his arms around a girl while he was in Chicago.

    For someone like me who is not in the know, it's a little strange to realize stuff like this has gone on while people are talking about J&A changing, etc.

    It also makes me miss the old days when people commented about everything, good and bad, about J&A.

    So Sass, I hope you'll keep it up with the gossip because I for one like to know.

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  8. Sorry Dest - if I haven't been keeping up with everything, but the Austin with his arms around a girl, was a fan. Nothing more, and I was going to talk about Austin's traveling ways on Friday, but after Jake's comment about being a Ribena next to a tall glass of water I just had to go for that.

    Sorry I have been a little busy and haven't been posting as much. I would love to say doing what, but that would just excite the trolls who just can't enough of me. LOL!

    I went back and found the pics. Here are the pictures that I have seen of Austin with his arms around people:

    Austin in Chicago:
    Eduardo14u


    Austin in Chicago:
    DanaCaryl
    If you notice her avatar, her hair and the girl walking with him has the same hair.

    Austin in Austin
    caithayes2015

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  9. Sass you can post what every you want. No worries.

    Ms. Swift is getting quite the reputation. Check out an interview with Union J who was on this year X Factor.

    NSFW -CYA just in case. It never hurts.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=T3AOmcequ58

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  10. Wow I was just watching Extra and saw Harry and Talyor. Unbelievable. Is she crazy or what. So I guess Harry is gonna be in the next album.

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  11. It will be interesting to see Swift in 10 years . Will she be a joke? Between falling in love instantly with every male she meets and dating so many closeted men, she is setting herself up as a punch line someday.

    Fingers crossed for another Jake and Austin pic to surface.

    My steady travel schedule is wreaking havoc, but should be over in two more weeks.

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  12. Thanks Special. I remember seeing some of the fan photos posted here before, but not the one taken from behind. I hadn't noticed when I found that one that the hair seems to be the same; I just assumed it was a fan taking a photo of Austin from behind with a woman. The whole thing is kind of odd, but maybe they did it just to be funny. Also now that I look at it more closely, it looks like they're posing and not walking.

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  13. olv ‏@olv

    Extras Casting Call this weekend in Conyers, GA for “Prisoners”, starring Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal -

    6:54 PM - 3 Dec 12 · Details

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  14. Well who wouldn't want a picture of Austin's best oops!.. back...side?

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  15. Special K that's a lie

    Dana Cary ‏@DanaCary1
    ,the girl who has taken the photo, has the dark hair, as you can easily notice from the photos that she has posted the same days that she met Austin.

    Dana Cary ‏@DanaCary1
    damn Africa @Miss_Boop pic.twitter.com/hnkhftNS






    She is not the girl that Austin is embracing I don't know who the girl with Austin was if his girlfriend or not,but she is not Dana Cary the girl who taken the pic.

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  16. There are two pictures. I was talking about the girl walking away. That was in Chicago.

    The other picture was taken in Austin. And that is not his girlfriend.

    And excuse yourself, you don't called someone a liar. Why don't you look at what I posted.

    Goodnight.

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  17. "it looks like they're posing and not walking."



    Destiny looks at their feet, they are walking embraced, any doubt about that

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  18. What are you talking about Special K,

    the girl that has taken the photo in Chicago is Dana Cary, she has e dark hair and she was visiting Chicago for some days, therefore she cannot be the girl that walks embraced with Austin, checks before speaking,or you could looks lika a liar, the other girl in St. Marcos TX is a maid that has served Austin to the restaurantthe the day after Thanksgiving .

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  19. Ignore them Special. They're just picking for a fight.

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