Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Caucus

C.J. Carenza, Chair

Elected as the Chair in January 2011, C.J. has been involved with the caucus since being elected Secretary at the founding meeting in April 2008.  Having working in the banking and financial Lending industry since out of college he has seen first hand the devastating results of the Republican policies of de-regulation.  However it was controversial election of 2000 and the subsequent unjust war in Iraq that got C.J. motivated to take to the streets, and become politically active. 

Whether marching with tens of thousands in Washington DC or standing on the street corners of Phoenix demanding the impeachment of President Bush C.J. is not afraid to take to the street to demand action.  In November 2007, because of his his strong beliefs in the importance of Health Insurance Reform, and his proposed HR 676, Single Payer Health proposal, C.J. began working for the Kucinich Presidential Campaign.  While unsuccessful, this work helped prepare him for his challenges ahead of him. 

In addition to his duties with the Caucus C.J. has served as the 1^st Vice-Chair of Legislative District (LD) 15 since 2009, is an active point person with Progressive Democrats of America, a member of the Democratic Party’s Progressive caucus and holds a seat at the Executive Committee of the Arizona Democratic Party.  Previously C.J. Served as the Arizona Democratic Party’s Affirmative Action Moderator and has authored or co-authored 2 resolutions for the Democratic Party. C.J. is originally from Urbandale, IA, and has lived in Arizona since April of 1995.  He is currently living in central Phoenix, along with his 7 dogs.

Barbara McCullough-Jones, Vice Chair

Barbara is a native of Seattle where she got her first taste of activism fighting for domestic partner benefits as a City of Seattle employee in the early 1980’s. 

After moving to Arizona in 1989, Barbara founded the Lesbian Resource Project which became nationally recognized as a leader in health care provision for lesbian, bisexual women and heterosexual women who found comfort in the progressive organization. 

In 1997 Barbara was tapped to serve as Executive Director for the Billy DeFrank Lesbian and Gay Community Center significantly increasing fundraising and launching a successful capital campaign. 

Washington, DC was the site of Barbara’s next post in 2002 as Executive Director of GALA Choruses, the international association of LGBT choruses Barbara worked with an international coalition of partners to present a quadrennial festival in Montreal, Canada which served over 6,000 delegates during an eight-day festival.

Barbara has received numerous honors and awards including Phoenix Echo Magazines’ Woman of the Year in 1995, San Jose’s Pride Parade Grand Marshall in 2001 and the State of California Woman of the Year in 2002.  Barbara is a member of Tempe Leadership Class X and was a charter member of Tempe’s Human Relations Commission selected by fellow Commissioners to serve as Co-Chair. 

In 1994 Barbara became the first out lesbian to run for political office in the State of Arizona with her run for Tempe City Council.  Barbara has served on numerous local and national Boards of Directors and has provided extensive capacity building training to nonprofit organizations across the country.  Barbara and her partner Sandra returned to their Tempe home in 2005 when Barbara was appointed Executive Director of Equality Arizona.

Since 2000 Barbara has been the Principal Owner of Pen in Hand LLC a company dedicated to providing professional organizational development guidance focusing on small and start-up organizations.  Barbara resides in Tempe with her partner of 14 years, Sandra.

Trish Rensink, Secretary

Trish Rensink lives in Flagstaff with her partner, Kathleen. of 25 years.  She is active with the Coconino County Democrats.  Trish and Kathleen enjoy hiking in the forest and mountains with their 135# Newfoundland Duffy Moon. 

Trish is co-owner/partner of BelleWether Group, a gay owned organizational development company, providing coaching, consulting, facilitation and public speaking services.  They work with organizations nationally to help them navigate change, re/define focus and direction and develop the teams and workforces to help the strategies succeed and the organizations become profitable. 

Trish is looking forward to her term with the caucus and this amazing team of leaders to help the Democrats be successful in the 2012 election and to assure LGBT issues are addressed.

Bob Bland, Treasurer

Elected in April 2008, Bob is also one of the founding members of the caucus.  Born in North Carolina Bob has been a Democratic activist since childhood.  He was first elected president of the High School Young Democrats in Goldsboro, NC and later to Rice University's Young Democrats where he was largely responsible for getting the Texas Young Democrats to oppose the Vietnam War in 1967. 

In 1972, he returned to North Carolina and founded the Triangle Gay Alliance, the first LGBT organization in that state. He was the first openly gay person to be elected delegate to a county convention.

Bob moved on to Atlanta where he became involved in Jimmy Carter's Presidential campaign. On victory in 1976, he moved to Washington and joined the staff of the Democratic National Committee as a direct response fundraiser.

In 1979, Bland moved to Boston as Development Director of the Union of Concerned Scientists. There, he founded the Boston-Provincetown Bicycle Ride. The 130-mile, one-day event continues to be the major annual event for the LGBT cycling community. He also was a member of the Boston Lesbian and Gay Alliance.

Bob purchased a second home in Vershire, Vermont in 1990. That became his residence in 1996 and he quickly got involved in Vermont politics as well as serving as Director of Individual Support for the Student Conservation Association. He was elected Town Auditor in 1997 and was quite involved in the 2000 battle for Civil Unions. In 2001, he became the Orange County Democratic Chair and was elected State Treasurer in 2005.

Purchasing a second home in Bisbee in 2006, with the intent of being a snowbird, Bob found that being stretched between two distant states did not work for him, and made Bisbee his full-time home in 2007. He resigned as Orange County Chair in July and was elected Cochise County Chair in November, probably becoming the first person to serve as a County Chair in two different states in the same year. He may well have become the first openly gay County Chair in Arizona.

Bob currently resides in Bisbee, where he continues to serve as the Chair of the Cochise County Democratic Party and as a member of the Board of the Boys & Girls Club of Bisbee.