Brent Wright
Brent Wright, originally from Stockton Springs, Maine, is the Programming Director of the Family Equality Council, the largest American non-profit specifically for LGBT+ families. Brent is responsible for coordinating events designed to support LGBT+ parents, their children, extended family members and the allied community across their arc of life. In addition to large-scale annual programs like Family Week in Provincetown and Family Weekend at Disney in California, Brent’s department also provides support to LGBT+ parents and local LGBT+ parent groups, connecting them to resources and further building community and advancing their lived equality. Brent and his husband, Sandis, live in the Boston area and are parents themselves to daughters, Olivia and Noelle.
Q: Why do you work for an organization like the Family Equality Council?
A: I started my career as an elementary school teacher – went on to work in social service – and as I became a parent myself, the opportunity to join the team at Family Equality Council felt like not only the perfect evolution of my professional goals but it also aligned very well with my personal priorities as an LGBT+ parent.
Q: Can you briefly talk about what it is like being a gay dad?
A: Being a dad is the best decision I ever made. I can’t imagine my life without our children and it really feels like we were somehow meant to be as a family, that these are the children who were meant to be with us. There are certainly times when I wish we had started building our family when we were younger – we would have more time together and certainly we would have more energy and stamina if we were younger parents – but as older parents, we also value our family in a unique way. We had many years together as a couple without kids, to travel, to live in big cities, and to do lots of other things that are more challenging when you have a family. Now we’re thrilled to just make some popcorn and cuddle up with our littles ones to watch a family movie on winter’s weekend night!
Q: Could you have imagined having a family growing up? Why/why not?
A: My husband and I have been together for over 20 years. I had always hoped and dreamed of being a parent but when we first came out and in the early years of our relationship, there weren’t many, if any, models of LGBT+ parenting visibly out there. I’m so excited (and thankful) that upcoming LGBT+ generations will feel they have options.
Q: Is there something you would like to say to our readers (lgbt+ youth from all over the world, many from countries where legislation is still prohibiting being yourself)?
A: As part of the global LGBT+ community, we know that many of us have a long way to go to experiencing true lived equality – but hang in there. Build networks of people of those you can trust, those who will be there for you and those who support you. “Family” is not about biology – it’s about surrounding yourself with people you care about … and people who care for you, be they in your “born family”, among your classmates, with your colleagues at work. When I was younger I never thought I’d see the legal equality measures that we now have here in the US … the world is ever-changing. Be part of that change – be proud, be strong and support one another.
Q: Why do you work for an organization like the Family Equality Council?
A: I started my career as an elementary school teacher – went on to work in social service – and as I became a parent myself, the opportunity to join the team at Family Equality Council felt like not only the perfect evolution of my professional goals but it also aligned very well with my personal priorities as an LGBT+ parent.
Q: Can you briefly talk about what it is like being a gay dad?
A: Being a dad is the best decision I ever made. I can’t imagine my life without our children and it really feels like we were somehow meant to be as a family, that these are the children who were meant to be with us. There are certainly times when I wish we had started building our family when we were younger – we would have more time together and certainly we would have more energy and stamina if we were younger parents – but as older parents, we also value our family in a unique way. We had many years together as a couple without kids, to travel, to live in big cities, and to do lots of other things that are more challenging when you have a family. Now we’re thrilled to just make some popcorn and cuddle up with our littles ones to watch a family movie on winter’s weekend night!
Q: Could you have imagined having a family growing up? Why/why not?
A: My husband and I have been together for over 20 years. I had always hoped and dreamed of being a parent but when we first came out and in the early years of our relationship, there weren’t many, if any, models of LGBT+ parenting visibly out there. I’m so excited (and thankful) that upcoming LGBT+ generations will feel they have options.
Q: Is there something you would like to say to our readers (lgbt+ youth from all over the world, many from countries where legislation is still prohibiting being yourself)?
A: As part of the global LGBT+ community, we know that many of us have a long way to go to experiencing true lived equality – but hang in there. Build networks of people of those you can trust, those who will be there for you and those who support you. “Family” is not about biology – it’s about surrounding yourself with people you care about … and people who care for you, be they in your “born family”, among your classmates, with your colleagues at work. When I was younger I never thought I’d see the legal equality measures that we now have here in the US … the world is ever-changing. Be part of that change – be proud, be strong and support one another.