Who We Are

Staff

Dirk McCall, Executive Director

Dirk McCall is the Executive Director of the Bronx Community Pride Center, Inc.  Responsible for oversight of the agency, he works with the staff to set the goals and priorities of BCPC and ensures the implementation of their shared vision.

McCall served as President, Vice President and Secretary of the Stonewall Democratic Club of NYC and as a Board member for the past 16 years, and sits on the Board of the Lesbian and Gay Democratic Club of Queens.  He currently serves as President of the Powhatan and Pocahontas Regular Democratic Club of Queens.

Originally from the South, Dirk has lived in NYC for nearly 2 decades.  Raised in a military family, Dirk grew up on Army bases, though his family hails from Central Tennessee and North Georgia.  A 17 year resident of Astoria, in Western Queens, Dirk was one of the Grand Marshalls for the 2005 Queens Pride Parade.  In 2004, Dirk founded the LGBT Caucus of New York State Young Democrats.  In 2006, Dirk co-founded Out Astoria, a social organization for the LGBT community in Astoria and LIC. (In 2006, Dirk was honored by PFLAG Queens with the Morty Manford Award in 2006, the Gay American Award from AVERNY (American Veterans for Equal Rights New York) in 2005, the Winter Pride Award from the Queens Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee in 2007 and the Stay Close Individual Leadership Award from PFLAG NYC in 2008.

Professionally, Dirk served as Deputy Campaign Manager for Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Campaign Manager for Mark Weprin for Council, Executive Director of the Greenwich Village – Chelsea Chamber of Commerce and as the Director of External Affairs for QSAC (Quality Services for the Autism Community).  Dirk was Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Alan Jay Gerson (District 1 – Lower Manhattan, including Ground Zero) where he was one of the leaders in the fight to secure funding for services for homeless LGBT Youth and was the point person for DASA (Dignity in All Schools Act).  Dirk helped spearhead the passage of a resolution calling for the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Policy, one of the first by any municipality in the country. Dirk worked in government relations for two firms, Capalino + Company and Kathy Zamechansky and Associates, where he worked in the areas of nightlife, real estate development and health care, and where he honed his political fundraising skills.  He also served as the LGBT liaison and Community Affairs staff for Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields.

A Summa Cum Laude Graduate of Emory University in Atlanta, he attended the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University where he secured a Masters Degree.

Temi Aregbesola, Director, Prevention & Outreach

Temi Aregbesola holds a Bachelor of Science in Life Science from Penn State University and a Masters in Public Health from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). Temi was previously a coordinator for medical students’ and pediatrics’ residents at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in New Jersey. She has also worked as a health educator with the GO GIRL! Program, at Bronx AIDS Services. At BCPC, Temi coordinates the new and exciting Street Smart Plus project. Temi is working to modify a Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Intervention aimed at youth in the MSM population.

Temi has a unique ability to appeal to and communicate with people on personal, social, and business levels. She is a dynamic leader and team builder, consistently motivating others toward success. Temi is a highly motivated individual who enjoys dedicating her energy to all things youth-related, especially prevention and empowerment within underserved populations. She is a go-getter, and always willing to engage in new challenges to further her career and personal growth, and growth of others. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Public Health with a focus on Community Health Education and Promotion.

Raymond Cortes, Data Entry Specialist

Raymond Cortes is a 25-year-old Puerto Rican who was born and raised in the Bronx. As a child he was always shy and kept to himself, did not do well expressing his feelings.  Ray has always been drawn to music. As he watched music videos and began to imitate the choreography, he realized that he had a passion for dancing.  Through dance he learned how to portray his feelings and emotions both to himself and his audience.  Raymond has danced across the country for entertainers including a recording artist Anane.

With time, Raymond continued to grow both as a dancer and a person, and wanted to share his experiences with the community youth who are afraid to express themselves through words.  Ray worked for New York Junior Tennis League (NYJTL) where he got the opportunity to share his story and empower the youth in the community by teaching dance to 3^rd – 5^th graders.  Being able to inspire youth led Raymond to the realization that he wanted to continue to give back to his community and ultimately brought him to the Bronx Community Pride Center.

Ray currently serves as the Data Entry Specialist for the Bronx Community Pride Center. He oversees data entry for the agency and is a certified HIV tester.

Senka Filipovic, Assistant Director, Development and Administration

Senka Filipovic is originally from Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, but for over a decade she has made United States her home. Senka’s career has primarily revolved around nonprofit and government work, including over a three-year stint as a staffer for the Sacramento City Councilmember Kevin McCarty, where she coordinated policy initiatives ranging from public safety to tenants rights. In addition, she managed the Leon A. McCarty Sports Foundation, a nonprofit organization tasked with providing grants to disconnected youth to encourage their participation in quality after-school sports programs.

Her desire to consistently obtain new skills and knowledge to better advocate for disenfranchised people prompted her to earn a Master of Science in Global Affairs and Human Rights from Rutgers University in 2009. During graduate school, Senka enhanced her graduate education by completing an internship with Human Rights First, where she researched human rights violations and prepared briefing materials for public officials, such as the former President Jimmy Carter prior to his 2008 Middle East trip.

In her capacity as the Office Manager for the Bronx Community Pride Center, she manages the Center’s operations to ensure efficiency in providing crucial programming designed to address the fragmentation, isolation and health disparities of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community in one of the most poverty-stricken counties in America.

Katie Liederman, MFA, Case Manager

Katie has worked with at-risk youth for almost three years now, with organizations such as Sylvia’s Place and Chicago’s Broadway Youth Center. Katie holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Cornell University and an M.F.A. in Nonfiction Writing from Sarah Lawrence College. She is currently GO Magazine’s Editor-At-Large, and has written for GO, Curve, Rap-Up, Penthouse Forum, Nerve, V, V Man, The Archive, Lumina, Looserecord.com, and Velvetpark, and was a resident blogger on Showtime’s Ourchart.com. When not working at the BCPC, Katie can be found reading, freelancing, running, and spending time with her dog, Louis, and championing the merits of recycling and vegetarianism to anyone who’s willing to listen.

Katie came onboard in June of 2009, and her responsibilities at the Bronx Community Pride Center run the gamut. She redesigned the SND drop-in program by integrating new workshops, such as a series called “Hot Careers,” where out and proud LGBT professionals come and speak to the kids about their career paths. Currently, she and her co-worker Tiq Milan are organizing a series of summer field trips. A former co-leader of Bronx Pride’s transgender support group, she continues to meet with several of the groups’ attendees for one-on-one counseling sessions  In addition, she has provided ample resume help, tutored kids in grades 7-college level, and has referred dozens of kids to GED programs most fitting for them. Katie has also spoken on a mayoral panel on behalf of Bronx Pride, regularly attended RHY meetings for the past nine months, and has done presentations at after-school programs, middle schools and high school to talk to the kids about LGBT acceptance, debunking derogatory myths about our community and informing them about the center and the services Bronx Pride provides.  Currently, she is case managing over 60 clients, leading the Youth Advisory Board and a Wednesday writing workshop rooted in oral histories, documenting stories of the youth. Katie has also written and edited grant letters for BCPC, which she looks forward to pursuing more in the near future.

Chanel ‘International’ Lopez, Community Connections Coordinator

Ms. Lopez is the Health Link Line Coordinator for Bronx Community Pride Center, working with the larger community in support of the Center. Her wisdom and broad knowledge of social services and health resources makes her a powerful advisor and advocate for our health link line, by establishing community linkages and maintaining relationships with the providers in our health link database. She is trained as a peer counselor and an HIV advocate. Chanel is a Co-facilitator for the Trans-Support Group.

Ms. Lopez was born and raised in Spanish Harlem, where she lived with her grandparents up until the age of 25.  At this age, she decided she wanted to be and live in the Bronx, where her heart is. Chanel’s life was not the easiest, hanging out with the wrong crowd, believing that being a Trans-female only meant having to prostitute herself. Living such an unhappy life, she turned to drugs.

Chanel’s life changed the day a friend decided to get into a “trick’s” car and never came back. She knew then that this was not the life she wanted for herself. The night she saw Jessica Foxx perform, changed her life. Ms. Foxx took Chanel under her wing and provided her with a new outlook on the Trans-life. Today, Chanel “International” is well known figure that has been part of the LGBTQ community as an activist and performer since 1997. Ms. Lopez is the recipient of 2 awards, the “Miss Trans-Empowerment Award” and the “Beyond the Street Award”.

David Matthews, Deputy Executive Director

David Matthews spent his formative years growing up in the High Bridge neighborhood of the South Bronx, attending local public schools until his admission into a New England prep school. Dave returned to New York City to attend Columbia University. It was during these years he was challenged by the changes he was experiencing with his sexual attractions, but felt he had no appropriate and comfortable resources to tap into. This changed for him when he located organizations like Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) and Gay Men of African Descent (GMAD), where his community public health work began.

After a period working with homeless adolescents and young adults at Safe Space/Center for Children and Families, David returned to the Bronx to work as the Director of Health Services at CitiWide Harm Reduction (CWHR), a community-based organization in the South Bronx providing comprehensive services to active drug users living with HIV/AIDS and a myriad of other medical and mental health illnesses. At the organization since the inception of its medical program, he played a primary role in its programmatic and fiscal administration, and the hire, supervision and professional development of the staff.  In 2006, it was through his work at CWHR that he was invited to sit on the Board of Directors at the Bronx Community Pride Center (Bronx Pride). He transitioned off of the Board in 2010 into the position of Interim Executive Director to support Bronx Pride through leadership transition.

Demetrius McCord, Director of Development

Demetrius McCord holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Scranton and a Juris Doctor from Albany Law School of Union University.  In college, Demetrius was a staff writer for the University’s student newspaper, as well as a gymnast.

A native-resident of the Bronx, Demetrius previously held positions in insurance claims and as an adjunct college instructor before joining our staff.   Since high school, Demetrius has been actively involved in the community, primarily as a volunteer for a HIV/AIDS assisted living facility.

Some of Demetrius’s responsibilities as the Director of Development include grant writing, researching prospective donors through online and other sources, and coordinating the planning of special events.  He was also appointed Co-Chair of 5th Annual Bronx Pride Festival 2010.

In his free time, Demetrius enjoys playing piano, violin, and reading.

Tiq Milan, Case Manager

Tiq Milan moved to New York City from Buffalo, New York seven years ago and has been involved in the LGBT community as a writer and activist. He holds a Bachelor’s of Art in English from University of Buffalo and recently joined the Bronx Community Pride Center’s family as a Case Manager. Tiq freelances for newsone.com and has been featured in the documentaries Realness and U People. A long time poet and artist, he was the Public Information Officer of Lambda Legal’s Southern Region.

At the Bronx Community Pride Center, Tiq created and facilitates the Spot Next Door’s poetry club where the youth are encouraged to write about various topics then workshop them among their peers. He hopes to make Bronx Pride a stronger presence in the community and inspire its young people to work hard to reach their goals.

Nivea Morales, Director of Finance

Nivea Morales is a native New Yorker, born and raised in the Bronx. She graduated from Lehman College in 1991, achieving a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Business Management. Nivea recently applied for a masters program in business at Lehman College with an expected graduation date in 2011. Nivea has been working in finance for over fifteen years, with over six in the non-profit field. She is a single proud mother of four children, with two minors at home and two adult daughters pursuing careers in the non-profit field. Nivea currently lives upstate but continues to work in the Bronx, a community she remains connected to since her childhood.

Nivea serves as the Director of Finance for the Bronx Community Pride Center, serving in various capacities since joining the staff in 2008. She is responsible for the overall financial management of the organization. Though her job is administrative, she still interacts with our youth, a group she holds dear in her heart.

Sage Rivera, HIV Prevention & Services Coordinator

Sage Rivera began as an advocate in the community at the age of 15 as a peer educator. Sage’s dedication to his vision of community empowerment and education led him to the Bronx Community Pride Center. Upon graduating the NYDOH and Columbia University’s TEACH program in 2002, Sage has gone on to help create and implement programs in various agencies such as, GMHC, HMI, Mt. Sinai Hospital, and Harlem United.

As the HIV Prevention and Services Coordinator at the Bronx Community Pride Center, Sage’s goal is to help lower HIV prevalence and ignorance in the Bronx and throughout the tri-state area. Sage served as the Chairman for the Bronx Pride Festival in 2007 and 2008. As a participant in the House/Ballroom scene for the last 12 years, he acquired vast knowledge and experience that he is using to advance the scene’s popularity and message. In addition to his work at the Bronx Community Pride Center, Sage is currently the Creative Director of Vogue Evolution, America’s premier vogue dance company.

Jorge E. Rivero, Director of Program Administration

Jorge Rivero is an experienced human services professional with over 20 years of working with underrepresented populations. Prior to coming to the Bronx Community Pride Center, he served as the Assistant Director of Training for Exponents, Inc./ARRIVE, which provides HIV awareness/prevention, drug relapse prevention, stress management skills, and outreach/presentation skills for newly diagnosed individuals, their family members, ex-offenders, and professionals in the field of substance use & HIV. Jorge is pursuing a CASAC (Credentialed Alcohol & Substance Abuse Counselor) certification with the Resource Training Center as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Phoenix.

Overseeing programs at Bronx Pride, Jorge provides ongoing program supervision and monitoring of the Spot Next Door/Operation Home Base the youth drop-in & case management programs; LGBT Health & Human Services’ Health Link Line, the transgender support services, and outreach; Street Smart Plus (SSP – research project); Popular Opinion Leader (POL a DEBI: Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions); as well as the data entry for the entire agency.

In his spare time Jorge enjoys pursuing spiritual development, meditation, reading, and writing.