The Center on Colfax is entering a new chapter as longtime CEO Rex Fuller steps down. Since joining The Center in 2013 and assuming the CEO role in 2019, Fuller has guided the organization through challenges and remarkable growth, all while championing its mission to engage, empower, enrich, and advance Colorado’s LGBTQ+ community.
The Center’s current COO Natalie Zanoni will serve as Interim CEO. Zanoni specializes in program development and evaluation and has an impressive background in nonprofit leadership, clinical supervision and management, psychology, and counseling. She has led significant expansion of The Center’s community programs, including launching the Saga program to help young adults ages 18 to 24 explore educational and career options post high school and establishing Glass Lawler Mental Health, which offers free mental health counseling sessions to community members. The Center’s Board of Directors is excited for Zanoni to step into the interim CEO role and steward the organization into its next vibrant chapter.
The Center will conduct a national search for its next leader, led by Linda Boedeker, experienced nonprofit leader and longtime partner to The Center and board co-chair Kyle Long. Boedeker and Long are forming a search committee comprised of community representatives, staff, and board members.
“Rex’s legacy will live on for future generations of LGBTQ+ Coloradoans. From expanding The Center’s Transgender Program to include 14 support groups to establishing the first annual Pride Job Fair, we are incredibly grateful for the work Rex has done for our organization and for our community,” said Long. “Rex will always have our respect and admiration.”
Before becoming CEO, Fuller was responsible for producing Denver PrideFest, the annual celebration of LGBTQ+ pride that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the Rocky Mountain region and is The Center’s largest fundraiser. Fuller increased sponsorship revenue significantly, upgraded safety planning, and grew the Pride 5K from 500 runners to 4,000. As CEO, he led The Center through the pandemic, pivoting from in person to virtual programming to serve the community including a virtual Denver Pride festival and parade, which was the first of its kind in the country.
“It is remarkable how much the LGBTQ+ community in Colorado has increased over the last twenty years. We expect it to continue to grow in 2025 as Colorado has become a well-known sanctuary for LGBTQ+ rights and protections,” said Board Co-Chair Amalia Sax-Bolder. “Our Board is excited to form a diverse committee that includes voices from our community as we search for our next leader who is ready to take on a vision for growth and the challenges we anticipate with passion and dedication to The Center’s mission.”
The Center on Colfax opened in 1976 and over the years has grown to become the largest LGBTQ+ community center in the Rocky Mountain region. We proudly step into The Center’s next chapter with our mission as our guiding light, the tenets of our 2024-2027 strategic plan and listening campaign energizing us, a challenging political climate facing our community, and The Center’s Board of Directors and staff prepared with the grit and tenacity needed to carry the organization forward.
The Center on Colfax is committed to leadership in inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA), conducting intentional outreach and growing deeper relationships with intersectional identities in our diverse community, and connecting with our underserved and underrepresented community members to provide direct service support, resources, and a network of relationships. We are committed to being transparent in our operations and striving to provide spaces where all LGBTQ+ Coloradans feel welcome, supported, and empowered.