WHO

Roey Thorpe is a passionate, experienced leader in movements for social justice. She is based in Portland, Oregon, and works with clients across the country.

Roey partners with philanthropic organizations that support the work of social justice movements, as well as advocacy organizations seeking progressive change. 

Foundations ask Roey to:

  • Research and write qualitative assessments of programs and campaigns
  • Produce in-depth reports on topics related to their work
  • Create strategic funding programs that reflect foundation goals and values
  • Organize events and trainings for grantees
  • Assist grantees who need support

Social justice organizations turn to Roey to help them:

  • Recruit a diverse, talented pool and hire for key positions with attention and care
  • Help with transitions, including interim leadership
  • Conduct honest internal assessment to help make difficult decisions
  • Solve sticky problems and support shifts in organizational culture
  • Coach senior staff to become more effective leaders

Roey has a gift for listening to a wide range of opinions and helping people understand each other so they can agree on a path forward. She is both unflinchingly honest and deeply compassionate—because she’s been there and truly understands both the joy and the difficulty of advocacy work. Her serious dedication to progressive social change is balanced by an irrepressible optimism and quick wit. 

WHAT

  • Research, writing, and analysis
  • Organizational transitions
  • Strategic: hiring strategy and needs assessment
  • Hands-on: managing a search, serving in interim leadership roles, team building during transition
  • Internal and external crisis management
  • Problem solving and decision making

Roey can help you hire leaders for your organization who will create the future you envision, and make the experience productive, collaborative, and an expression of your values of inclusivity and equity.  She offers an innovative approach for social justice organizations that attracts highly qualified and very diverse candidate pools by infusing equity and care into every step of the process. She makes the process rewarding and (believe it or not) fun, even over Zoom.

Roey excels at helping resolve touchy and longstanding issues inside and between organizations so that you can increase effectiveness and enjoy collaborations.  And she will create documents that support your work on a wide range of topics, researching and writing to meet the needs of your organization.

Not sure what you need or where to start? Get in touch, and if she’s not the right person for your project, she’s happy to help you connect with someone who is.

CLIENTS

Roey works with foundations and organizations that are making the world more just and fair. Her clients include:

“Because of her rich background and talents, Roey is a rare all-utility player. She can do anything that’s needed, big or small, complex or simple. And she always delivers.”
Kasey SuffrediniCEO and National Campaign Director, Freedom for All Americans
“We’ve engaged Roey several times on a wide variety of projects, including needs analyses, evaluations of ballot measure campaigns, and helping diverse groups and players coordinate strategies. Her thinking is incredibly sharp and her ability to navigate tough issues and large personalities is exceptional.”
Matt ForemanSenior Program Director, Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund
"Roey exceeded our expectations of a hiring consultant/facilitator, and was a true thought-partner in our work together. She anticipated process situations and potential challenges with smart and strategic thinking to maximize all meeting and planning time. Her experience with social and racial justice issues helped me, and our committee, positively think through implications of our dialogue and decision making. She is one of the finest consultants I have ever worked with in the nonprofit sector."
Ellen WiniarczykBoard Chair, One Colorado Education Fund Academic Director, Nonprofit Leadership Program, University of Denver
“One of the unique things Roey brings to her work is deftness in understanding the connective tissue between movements for justice, rights, and equality. She helps build systems, plans, and strategies to make organizations and our movements better at what we do and more connected as we do our work.”
Maureen KellyMATD Founder, Out for Health, Planned Parenthood's LGBTQ Health and Wellness Program
“Over the many years I’ve known Roey, I’ve seen how her deep knowledge and experience allow her to guide and advise organizations through all kinds of real issues and pressing problems. She’s a go-to for so many organizations and leaders.”
Nadine SmithCEO, Equality Florida
"I always look for opportunities to partner with Roey. She’s smart, knowledgeable, flexible, and has amazing insights and instincts. Further, the quality of her work is consistently excellent. Many in the field know what they know and don’t have a great interest in learning more; Roey on the other hand, despite decades of experience is always in a 'learning position' and I very much appreciate that."
Clarence PattonFounder-Director, Pipeline Project
"One of the most daunting tasks for any organization is having to replace its Executive Director in a limited amount of time. Roey was instrumental in assisting Equality Virginia in setting the proper tone and mindset for accomplishing this task. With Roey’s thoughtful, mindful, and detailed process, we were able to gather a field of candidates that reflect the values of Equality Virginia. At the conclusion of the process, we were more than satisfied with the candidate that we chose to lead our organization forward. Thank you, Roey for making this process fun and enjoyable! We hope to work with you again in a different capacity!"
Bryan PriceBoard Chair, Equality Virginia
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About Roey

Roey is proud to have worked in social justice movements her whole adult life, at both the state and national level. Her work for LGBTQ equality, reproductive rights, and criminal justice reform—with all the changes we have created and those we can now imagine—has given her a unique perspective on how people can create and work together for a more just and fair world. She believes that real social change requires an inclusive, intersectional approach, and brings that to all the work she does.

Roey’s first big legislative win was passing a nondiscrimination law in rural Tompkins County, New York in 1991, and she has never forgotten what it feels like to organize and succeed. Roey has many years of leadership experience, including as executive director of Basic Rights Oregon and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon, building both organizations into powerful political forces. She then broadened her geographic scope, first at Freedom to Marry and then for seven years at Equality Federation, supporting grassroots organizations and ultimately coordinating a collaborative funding initiative for national funders. She is known for her success at building (and rebuilding) organizations, as well as for her experience with legislative advocacy and ballot initiative campaigns.

Roey also served as Alderperson and Acting Mayor of Ithaca, New York, making her their first out elected official.

Roey is the author of numerous scholarly articles on the history of lesbians in Detroit, and opinion pieces on a broad range of social justice topics. Her accolades include the Fighting Spirit Award, the HRC Equality Award, and being selected as one of Portland’s Most Powerful Women. As a Bohnett Fellow, she attended the State and Local Leadership program at the Kennedy School at Harvard University. Roey earned a master’s degree (and is permanently on the verge of a PhD) in US History from Binghamton University, and a bachelor’s degree in Music from Bowling Green State University.  

Roey is co-founder of the Sara Snyder Defendant Support Fund, which removes financial barriers for people caught in Oregon’s criminal justice system.

Despite the fact that Roey has called Portland, Oregon, her home since 2001, she has resisted urban chicken farming and other signs of overt hipster culture. Instead, she prefers things that sparkle and plays a mean game of poker.  Although Roey is married to a criminal defense attorney, she still can’t resist a true crime documentary.

Want to hear Roey talk more about her approach to her work? Check out this episode of The Out Entrepreneur podcast.

CONTACT

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch, and Roey will get back to you right away to learn more about what you need.