By Gus Morgan

When LGBTQ+ people come out, they disclose their sexual orientation or gender identity.

It’s not just a one-time thing.

“It’s a repetitive cycle,” said LGBTQ+ ally Dorothy Colegrove, nxtgenERP Business Readiness Lead. “Every new team you join, every new boss, and every new co-worker is a potential coming out decision for our LGBTQ+ colleagues. And I had no concept of that, even with what I consider a long history of allyship. I wasn’t aware that decision was taking place sometimes daily. And I didn’t understand the emotions involved.”

Even long-time LGBTQ+ allies like Dorothy are still learning the intricacies of the LGBTQ+ community, but her knowledge continues to grow thanks to colleagues such as Texas OBO Land Supervisor Jason Parker, who shared his coming out story with colleagues on June 1, 2021, during a Pride Month presentation in Anchorage, Alaska.

Earlier that day, Dorothy and Jason raised the pride flag at the company’s Anchorage office, an event hosted by the Alaska DEI Council and Alaska Pride Network. In addition, LGBTQ+ allies raised rainbow flags on the North Slope at Kuparuk and Alpine; by a ConocoPhillips aircraft at Anchorage Airport; and on one of the company’s Alaska-based Polar Tankers

“It was a great opportunity for us to show a strong statement of support to our LGBTQ+ employees, our allies, and the community as a whole here in Anchorage that we support and embrace people of all sexual orientations and all gender identities as a corporation,” said Jason, reflecting on the historic moment. 

In addition to the flag raisings, the Alaska DEI Council and the Pride Network Alaska co-hosted a “DEI Chats: Share Your Story” event that focused on LGBTQ+ experiences. This Pride Month virtual session — moderated by Dorothy and Jason — provided a venue for employees to engage in meaningful dialogue, with a focus on sharing individual stories and listening to the experiences of coworkers.

That highly shared chat proved to be a crucial step in highlighting Alaska’s LGBTQ+ community, sparking conversations and humanizing an underdiscussed workplace topic.

“Such conversations help us understand each other’s experiences and backgrounds on a deeper level,” Dorothy said. “They help foster a more inclusive workplace where each of us feels comfortable in bringing our true self to work, each and every day.”

The duo’s biggest accomplishment, Dorothy said, was overseeing a 10-fold increase in the Alaska Pride Network’s membership in only 10 months.

In recognition of Dorothy and Jason’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in Alaska, ConocoPhillips honored them with a prestigious 2022 SPIRIT of Performance Award, naming them DEI Advocates. The award recognizes individuals who take the initiative to promote and support the company's diversity, equity and inclusion commitment in a creative, engaging and consistent manner.

“It’s a bit misleading for this to be an individual award,” Jason said. “Because it really took a village. It took the Alaska DEI Council; it took the people in the business unit who were willing to speak up and support us; it took the managers on the Slope who would support the Pride flag raising; it took the whole leadership team in Alaska being willing to say, ‘We trust you. Go for it and make it happen.’ That level of trust was huge to empower us to be able to do what we did.”

It was a collaborative effort, Dorothy said, a successful endeavor supported by the company’s leaders, LGBTQ+ allies and members of the Houston and Bartlesville Pride Networks.

“We couldn’t have done anything without leadership and our coworkers,” she said.

'I wanted to control my image instead of accepting who I was'

“I’d known who I was for a long time,” Jason said. “But for years, I had been denying myself the opportunity to live my life as the person I am.”

Although Jason had come out when attending high school, he went back into the closet during his college years. He kept his sexuality a secret, always having a story ready to cover his tracks when friends would ask, “Why don’t you have a girlfriend?”

“I was always trying to stay two steps ahead,” he said, “and be ready to answer their questions.” Years later, Jason hit a crossroads, wondering if he should come out personally and professionally. And if so, "would he be seen as a gay man first and an employee second?"

“I wanted to control my image instead of accepting who I was,” Jason said. “But I made the decision in 2018 to come out to my friend. And then I decided it was all or nothing. It was an incredible experience.”

When a job opportunity in Alaska emerged, Jason took it. He headed to Alaska in April of 2019, his mind filled with preconceived notions and biases on life as an openly gay man in Alaska. While the Houston LGBTQ+ community was welcoming, Jason said he had reservations about Alaska’s LGBTQ+ hospitality, which was unknown to him. He couldn’t help but wonder if he should return to the closet and put up a false front.

“But I chose to be who I was,” he said. “I came to Alaska as my whole self. The coming out process is always a journey.”

Emboldened, Jason joined Dorothy to co-lead the Alaska Pride Network when it launched in 2020. This employee network provides LGBTQ+ employees and their allies a forum to network, learn and provide value back to ConocoPhillips.

Discovering what it meant to advocate for himself and others, Jason also became a co-lead of the Alaska DEI Council, another pathway for advancing the company’s principles of respect and value for all employees.

While Dorothy and Jason have taken on new job roles in 2022, now working in Houston and Midland, respectively, their vision and advocacy efforts for the LGBTQ+ community, have only intensified.

These diversity, equity and inclusion pioneers continue to spread awareness and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, encouraging colleagues to listen, be open-minded, and be respectful of others, all supportive actions that drive the winds of change and understanding.

Initially, Dorothy and Jason were worried their Pride Network efforts in Alaska would regress after their departures, but those fears proved unfounded, as the duo established a solid foundation for the network to build upon. New co-leads, Andrew Beat and Kali Bergeron, already have stepped up, filling open roles, forming a steering committee, and making the network stronger than ever. "I'm excited to see how the Alaska business unit and ConocoPhillips continue to advance our support of our LGBTQ+ employees and members of the communities in which we work and live," Jason said.

“It’s important for us to be public advocates in this industry,” Dorothy said. “Advocacy makes our workforce stronger, and it enhances business opportunities and perspectives. I’m proud to work for ConocoPhillips, a company that encourages you to bring your original self to work.”