Mike Thompson (he/him) is CEO of The LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert in Palm Springs, known as The Center. He first led The Center from 2014 to 2021, then served as Chief Impact Officer at CenterLink, the international network of LGBTQ community centers, before returning as CEO in 2023. A citizen of the Cherokee Nation, he welcomed The L-Fund, a grant fund for lesbian and queer women, into The Center when the two merged on July 1, 2026.