K&L Gates Engages in Five-Year Sponsorship of Charlotte Pride

Charlotte - The Charlotte office of global law firm K&L Gates LLP has established a five-year partnership with Charlotte Pride, becoming the first law firm to enter into a multiyear, multiprogram sponsorship agreement with the LGBTQ organization. In addition to the empowerment sponsorship of the annual Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade held each August, K&L Gates also will be a presenting sponsor of Reel Out Charlotte, Charlotte's annual LGBTQ film festival. The partnership continues a collaboration between the organizations that began last year with K&L Gates’ sponsorship of the 2019 Charlotte Pride Festival and Parade, which attracted more than 200,000 attendees.
 
Charlotte Pride is the leader in LGBTQ visibility in Charlotte and the Carolinas and has seen tremendous growth since its inception in 2000. In addition to the annual festival and parade, Charlotte Pride also presents several important community programs, including Charlotte Latinx Pride, Charlotte Trans Pride, and Charlotte Women's Pride. In 2019, the organization also promoted career opportunities in the Charlotte business community with initiatives such as the Charlotte Trans Pride Job Fair.

"Charlotte Pride is excited to see K&L Gates show their support for our local LGBTQ community," said Daniel Valdez, Charlotte Pride Board President. "They are the first of hopefully many more law firms to make a multiyear commitment to support Charlotte Pride. We are thankful for their sponsorship."
 
"Diversity and inclusion is a cornerstone of our culture at K&L Gates, including our Charlotte office," stated Marla Tun Reschly, a partner in K&L Gates’ Charlotte office and member of the firmwide diversity committee. "It is important for us to support and promote inclusiveness at our firm and in our community. Charlotte Pride has become a marquee celebration of diversity in the greater Charlotte region and we are proud to be a part of that!"
 
K&L Gates has been recognized as a "Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality" in the U.S. by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) for 10 consecutive years by earning a perfect score on the HRC's Corporate Equality Index survey and ranked among the top 100 LGBT-inclusive employers in the U.K. by the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index.

"As a member of the LGBTQ community, the partnership between K&L Gates and Charlotte Pride is personal for me," said K&L Gates Charlotte associate and Charlotte Pride volunteer Morgan Mayes. "I am proud to work for a law firm that encourages and supports everyone to be their true selves at work and in our community. I look forward to working with Charlotte Pride and my firm to continue to promote LGBTQ equality, visibility, and inclusion in the Charlotte community."