A Fond Farewell, and Hope for the Future Nancy R. Nangeroni Parting words from IFGE's resigning Executive Director October, 1998

One year ago, IFGE was in trouble, and I stepped forward. I volunteered my services not so much because I wanted the job of executive director, but because I thought I could help, and I could not refuse that help to an organization which was in some measure responsible for the salvation of myself and many others. I knew when I took the job that I was grabbing a tiger by the tail, a tiger that would likely shake me loose and feast on my sorry carcass. I also knew that my approach to the job would not be looked upon favorably by all. I knew that my politics are too radical and my sensibilities too feminist for some. But I took the job anyway, because the other alternative I heard being discussed was to close the doors. Over the past year, we at IFGE – and I mean we, because it has been a team effort of the entire staff – have made some significant progress. We’ve revitalized the magazine, which is the single most important product of IFGE. It now carries work by the very best writers in our community, and the information content has nearly doubled, making it a much better value for our readers. We now address an audience that includes much more of the diversity of the trans community, with more meaningful stories and articles. We made it through the difficult transition to a new distributor, reducing our office workload while improving our potential circulation to respectable outlets accessible to more people. We brought on exciting new editorial talent and put to rest the persistent complaints about editorial communication problems. And yes, we took some chances, and made some mistakes. We wired the IFGE office with a network connecting computers to each other and to the Internet, bringing the entire staff closer to the online community that we serve, making us more accessible – and responsible -- to our peers. We created an exciting new web site that provides useful resources, news, information, and contact with IFGE. We provided a mechanism for subscribing and making donations online that provides a new level of convenience for our members and subscribers while paying for the entire web site many times over. Our online bookstore is the most complete and informative on the subject of transgenderism anywhere. We also reorganized the bookstore somewhat, giving it responsibility for it’s own accounting and inventory management. Thanks to a generous donor, the bookstore is the most well-stocked and titled on the subject, and continues to enjoy the services of a dedicated and well-liked manager. We did all this while cutting our payroll significantly. We also increased magazine advertising revenue by about 50%, thanks to a new advertising salesperson who adds no burden to our salary payroll. We brought in our first-ever grant, $11,000 from the Gill Foundation in Colorado Springs, an organization primarily chartered to give to Gay and Lesbian –oriented organizations. This was their first grant to a trans cause, and the first grant made to any national trans education organization. We also made every payment, on time, due to the Winslow Street Fund for the loan made last fall. And for the first time ever, we made medical insurance directly available for our staff. I know that there are some things that we’ve done that have come under criticism. We dared to put Leslie Feinberg, the founder of the modern transgender liberation movement, on the cover of our magazine, instead of another pretty face. We dared, in hopes of increasing our reach onto more mainstream newsstands, to remove the personals from the body of the magazine. We dared to bring gay, lesbian and bisexual presence to the magazine, and to increase our commitment to the community of trans men. We dared to cancel a convention that nobody wanted to run, that we could not afford to conduct, and whose commitment deadline had long passed. But I believe that it is a better IFGE today, then when I took the reins a year ago. And it can become even better, with your support. I know that people will wonder why I am leaving IFGE, and that speculation will run rampant if there is nothing to take its place, so I must make some statement about my reasons. I care about the future of IFGE, and I firmly believe that it will and should continue to exist, and hopefully to grow. But to do so, it needs an executive director who is experienced at managing a service, advocacy, and education organization. As a trained engineer, I found myself well suited to tackling some of our organizational and technical problems. But I found myself completely unprepared for the challenges unique to an established non-profit organization serving a widespread population with diverse expectations and needs. I believe that there are others in this community who have the needed skills to improve the functioning of IFGE in areas where I fell short. I look forward to seeing their success in the role which I now vacate. As for myself, I will continue to serve community to the best of my ability, and towards the greatest good for all. I intend to continue and expand my efforts to write and speak out against injustice and in favor of diversity and inclusion, and to build on my experience to date. I believe that I can be a more effective force for our community in an independent role than I could be at the helm of IFGE. It has been my pleasure to serve our community. I share the disappointment of those who wish I could have done more, or better, or differently. But I know that together, we stood, and continue to stand, for the principles upon which IFGE was founded: respect for and inclusion of all diversity, and commitment to making this world a better place for all. Sincerely, Nancy Nangeroni