Gill says he left Quark to devote more of this time and personal fortune to gay and lesbian issues. Since 1992, he has made more than $19 million in charitable donations through the Gill Foundation, which he founded after Colorado voters approved a referendum barring the state from protecting homosexuals from discrimination. For Gill, the vote was a "kick in the ass." In a 1997 article in the Advocate entitled "Put Your Money Where Your Sexuality Is," Gill explained why gays and lesbians need to come out as philanthropists. "Money equals power," he wrote, "at least in a capitalistic, free-market democracy."

Gill has applied that same principle to his political giving, contributing $410,750 during the last election. "He gives to candidates related to gay and lesbian issues, people who support equal rights and fair treatment of gay and lesbian people," says Wade Buchanan, who handles Gill's political giving. Although Gill gave primarily gave to Democrats, he sometimes crossed party lines to support his cause, contributing $1,750 to Senator Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and Rep. Jim Kolbe of Arizona, Republicans who both support gay rights and anti-discrimination laws.

During the 2000 campaign, Gill launched OutVote2000, a group that educated and mobilized gay and lesbian voters. But in the long run, says the 47-year-old philanthropist, grassroots organizing will prove more important than political lobbying. "When I am 73, our time and money will be spent not in Washington but in small towns across America, fighting to change people's values -- to end homophobia," he says. "You cannot legislate values."