Interim Executive Director – Eric Harrison
eric@lovehonorcherish.org
Eric Harrison is the interim executive director for Love Honor Cherish, a nonprofit activist organization dedicated solely to marriage equality for all Californians. Harrison recently departed from Equality California, the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights advocacy organization in the state as its development director since 2009. Harrison, named by the North Bay Business Journal as one of the 2009 top ‘Forty under 40′ remarkable professionals, previously served as Vice President of Resource Development at United Way of the Wine Country.
During Harrison’s tenure with United Way of the Wine Country, the organization consistently surpassed its fundraising goals. Harrison was instrumental in helping the nonprofit achieve a record-breaking fundraising year, raising $4.25 million, $350,000 above the organization’s goal. United Way of America named Harrison an Emerging LGBT Leader in 2005 and a Resident Fellow in 2006.
He has also served as an education volunteer/teacher trainer for the Peace Corps in Madagascar. Harrison holds a bachelor’s degree in speech communications and theater arts from Concordia College and an MBA from the Minnesota School of Business.
Outreach Director – Tristan Blaine
tristan@lovehonorcherish.org
Tristan Blaine is the Outreach Director for Love Honor Cherish. He was previously recruited by the Human Rights Campaign to serve as an outreach coordinator on a Congressional campaign. Most recently, Blaine assisted in publishing the latest edition of the California Target Book, a non-partisan, multi-volume subscription service that tracks and analyzes all Congressional and state legislative races in California.
Blaine received his law degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City, where he served as Chair of the LGBT law student group, OUTlaw. He received his undergraduate degree from UCLA.
Chair – Tom Watson
tom@lovehonorcherish.org
Tom is a long-time community organizer. In addition to his work with Love Honor Cherish, Tom has also been a leader in the fight against Proposition 22 and in the fight to remove ROTC and military recruiting from university campuses. Tom is a partner in the law firm of Hennigan, Bennett & Dorman LLP, where he specializes in complex litigation, commercial arbitration, bankruptcy litigation, and the False Claim Act. He received his law degree from Georgetown University and his undergraduate degree from Harvard University. After college, he won a Harvard University Pforzheimer Fellowship and studied the creation of civil society in post-communist Eastern Europe.
Vice-Chair – Lester Aponte
lester@lovehonorcherish.org
Lester F. Aponte is Senior Counsel with the law firm of Bate Peterson Deacon Zinn & Young, LLP, where he specializes in the representation and counseling of employers in all aspects of labor and employment law. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Lester has been a proud Angelino for the past 20 years. He is a founding member and a member of the Board of the Latino Equality Alliance, Board member of the Stonewall Democratic Club and former Chair of the LGBT Committee of the Hispanic National Bar Association. Lester received a B.A. degree in Political Science from Haverford College in 1986 and a J.D. degree from the Columbia University School of Law in 1989.
Aaron Bloom
aaron@lovehonorcherish.org
Aaron is a trial attorney at Greenberg Gluster Fields Claman & Machtinger LLP specializing in real estate, entertainment and general business litigation. A “straight ally,” Aaron worked very hard to defeat Prop. 8 because he has always talked about everyone being equal and felt he needed to put this money (and time) where his mouth is. Aaron has been active in Love Honor Cherish since its earliest days and he spoke with numerous organizations and helped raise funds during the No on Prop. 8 campaign. He personally collected nearly 5,000 signatures in support of the repeal of proposition 8 in 2010.
John Henning
john@lovehonorcherish.org
John is a long-time advocate for marriage equality. John co-produced and co-directed the award-winning film “Saving Marriage,” which tracks the three-year fight for marriage quality in Massachusetts. “Saving Marriage” won Best Documentary at the New York Gay & Lesbian Film Festival and was released in theaters by Regent Releasing/here!TV. In 1999, long before the California Supreme Court ruled that gay couples had the right to marry, John authored and circulated a proposed constitutional amendment that would have made same-sex marriage legal in California. John is a land use attorney and has his own practice, specializing in land use and zoning issues. He attended law school at UC Berkeley.
Andrew Klayman
andrew@lovehonorcherish.org
Prop. 8 brought Andrew into the world of activism. Recognizing it as a threat to everyone’s basic humanity and equality, he was compelled to stand up and fight with all his heart. A UCLA graduate with a background in finance (Disney, Fox and TV Guide), Andrew now serves as the chief global strategist for an Indian-based company. Andrew is also a writer and filmmaker. He recently wrote, produced and directed “Kurdish Spring Break,” a short film satire heading for the festival circuit about Iraq and the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
