Ciora Thomas

If you missed our 15-Year Anniversary Gala… whew. Baby, you missed power. From the gowns to the glory, from the community to the calling — this was more than a celebration. It was a declaration. Thank you to every single person who showed up, donated, sponsored, bought a ticket, and stood beside us in this legacy. You made this possible. You made us possible. Special thank you to our phenomenal Events Coordinator, Montia Robinson, for curating the breathtaking decor and transforming our vision into a night we’ll never forget. Deep gratitude to our keynote speaker, @hopegiselle , for delivering a message that reminded us why Black trans leadership remains essential. (Keynote highlight coming soon.) Congrats again to our 2025 Gala Honorees: 🏆 Hope Giselle – Trailblazer Award 🏆 Saint Osei Valentino – Emerging Leader Award 🏆 Vincent Foulkes – Transmasculine Impact Award 🏆 Celena Morrison-McClean – Transformative Leadership Award 🏆 A.J. Scruggs – Youth Empowerment & Movement Award 🏆 Melissa Sloan – Community Commitment & Engagement Award 🏆 Deja-Lynn Alvarez – Community Partner Recognition Award Love to our performers, the one and only @hunyrocks , and every hand that helped make this night shine. We uplift our incredible Leadership Team: Louis Mitchell, Mo’Nique Campbell, and Louree Collins — thank you for your bold leadership and vision. To our staff, dedicated volunteers, and every soul who poured into this work — thank you. And to our founder and Executive Director, Ciora Thomas — thank you for 15 years of visionary, purpose-led leadership. The Masquerade Gala & Awards Ceremony returns next year as our annual fundraiser — even bolder, even more rooted in legacy. Support our work at SistersPGH.org/donate This is our power. This is our joy. This is Sisters PGH. 🎥: Video by @shanelllamerefilms 💜 #SistersPGH #15YearsStrong #BlackTransLegacy #MasqueradeGala #BlackTransExcellence #HopeGiselle #CioraThomas #LouisMitchell #MoNiqueCampbell #LoureeCollins

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Pittsburgh especially, I hope y’all have been enjoying my drag journey as much as I’ve been enjoying living it. I don’t think I’ve really stopped to say how much this art form has been pouring back into me creatively. Through drag, pageantry, producing, performing, and building these showcases, I’ve really been able to tap into parts of myself that I’m grateful I gave space to grow. I’m taking it seriously too. Not just as performance, but as art, storytelling, vision, and community. I’ve been really proud of what I’ve been creating lately. The visuals, the energy, the intention behind it all. And from what I’m hearing, y’all have been feeling it too, which means a lot to me. Somebody recently told me our last showcase was the Blackest showcase they’ve seen in this city in a long time, and baby… that felt GOOD to hear. Because that’s exactly the kind of seed I’ve wanted to plant here in Pittsburgh. Bold, creative, unapologetic, community-centered, and full of us. And I’m also really grateful that so many of y’all have allowed yourselves to see me outside of just being an executive director or community leader. I love my work deeply, always will. But this right here is my art. This is another piece of me. And it’s felt really beautiful being able to share that openly. And if you’ve really been paying attention, then you probably noticed I’ve been telling a story through the songs I choose for my performances. The story of a young Black trans girl navigating survival. A girl who experienced homelessness. A girl who grew into advocacy and nonprofit work. A girl who kept pushing, kept dreaming, kept surviving, and worked hard to become who she is today. None of the performances are random to me. A lot of it is intentional. A lot of it is memory, healing, reflection, softness, pain, joy, confidence, and growth all wrapped into art. And let’s be clear… I obviously didn’t come to play with Pittsburgh. I came to give y’all visuals, storytelling, production, heart, performance, Blackness, creativity, emotion… everything you wanted and then some. I just hope y’all continue connecting the dots. 💋 @highlight

🌈 PRIDE AT STONEWALL INN PGH 🌈 If you missed our sold-out Trans Day of Visibility showcase, here’s your next chance to experience the magic. Join Sisters PGH for a full night of drag, artistry, celebration, and community as we kick off Pride Month together at the Stonewall Inn Pittsburgh. Featuring performances by local and statewide artists, hosted by Ciora D. L’Oreal and Jezebel D’Opulence. ✨ 🎤 THREE SHOWS 🕔 5PM • 7PM • 9PM Guests are welcome to attend one show or all three. Entry is $5 per show. 📍 211 Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 ✨ Meet & Greets after each performance 🍸 Drinks Available 💖 Limited Capacity This event helps raise funds to support programming and community space at Stonewall Inn Pittsburgh. We encourage attendees to come ready to celebrate, support, and tip the artists. Unable to attend but still want to support our work? Donate today at /donate ❤️ All are welcome. We can’t wait to celebrate Pride Month with you. #SistersPGH #StonewallInnPGH #PrideMonth #PittsburghPride #BlackTransJoy

There’s something grounding about catching your own food, bringing it home, and doing the work yourself from start to finish. 🎣 Been emotionally overwhelmed, tired, and trying to recalibrate a little bit lately, but moments like this remind me I’m still capable, still soft, still resilient, and still deeply connected to myself outside of work, stress, and everything else. Anyway… the catfish got cleaned DOWN. 😭 #fyp #fishing #catfish

Xbox One: Ciora88 Activated. Online. Mood this Friday night🔌

Made it safely home down the Pennsylvania Turnpike back to Pittsburgh and pulled up to this blooming in my own front yard. 🌼 When I left, these were just little baby plants. Tonight I came home, and they were fully bloomed like they had been waiting on me to return. I don’t know what season of life I’m walking into yet, but I’m choosing to believe this is a good sign. There’s something beautiful about realizing growth was happening even while you were away. Grateful for safe travels, quiet moments like this, and the reminder that life can still surprise you in soft ways. 💛

Telling my therapist “he’s the one” after going to her to complain about him early into dating😮‍💨😩

When I’m determining if I’m going to order from a restaurant on Uber Eats, I’m looking for these comments!!

Baby, sometimes you gotta leave that fine man alone before you lose your character and your peace.

God forbid a Black trans woman lead with ethics and still look good doing it. #fyp @highlight

Up tonight preparing for tomorrow’s panel at FCCP’s national convening, “Beyond the Election Cycle: Sustaining Justice-Centered Civic Engagement in Swing States.” This national convening brings together philanthropy leaders, civic engagement organizations, movement strategists, and institutions helping shape conversations around democracy, organizing, and political engagement across the country. While the panel will include perspectives from leaders and organizers across different states, I’ll specifically be speaking from my experience organizing in Pennsylvania, a swing state where I believe a lot of important conversations around civic engagement, accountability, mutual aid, philanthropy, and long-term community investment still need to happen more honestly. As I’m sitting here tonight going through my notes, framing my thoughts, and thinking critically about the conversations I want to contribute to tomorrow, I also wanted to ask my community something: What do you believe civic engagement spaces, philanthropy, and political leadership are still getting wrong when it comes to our communities, especially here in Pennsylvania? Some of the things I personally plan to touch on are: • The difference between visibility and actual investment in marginalized communities. • The reality that many grassroots organizations are doing year-round stabilization work through housing support, mutual aid, behavioral health support, and direct services long after election cycles end. • The importance of accountability in leadership and organizing spaces, especially when directly impacted people raise concerns or challenge institutions to do better. • The need for long-term investment into communities instead of temporary attention during campaign seasons. • The ongoing gaps in protections and policy support impacting LGBTQ Pennsylvanians. Would genuinely love to hear your thoughts as I continue preparing tonight. 👀