Pride Month at Healthfirst

June marks Pride Month, the anniversary of the Stonewall uprising and a time to celebrate and highlight Healthfirst’s year-round commitment to advocating for progress toward LGBTQ+ rights. This year’s Pride theme at Healthfirst is “Pride and Allyship Across the Lifespan,” which captures our pledge to celebrate and honor one another’s identity in all stages of life. This year’s theme mirrors Healthfirst’s goal of helping New Yorkers achieve their health goals across every life stage and age.

At Healthfirst, the True Colors PRIDE Alliance Employee Resource Group (ERG) encourages all LGBTQ+ colleagues and allies to bring their whole, authentic selves to work and promote an environment that fosters productivity, camaraderie, awareness, and respect so that we can all coalesce around bringing a remarkable impact to our members, providers, and colleagues.

ERGs at Healthfirst unite various employee cultures, ethnicities, backgrounds, experiences, and generations across the organization to build and foster a diverse, inclusive employee community that values the richness of all individuals and perspectives. In the communities that arise from this unity, people who identify with an ERG and their allies:

• build a sense of belonging and safety.
• freely share their knowledge, experiences, and questions.
• celebrate cultures and communities.
• learn from and about each other and build relationships.
• champion employee growth and development

Even before the official start to Pride Month, Healthfirst team members joined New Yorkers in Central Park to participate in the 2024 AIDS Walk. Healthfirst is grateful for the opportunity from AIDS Walk New York and @Gay Men’s Health Crisis ( GMHC ) to sponsor and participate in the walk. As a result of Healthfirst’s participation, our teams doubled the funds raised this year as compared to 2023.

This Pride Month, Healthfirst started a collaboration with Out Leadership that enhanced its commitment to creating a workplace where everyone belongs and can be their authentic selves. Out Leadership is a global coalition of companies committed to advancing LGBTQIA+ equality by building business opportunities, cultivating talent, and producing research and insights to help member organizations drive both societal change and bottom-line impact. This collaboration gives Healthfirst employees direct access to Out Leadership’s global network through opportunities such as summits, receptions, and workshops.

On June 18, Healthfirst hosted Todd Sears , Founder and CEO of Out Leadership , for a Fireside Chat on the experience of individuals in the LGBTQIA+ community, why inclusion and allyship matter, and how our community and Healthfirst is strengthened when we all bring our true selves to the workplace.

“The impact of Healthfirst’s investment in our LGBTQ+ employees via Out Leadership is palpable. I’ve been inspired by the depth of conversation and leadership development the Out Leadership sessions have spurred in those who have attended and am excited for more colleagues to have access to these resources and be empowered to create an environment in which folks of all identities can be embraced for their authenticity.”

- Katherine Summerton , Senior Manager Strategy Activation Office and Co-Chair of the True Colors Pride Alliance ERG

Through awareness-building and education, we hope to help employees and allies overcome discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community. Thank you to everyone who joined us this month. Healthfirst is proud to honor Pride now, tomorrow, and always.