When Diversity Richmond, parent of the city’s popular Diversity Thrift, was searching for a new executive director, the Rev. Lacette Cross wasn’t sure about throwing her hat in the ring.

But, being “a good Baptist,” she looked to a higher power for answers. She also got some nudging from friends and colleagues. In the end, she decided to apply.

“I want to be able to make a local impact,” Rev. Cross said in an interview last December.

And Diversity Richmond does make an impact. It has an annual operating budget of about $1.3 million, more than 25 employees at its Northside Richmond headquarters and it operates the well-known and popular Diversity Thrift, as well as hosting programing and services for the LGBTQ+ community. The organization also delivers grants and funding to other area nonprofits such as Richmond Triangle Players, Health Brigade, Side by Side and Equality Virginia.

According to its website, Diversity Richmond has distributed nearly $1 million since its inception in 1999.

When Rev. Cross, 47, stepped into the role as executive director last year on Oct. 17, she became the first Black, queer woman to hold the position in the nonprofit’s history.

“The LGBTQ+ community is a very diverse community, it crosses just about every racial, socioeconomic, religious line you can imagine,” Diversity Richmond Board Chair Chris Moore said about the appointment. “Lacette, as a queer Black woman, has the lived experience of intersectionality.”

Known as “Reverend L” to many, Rev. Cross is currently pastor of Restoration Fellowship RVA, a welcoming-to-all congregation that embraces diversity. She grew up in a military family in Oceanside, Calif., about 40 miles north of San Diego near Camp Pendleton. College took her to “the Mecca,” as Howard University is known to some.

After a detour to reconcile her faith and sexuality, Rev. Cross, who identifies as bisexual, transferred to Catholic University of America and received a degree in social work. She moved to Richmond in 2010 and earned her master’s and doctorate of divinity degrees from Virginia Union University, and a master’s in theology from Union Presbyterian Seminary.

Rev. Cross has more than 15 years of experience working with regional nonprofits in leadership positions, most recently as a strategic adviser with NEO Philanthropy. She served as interim executive director for Side-by-Side during 2021, after serving as its director of volunteers and outreach. She was also one of three founders of Black Pride RVA in 2018, an annual celebration targeted to LGBTQ+ persons of color but open to all.

That Rev. Cross has achieved so much is no surprise, says Luise “Cheezi” Farmer, a Diversity Richmond board member and another of the Black Pride RVA co-founders.

“She has a way with words. Sometimes just to listen to her speak you are in awe,” said Ms. Farmer. “She’s just well-rounded, and she’s strong, and she has a lot of faith in the work that she does. And I think when you can balance all those things, then you have a good leader.”

Rev. Cross has spent her first months of leadership listening. She says three questions have threaded together her con- versations with staff, board members and community partners: Who are you? Who is Diversity Richmond? Who do we want Diversity Richmond to be?

Her plans for a community listening series in the spring will give an even wider community the chance to share their thoughts on what Diversity Richmond can do better.

But Rev. Cross wants the community to know there are opportunities for them to engage right now, as well help support Diversity Richmond’s mission of being “a vibrant, inclusive Richmond where inequality does not exist.”

“Of course people can always donate money,” Rev. Cross said. “But you can also volunteer or shop at the store, attend one of our events, rent the hall or support Iridian Gallery — the South’s only LGBTQ gallery.”

“Ultimately, I love Richmond,” Rev. Cross added. “I’m committed to this city and to this community.”

To learn more visit www.diversityrichmond.org

Debora Timms contributed to this article.