The Phillip Rush Center is named for noted community advocate and philanthropist Phillip Rush in honor of his long-standing commitment to bring diverse people and organizations together in an effort to foster partnerships and understanding. With initial funding from the Lloyd Russell Foundation, the Atlanta Gay and Le***an Fund and a host of individual donors, the Phillip Rush Center houses office
space, meeting and training rooms to be used by organizations whose mission or activities advance LGBT rights and understanding. The vision of the Rush Center was developed in the Fall of 2008 with the decision of the Atlanta Le***an Health Initiative (ALHI) and Georgia Equality to establish a shared office space. The benefits of the location include being directly adjacent to a MARTA train-station, ample free parking and LGBT owned businesses in the same building. Due to overwhelming community support, the Rush Center has expanded twice since 2009
In an effort to create a shared space that goes beyond the identity of any one particular group, ALHI and Georgia Equality decided to name this new facility the Phillip Rush Center. In the year since it’s founding, the Rush Center has become the home for Atlanta Le***an Health Initiative, Georgia Equality, Atlanta Pride Committee, MEGA Family Project, Atlanta Gay and Le***an Chamber of Commerce, In the Life Atlanta and Circle of Grace Community Church. The Rush Center is also the regular meeting place for the newly established SAGE-Atlanta chapter and weekly support groups addressing domestic violence, transgender issues and black gay men who are living with HIV. Outside organizations ranging from Southerners on New Ground (SONG), Lambda Legal, Sweet Potato Cakes (and African American le***an poets group) and Spark Reproductive Justice to the Atlanta Executive Network, the Atlanta Macintosh Users Group, Georgia Shares, and the Georgia Safe Schools Coalition have all used the Rush Center for meetings, fundraisers and public events. The events and trainings held here include regular parenting and coming out workshops, sensitivity training for social service providers who work with the LGBT community, public health fairs that have included cancer screenings and HIV testing and a series of strategy sessions for healthcare, youth and social justice advocates.
