PHOTOS: The Dru Project holds last fundraiser at Anthem Orlando

(Photo by Bellanee Plaza)

ORLANDO | Just a day after the 10-year anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting, The Dru Project held its final, last-ever fundraiser, The Final Transmission, on June 13 at Anthem Orlando.

Darcel Stevens hosted the night with performances by Allegra D, Orusha Santiago and special guest Sapphira Cristál. There will be drag shows and a raffle to round out the evening. There was also a five-minute video about the impact of the organization.

The advocacy organization and nonprofit was founded by Board President Sara Grossman and others, including Brandon Wolf, in honor of Pulse victim Christopher Andrew Leinonen. Following a decade of honoring Leinonen, the nonprofit will distribute all remaining funds directly to LGBTQ+ scholars and will not operate in future years.

Although the nonprofit is signing off, Grossman says the message and organization lives on with the relationships they have built.

“Everything we’ve done for 10 years, every scholarship, every celebration, every life we’ve touched, is still out there moving through the world,” Grossman shares. “The Final Transmission is our way of saying: we sent everything we had.”

The nonprofit distributed over $250,000 in scholarships, an accomplishment Grossman says will never really settle in. She says that alone shows the power of friendship, community and connection.

Stevens told the audience that everyone needs to do their part and that includes voting for change.

“The fact of the matter is I want you all to be encouraged,” Stevens said. “There are organizations like The Dru Project and if The Dru Project isn’t for you, find another organization. We can only survive off the love and kindness for one another.”

Shawn Chaudhry, the treasurer of The Dru Project, gave his thanks to the entire board. He said he never got the chance to tell Leinonen thank you for the friendship they had, and he feels like he has thanked him through the work of the nonprofit.

Wolf shared that Leinonen taught him how to be proud of who he is. He got emotional as he spoke about the friendship he and Leinonen had.

“When you lose someone like Drew, you’re not just afraid you’ll forget them, you’re afraid the world won’t get to know them the way you knew them,” Wolf said.

The organization also had two awards to give out, but they did not arrive on time for the event. The awards were called the Our Spirit of Dru awards and were given to Stevens and Anthem owner Michael Vacirca.

On Facebook, the organization said the award was given to Stevens because of the work he has done to raise money and awareness for LGBTQ+ people in Orlando. For Vacirca, they said his financial support made the scholarship fund possible for years, and gave real, tangible futures to young people.

“Some people show up for you,” the post said. “And then there are the people who show up for the mission — who pour themselves into something bigger than any one of us, and make it possible for that something to keep going.”

Watermark Out News attended The Final Transmission. View our photos below.

Photos by Bellanee Plaza.