The Pride Center of Vermont, which announced in October it was closing its doors, has received a $350,000 anonymous donation that will help it reopen.

In announcing the financial contribution, the organization stated that the donation will not mean an immediate reviving of the group’s operations, but instead will allow it “breathing room” to develop and implement a sustainable path moving forward.

“This is a pivotal moment to reimagine the Pride Center of Vermont’s future: a necessary reset to confront long-standing structural challenges, repair internal systems, and rebuild trust after years of operating in crisis mode,” the board said in the statement.

“Instead of rushing to restore the status quo,” the statement added, “we are intentionally taking this moment to design a stronger, healthier and more community-rooted organization.”

The Pride Center, one of the state’s largest organizations supporting the LGBTQ+ community, announced in October it was shutting down after 26 years, citing a lack of state and federal funding. At the time, the organization said the closure was not intended to be permanent, as the board was working to raise the roughly $350,000 it needed to resume operations.

Some community organizations have helped provide some of the support and programming the Pride Center had done in the past, such as its SafeSpace Anti-Violence Program support hotline, which continues operation at the Vermont Network.

Following news of the $350,000 anonymous donation, the Pride Center of Vermont stated it will work to address debt, invest in a comprehensive community needs assessment and develop “a strategic plan that reflects a clear vision and timeline” for when it will reopen.

“This work will take time,” the organization’s board said in its statement. “Once the new strategic framework and budget are finalized, we will announce a clear plan and timeline for reopening. In the meantime, we are committed to keeping our community informed through regular updates.”

Connor Daley, a member of the Price Center’s board, said Friday that the financial gift came through a donor-advised fund, a type of a charitable savings account that allows for giving over time while also providing certain tax advantages and anonymity protections.

In this case, Daley said, the organization does not know the donor’s identity.

Now, Daley said, the work will begin on developing a strategy to reopen by working with stakeholders and community members to determine what kind of support and programming the organization should provide.

“The board is very intentionally not saying, ‘OK, here is our plan to reopen and bring back everything.’ We are not doing that,” Daley said. “Our first priority is saying, ‘What does the community actually want?’”

This story was republished with permission from VtDigger, which offers its reporting at no cost to local news organizations through its Community News Sharing Project. To learn more, visit vtdigger.org/community-news-sharing-project.