Cesar Toledo Testifies for LGBTQ+ Youth
Cesar Toledo, the Executive Director for the Wanda Alston Foundation, testified before the Committee on Human Services in support of transitional housing for homeless LGBTQ+ youth.
DHS Budget Oversight Hearing
Today, Cesar Toledo, the Executive Director for the Wanda Alston Foundation, testified before the Committee on Human Services. His statement can be read below.
Good afternoon, Councilmember Frumin and members of the DC Council. My name is Cesar Toledo, and I was recently appointed Executive Director of the Wanda Alston Foundation, one of a few queer-led organizations in DC that provides gender-affirming housing and support services to LGBTQ+ youth.
Since 2008, the Foundation has provided housing, support services, and pathways to economic mobility to over a hundred LGBTQ+ youth. As the rise of attacks on our LGBTQ+ youth rages across the country, DC has long served as a beacon of safety, and that legacy must be preserved.
The facts are stark. According to the District’s most recent Point-in-Time snapshot, 40% of youth experiencing homelessness identify as LGBTQ+. A national survey found that more than 2 out of 5 trans people in DC have experienced homelessness at some point in their lives. Lastly, at the Foundation, 99% of the youth we have served are Black or Latino.
Thanks to the support of Mayor Bowser, DC Council, the community, DHS and the Community Partnership, we operate 20 beds that are never empty. However, like many nonprofit organizations in this space, we face significant challenges. Staffing mandates and bureaucratic invoicing processes create barriers to funding. These hurdles are painfully difficult for LGBTQ+ nonprofits like ours, which are being targeted by the federal government and face declining corporate support.
Councilmember Frumin and members of the Council, I’d love to sit down with your staff to share more about these operational hurdles and explore potential solutions.
As you continue to debate the FY2026 Budget and Spending Plan, I strongly urge you to preserve funding for transitional youth housing and ensure that homeless LGBTQ+ youth have access to the life-saving, specialized care and support that the Wanda Alston Foundation provides.
Any cuts to this sector could result in a clinical disaster.
Thank you.
Cesar Toledo
Executive Director
Wanda Alston Foundation
Wanda Alston Foundation launches culinary program for LGBTQ youth
The Wanda Alston Foundation announced it has launched a campaign to raise $15,000 for a new culinary program to equip our LGBTQ+ youth with cooking skills and kitchen gadgets.
The Wanda Alston Foundation, the D.C. nonprofit organization that has provided housing and support services for homeless LGBTQ youth since its founding in 2008, announced it has launched a campaign to raise $15,000 for a new culinary program to “equip our LGBTQ+ youth with cooking skills, kitchen gadgets, and a taste for joy,” according to its executive director, Cesar Toledo.
In a May 14 statement, Toledo said the Alston Foundation had been selected to receive food and shelter funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, “but due to the federal freeze, it’s unlikely those critical resources will reach us.”
He said the new program being launched is in partnership with the DC Front Runners Pride Run 5K organization, an LGBTQ runners group. The funds will be used to provide 20 Alston House residents “with air fryers, rice cookers, smoothie blenders, healthy food, and condiments,” Toledo said.
Read more in the Washington Blade here.
Slay & Sauté for at risk LGBTQ+ youths
WUSA9’s Marcella Robertson interviews Cesar Toledo, Wanda Alston Foundation Executive Director, to learn more about the organization's Slay & Sauté campaign.
WUSA9’s Marcella Robertson interviews Cesar Toledo, Wanda Alston Foundation Executive Director, to learn more about the organization's Slay & Sauté campaign.
June Crenshaw Steps Down from WAF
“When I first joined the foundation, I was facing the real possibility of closing our shelters,” Crenshaw said in a statement. “But thanks to the unwavering support of the LGBTQ+ community and strong, steady leadership of our Board, nearly a decade later, we’ve not only kept our doors open — we’ve expanded our impact. As I pass the torch, I’m filled with pride in the organization’s next chapter.”
June Crenshaw, the executive director of the Wanda Alston Foundation, has stepped down from her position after nearly a decade.
The organization provides support services and operates transitional housing programs for LGBTQ young people experiencing homelessness.
“When I first joined the foundation, I was facing the real possibility of closing our shelters,” Crenshaw said in a statement. “But thanks to the unwavering support of the LGBTQ+ community and strong, steady leadership of our Board, nearly a decade later, we’ve not only kept our doors open — we’ve expanded our impact. As I pass the torch, I’m filled with pride in the organization’s next chapter.”
Crenshaw will continue serving the LGBTQ community as the interim deputy director of Capital Pride Alliance and DC WorldPride 2025.
“June’s nearly decade of service transformed the lives of hundreds of LGBTQ+ youth in the nation’s capital,” Darrin Glymph, the board chair of the Wanda Alston Foundation, said in a statement. “She led with heart, vision, and an unshakeable commitment to our most vulnerable youth. We are immensely grateful for her service and look forward to her continued leadership in the community.”
The Wanda Alston Foundation announced that Cesar Toledo will succeed Crenshaw as executive director as part of a planned transition process started in November 2024.
Toledo, who most recently served as the National Deputy LGBTQ+ Engagement Director for the Harris for President campaign, brings with him a decade of experience leading political campaigns, shaping public policy, and promoting LGBTQ inclusion.
Toledo also served in multiple positions at the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, including as its political director from October 2021 to March 2023.
While calling Crenshaw’s leadership “transformative,” Glymph, the foundation’s board chair, said the organization was “excited for the energy and experience that Cesar brings to lead us into this next chapter.”
Wanda Alston Foundation Names New Executive Director
The Wanda Alston Foundation, the D.C.-based organization that has provided housing and support services for homeless LGBTQ youth since its founding in 2008, announced it has appointed longtime LGBTQ rights advocate Cesar Toledo as its new executive director.
The Wanda Alston Foundation, the D.C.-based organization that has provided housing and support services for homeless LGBTQ youth since its founding in 2008, announced it has appointed longtime LGBTQ rights advocate Cesar Toledo as its new executive director.
In an April 22 statement, the organization said that as part of a planned leadership transition launched in November 2024, Toledo will succeed June Crenshaw, who Alston Foundation officials and LGBTQ community activists say has led the organization with distinction in her role as executive director for the past nine years.
In a statement released last November, the foundation announced Crenshaw was stepping down from her role as executive director after deciding to “to step into her next chapter.”
“June’s leadership has been truly transformative,” said Alston Foundation Board Chair Darrin Glymph in the group’s April 22 statement. “We are immensely grateful for her dedication and equally excited for the energy and experience that Cesar brings to lead us into this next chapter,” Glymph said.
“A seasoned LGBTQ+ advocate, Cesar brings over a decade of experience leading national campaigns, shaping public policy, and building inclusive communities,” the statement released by the group says. “Most recently, he served as the National LGBTQ+ Engagement Director for the Harris for President Campaign and has built a career focused on advancing equality and equitable education,” it says.
Biographical information about Toledo shows that immediately prior to working for the Harris For President Campaign, he served since April 2023 as deputy director for Democrats for Education Reform DC (DFER DC), a political group that helps to elect candidates for public office committed to quality education for all students, including minorities, people of color and LGBTQ youth.
Before joining DFER DC, Toledo served as political director for the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, where he assisted in electing out LGBTQ candidates to all levels of public office across the U.S.
“I’m really excited about joining the Wanda Alston Foundation,” Toledo told the Washington Blade. “After a decade of working at the intersection of politics and policy and advancing political candidates and equitable education here in D.C., I wanted to shift my career to direct services to the most vulnerable folks in the LGBTQ+ family and our homeless youth,” he said.
Among other things, he said he would push for increasing the Alston Foundation’s visibility and mainlining its services for LGBTQ youth at a time when the national political climate has become less supportive.
A statement on its website says the Alston Foundation was founded in 2008 “in memory of Wanda Alston, a fierce LGBTQ+ activist, national advocate, and government official who was admired by District residents.”
The statement adds, “The foundation opened the first housing program in the nation’s capital in 2008 providing pre-independent transitional living and life-saving support services to LGBTQ+ youth.”
In a separate statement, the Alston Foundation announced it would hold a “thank you” celebration of appreciation for June Crenshaw from 6-8 p.m. on May 20 at Crush Dance Bar located at 2007 14th Street, N.W. in D.C.
“Let’s come together to celebrate her dedication and commitment for everything she has done for the LGBTQIA homeless youth population,” the statement says.
Wanda Alston Foundation Appoints New Executive Director
Washington, DC - The Wanda Alston Foundation proudly announces the appointment of Cesar Toledo as its new Executive Director, following a planned leadership transition launched in November 2024.
For Immediate Release: April 22, 2025
Contact: Cesar Toledo, ctoledo@wandaalstonfoundation.org
Washington, DC - The Wanda Alston Foundation proudly announces the appointment of Cesar Toledo as its new Executive Director, following a planned leadership transition launched in November 2024.
A seasoned LGBTQ+ advocate, Cesar brings over a decade of experience leading national campaigns, shaping public policy, and building inclusive communities. Most recently, he served as the National Deputy LGBTQ+ Engagement Director for the Harris for President campaign and has built a career focused on advancing equality and equitable education.
Cesar succeeds June Crenshaw, who will be stepping down after nearly a decade of visionary leadership. In honor of June’s legacy, the Foundation will host a celebration on May 20, 2025.
Board Chair Glymph, Esq. shared:
“June’s leadership has been truly transformative. We are immensely grateful for her dedication and equally excited for the energy and experience that Cesar brings to lead us into this next chapter.”
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About
The Wanda Alston Foundation was established in 2008 in memory of Wanda Alston, a fierce LGBTQ+ activist, national advocate, and government official who was admired by District residents. The foundation opened the first housing program in the nation’s capital in 2008, providing pre-independent transitional living and life-saving support services to LGBTQ+ youth. Through its two transitional housing programs — Wanda’s House and Alston’s Place — and its Capacity Building Assistance Program, the Foundation provides safe housing, life skills training, and access to essential support services across all eight wards of DC.