Though filled with both triumph and heartbreak, 2009 is a year I’ll personally be glad to forget. But I’ll still raise a toast tonight in it’s honor, celebrating all the tremendous progress our community has made, while mindful of the painful setbacks we’ve suffered. And as I look forward to 2010, it will be with a renewed sense of optimism, hopeful that we will continue to make progress, that fewer rights will be denied, and less lives lost.

In that spirit we wish everyone a safe and prosperous New Year, full of joy and hope and a better future for us all.