HOUSTON, TX (November 3, 2023) – The Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce and its supporting Foundation will hold its annual Holiday Food & Supply Drive on Thursday, November 30, 2023 benefitting Tony’s Place, a Houston resource center and community space focusing on LGBTQ+ youth who are in need of help with safe housing, queer health services, educational support, and more.

The Chamber and Chamber Foundation looks forward to teaming up with Tony’s Place to support LGBTQ+ Youth. As LGBTQ+ teens find themselves at the center of increasingly controversial debates, organizations like Tony’s Place offer food, community and a safe place to be an LGBTQ+ kid. The Chamber will use its resources to bring together business and community to support the organization and LGBTQ+ Youth in our region this holiday season. 

“Our kids need a space to go for support, food, and supplies that is free from judgment.” said Tammi Wallace, Chamber President & CEO. "We’re grateful for our community and know they’ll step up in a big way this holiday season to support our LGBTQ+ Youth.” 

Spaces like Tony’s Place provide young people safety, privacy, and rest. This is especially important for unhoused queer and trans youth, who experience food insecurity at almost three times the rate of their housed LGBTQ peers. 

"Tony's Place is a proud member of the Greater Houston LGBTQ+ Chamber and we are honored to be the 2023 Holiday Food/Supply Drive beneficiary. We see a society in which all LGBTQ+ youth are universally welcomed, safe, and thriving. Partnerships like the one we have with the Chamber and its members are crucial to building and growing this vision," Tony’s Place Executive Director Carrie Rai said.

As one of the Chamber’s most popular events of the year, the Drive consistently receives an amazing response from sponsors, media partners, and donors for the Drive. See a list of sponsors, ways to give, and more at http://www.chamberholidayfooddrive.lgbt.   

About Tony’s Place

Tony’s Place opened in 2016 in memory of Robert Anthony “Tony” Carroll, a pillar of the Houston community and a strong advocate for a drop-in center for young LGBTQ+ people. The organization focuses on providing five core services: Basic Needs; Case Management; Support Services; Community Engagement; and Advocacy.

About the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce and Foundation

The Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce accelerates economic opportunity for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer + (LGBTQ+) business community through a strong network of business allies, innovative programs, strategic partnerships and advance policies that foster economic inclusion and equality.  The Greater Houston LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce Foundation is dedicated to expanding economic opportunity in the Greater Houston region through education, research and initiatives that focus on the core drivers of economic prosperity for the LGBTQ+ community.