Mickey Heller (he/him/his), a Native New Yorker originally from the Bronx, has spent the last four decades in Brooklyn. A graduate of the HS of Music & Art, Hunter College and Brooklyn Law School, Mickey has been practicing law for 30 years.
A founding board member of the Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Mickey has volunteered for several non-profit organizations, and has been the Park Slope Santa for the 5th Avenue BID for 10 years. He is proudest of his work with Brooklyn Pride, Inc. becoming involved by driving former Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz’s parade float in 2007 and 2008. That led to volunteering in 2009 on the parade and 5K Run, and in 2010 he became, and currently serves, as the Parade Director. Mickey became Co-Chair of Brooklyn Pride in 2012, Chair from 2013 and Co-chair since 2016.
Kyle Naff (he/him/his), originally from the cornfields of the Midwest, landed in Brooklyn to see what it was like to live in the big city. While he thought that it would be just for a short stint, he has managed to find a sense of community here through fitness and running with Front Runners New York. His involvement with the team led him to take up an offer to oversee the Brooklyn Pride LGBTQIA+ 5K as a way to get even more involved and give back to the community that has been his home since 2015. He is honored to join the Board to continue to put together an amazing Brooklyn Pride Week and more.
Oluwakemi (Kemi) Oritsejafor is a Nigerian-Liberian-American, multi-hyphenate Black-bodied artist, professional, entrepreneur, and recovering chronic overachiever.
She seeks and stumbles across paths of creation and community with work that aims to unlock intimacy, radical honesty, personal agency, and moments of emotional reprieve. She works in various creative mediums, including unorthodox ones like community organizing and entrepreneurship. The core of her artistry reflects where she's been and has yet to go—whether physically, mentally, or emotionally. In its purest form, her work is an eager and open hand open to be held and to hold in return.
Black, queer, neurodivergent, fat, and often a woman—but sometimes very happily not—she was born to the West African parentage of political and economic refugees while raised in the backdrop of the Black American South (Raleigh, North Carolina).
She graduated from DePaul University (Chicago, Illinois, 2017) with a business and German language degree and a community development minor. She has also completed coursework in fashion design, illustration, and technical design from the Fashion Institute of Technology (New York City, 2019)
Ariel Sanders is a Brooklyn native who is super honored to have been a part of Brooklyn Pride for a few years now. Being raised to always be warm, friendly, and helpful, coupled with strong community service values instilled by the Quaker High School education she received, Ariel could not be more excited to be volunteering for an organization that represents two of her biggest loves – Pride and Brooklyn!
Omari Scott is a nonprofit professional and educator with a passion for creating positive change in his community. He currently serves as the Director of Development and Communication at Brooklyn Community Pride Center, where he is responsible for leading fundraising, development, and communications efforts for the organization. Prior to joining the Pride Center, Omari was a consultant with CCS Fundraising and, before that, taught special education in Brooklyn.
Omari is a strategic thinker with a talent for building partnerships and engaging stakeholders. He has a strong track record of driving fundraising results and is committed to advancing social justice and equity.
Omari holds a B.A. in Political Science from Swarthmore College, a M.S.Ed. from Hunter College, and M.P.A. from The Maxwell School at Syracuse University. Omari lives in Prospect Park South with his cat.
Eric Sosa is the co-owner and event programming director for Good Judy, a queer bar and venue in Park Slope, as well as the two-time GLAM Award-winning queer bar and venue C'mon Everybody in Bed Stuy