The story of the Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Center begins in 1978, when a group of Sacramento community leaders founded the Lambda Community Fund, Sacramento’s first non-profit, tax-deductible organization specifically serving the needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

In 1984, gay activist the Rev. Jerry Sloan, a Metropolitan Community Church pastor, won a lawsuit against televangelist Jerry Falwell by proving Falwell defamed MCC. Sloan and the late TimothyWarford, with the support of other community leaders, reorganized Lambda Community Fund under its current name, using the $5,000 proceeds from the lawsuit.

In August 1986, the Lambda Community Fund opened the Lambda Community Center. Since then, the Center has served as a focal point for the LGBT community of Greater Sacramento and surrounding counties, providing programs, services, community events and meeting space for numerous non-profit organizations in a safe and affirming environment.

In December 2006, the Lambda Community Center board of directors, after months of discussion and debate, voted to change the Center’s name to the Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Center with the intent of making the Center more visible and accessible to those seeking services as well as to the community at large. The new name was announced to the community Feb. 7, 2007, in conjunction with an historic flag-raising ceremony. Josh Anderson, recipient of the Center’s 2006 Youth Leadership Award, with Center founder Jerry Sloan, raised a rainbow flag, signed by scores of community members, on a 25-foot-tall flagpole in front of the Center. The flagpole and its installation were donated by Jacob Rowe. The signed flag was replaced with another, and the original is displayed on the Center stairwell wall.

A new logo, designed by graphic designer Cyrstal Weber, who donated her services, was unveiled at the 15th Annual Lambda Awards on March 19, 2007.