Treadway, Leo.

Leo Treadway, a mental health counselor, religious layworker, and gay rights activist, has been involved with most of the social, political, philanthropic, religious and educational organizations serving the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) community of Minneapolis and St. Paul since the mid-1970s.

After serving briefly in the army during the early 1960s, Treadway earned a B.A. degree in Psychology (1968) and a M.Ed degree in Counseling and Student Personnel Administration (1970) from the University of Delaware. In the early 1970s, he pursued a Ph.D in Counseling and Counseler Education from Purdue University and worked at the Crisis Center in Lafayette, Indiana, and as the executive director of the Open Door Crisis Center in Indiana, Pennsylvania. Treadway moved to the Twin Cities in 1975 and found work in the mental health field and as a consultant to various health, educational, religious, and youth groups.

Among the task forces and councils on which Leo Treadway has served are the Governor's Task Force on Gay and Lesbian Minnesotans, the Governor's Task Force on Prejudice and Violence, the Minnesota Task Force for Gay and Lesbian Youth, and the Gay and Lesbian Community Action Council. Treadway was an adult leader in the Lesbian and Gay Youth Together organization, participated in the North Star Project (needs assessment of the GLBT community), worked as a consultant to the Minneapolis and St. Paul Public Schools on issues affecting gay teens, and worked for passage of gay rights ordinances in St. Paul (1970s-1990s). Treadway also has served on the boards of directors of two foundations: the Headwaters Fund and the Philanthrofund Foundation.

Treadway, a deeply religious and spirtual man, has been involved with several religious organizations working with and on behalf of the GLBT community. These include the Lesbian and Gay Interfaith Council, Lutherans Concerned/North America, the Minnesota Council of Churches, and as the ministry associate of Wingspan, the ministry to and with gay persons of the St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church of St. Paul (1982-1992).

As a health and counseling professional, Treadway also has been active in several AIDS organizations such as the Minnesota Alliance Against AIDS, the Names Project (quilt memorial), and the Youth and AIDS Project centered at the University of Minnesota. Treadway also has given presentations at numerous workshops and conventions, and has written on topics of concern to the GLBT community. As a result, these papers, along with the other background materials collected by Treadway, form an integral part of his collection.

From the guide to the Minnesota GLBT Movement papers., 1964-2007., (Minnesota Historical Society)