Last year, on the morning of Engel & Völkers’ (E&V) inaugural Pride Leadership Summit, Roe v. Wade was overturned. There was a stunned energy in the air. But this year, that sting was replaced by a vocal urgency. At the second annual event, held June 12 at the Wacker Ballroom, a series of presenters and panelists shared educational, actionable approaches to promote the LGBTQ+ community — in and out of real estate.

Festivities kicked off the night prior with a welcome reception at the E&V Chicago shop. Seventy-five people came to celebrate the upcoming event, many of them traveling from all over North America to attend. They chatted over glasses wine and rounds of hors d’oeuvres and posed for photos around the rainbow-decorated office. But the next morning, the summit was all about business.

Anthony Hitt, Jennifer Ames, Diana Adams

The event began with an emotional message from Anthony Hitt, president & CEO of E&V Americas, who shared his own coming-out story. Hitt was raised in Moberly, Missouri, where being different was met with a “culture of fear.” While growing up, Hitt said, a local high schooler was stabbed to death with screwdrivers, allegedly after making a pass at another boy.

“[There was a sense] that type of person deserved that type of an outcome,” Hitt remembered. As he grew older, he worked to channel that fear into drive which led him to become an entrepreneur. However, he quickly found that success in business required being truly authentic — which became impossible while hiding his personal life. “I was as deep in the closet in Missouri as you can possibly imagine,” Hitt said. “Then I met Shawn.”

But for years after meeting his now-husband, Shawn Scott, an E&V broker, the couple was not out. They rented a two-bedroom apartment even though they didn’t need it. And in public, they never said “I love you.” Instead, they worked the number three into conversations: “I saw three squirrels in yard” or “I’m going out at three today.” They would kick each other (lightly) under the table three times.

Patrick Lynch, Anthony Hitt

Hitt and Scott did not tie the knot until their 20th anniversary, the same day that gay marriage was legalized in California. Their once-secret relationship became very — very — public after Hitt accidentally e-vited his entire email database to the beachside wedding. Over 100 people attended, Hitt said, and even strangers on the beach were cheering after the officiant told the couple’s story about the number three.

On that day, Hitt and Scott declared their love to the world. But, as Hitt put it, “There’s still a lot of places in the U.S. where people need a code.” And that danger is what drives the rest of the summit’s presenters to continue the work that they do.

Diana Adams, president of the Chosen Family Law Center, was the keynote speaker. As an activist and attorney, they have spent their career trying to expand U.S. laws to protect non-nuclear families.

Adams delivered a detailed talk, outlining how the nuclear family is no longer dominant in the U.S. yet remains the basis for many social and economic benefits. As they explained, less than half of U.S. children live with two parents on their first marriage. Between stepparents, consensual non-monogamy, surrogacy and other forms of guardianship (like extended family members stepping in), new family structures are increasingly common. Adams is polyamorous and spent the pandemic living with two men in the house: a “good ratio” for raising one kid, they joked.

After starting their own law firm in New York in 2007, Adams went on to create the nonprofit Chosen Family Law Center to help further ensure the rights of queer family compositions. And currently, those rights are at stake. At least 20 states have already signaled their intention to ban same-sex marriage if the landmark case Obergefell v. Hodges is overturned, Adams said.

“When they come for more marginalized communities, it is a creep into the civil rights for all of us,” they warned. “And as Realtors, you should be supportive of different kinds of family forms.” They also offered concrete ways for Realtors to show that support: make no assumptions about a client and their family; ask about, use and respect pronouns; and, overall, stay educated.

“Part of providing a luxury experience is being incredibly consistent and listening to how people describe themselves … It’s a tremendous privilege to get up and move,” Adams said. “So how do we help people do that safely?”

Rep. Kelly Cassidy and Diana Adams

Adams was later joined on stage by Rep. Kelly Cassidy, the only openly gay member of the Illinois House of Representatives. Cassidy was the keynote speaker for last year’s E&V Pride Summit and reflected on that intense experience. “This is the beginning,” Cassidy had remarked that day, just hours after the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Since then, she’s worked to make Illinois a sanctuary state for women receiving abortions and indicated her intent to make Illinois a sanctuary state for trans youth as well.

Adams agreed, fervently. “We have the power to speak up for the more marginalized parts of our community, and that includes trans people,” Adams said. “The basis of Roe was the right to privacy and personal autonomy. It’s also what underpins the right to same-sex marriage, same-sex intimacy and contraception.”

In addition to the keynote presentation, several local agents shared their own experiences of being gay and working in real estate, from incorporating their sexuality into their branding to encouraging involvement at the nonprofit level. Focused on growing gay homeownership, the Alliance is one popular option for Realtors.

“We don’t always get to be ourselves, certainly not in a business setting,” Alliance President Patrick Lynch told the crowd, but the organization offers a collaborative space for gay real estate professionals to be out. Since its founding at the start of the pandemic in 2020, the alliance has grown to include more than 3,000 members, all of them LGBTQ+ professionals or allies.

Following the jam-packed presentations, Wade Marshall, an advisor with E&V Chicago, offered some personal closing remarks. Marshall, who was raised Baptist, came out at age 30 and reflected on the experience candidly. He now lives with his husband Eric Wagner in the Lakeview neighborhood, and they hosted a celebratory dinner for attendees in their — recently renovated — home. Unwinding in their shared space and discussing the day’s talks, it was a fitting and fun end to the annual pride event.

Charli Bullard, Brandy Simon, Stephanie Funk, Karen Arenson

Other panelists included:

Brittany Harrison, an advisor with E&V Colorado Springs

Sam Powell, an agent with Dream Town Realty

Stephanie Funk, an advisor with E&V Bentonville

Matthew Geerdes, an advisor with E&V Denver

Leo Aubel, an attorney at Howard & Howard

Mark Rotblatt, an advisor with E&V Chicago

Jennifer Grubb, a licensed professional counselor

Zahara Basset, CEO of Life is Work

Channyn Lynne Parker, CEO of the Brave Space Alliance

Andrew Zanevsky, contributor to PFLAG

Byron Hoover, board member at the Human Rights Campaign

Kit Welch, vice president of The Legacy Project

Neil Hackler, an advisor with E&V Chicago

Jeremy Fisher, an agent with Compass

Brian Kurtz, a loan officer with Wintrust Mortgage

Charli Bullard, an advisor with E&V Oklahoma City

Sponsors included:

Howard & Howard

Wintrust

The Plageman Agency at American Family Insurance

VHT