Actress Bea Arthur, who died last year, bequeathed $300,000 to the Ali Forney Center in New York City, a top homeless LGBT 
youth service, the Advocate reported yesterday.
Carl Siciliano, the center’s executive director told the Advocate his organization was “overwhelmed with gratitude that Bea saw that LGBT youth deserve as much love and support as any other young person and that she placed so much value in the work we do to protect them and to help them rebuild lives.”
The Ali Forney Center offers food, emergency housing, medical treatment, HIV testing, and educational training for as many as 1,000 young people annually. The center recently announced it will name its new house in Arthur’s honor.
According to the center’s Web site, up to 25 percent of LGBT teens are kicked out of their homes and are at risk for violence, HIV and substance abuse while homeless.
For more information about the Ali Forney Center, go here.
— Theresa Bruskin
