Not every nonprofit organization gets the opportunity to see a mission completed, but Project 515 helped secure all 515 rights for same-sex couples. On Monday night, the organization celebrated its successes and announced its dissolution.

“We are here on the almost first anniversary of marriage equality being signed into law,” said interim executive director Jake Blumberg at the 515 Awards at the Minnesota History Center on Monday night. The center put out a display of the marriage equality struggle. The event drew politicians including Rep. Karen Clark, Sen. Scott Dibble, Rep. Erin Murphy, Sen. Melissa Franzen, Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges, Minneapolis City Council Member Jacob Frey, Transportation Commissioner Charlie Zelle, and Judge Bruce Manning.

Blumberg announced that two commemorative displays were in the works to remember the legacy of the organization and the fight for marriage equality.

A brick walkway in Loring Park will list the names of contributors to the organization.

Preliminary approval has been secured to place a plaque in the Minneapolis City Hall rotunda commemorating the first same-sex marriage performed there “thanks to our great friend and ally Mayor Betsy Hodges.”

“Working with Minnesota Historical Society, we are putting together an oral history of the organization,” Blumberg said. Twenty people integral to the organization and marriage equality in one hour videos to be archived at MHS.

At its last public event, Project 515 celebrated the people and institutions that helped it fulfill its mission.

Target won the Legacy Business Leader award for its donations and volunteer work with Project 515.

Kim Strong, Target’s Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion, talked about the 4 years that Target partnered with Project 515 through donations, board memberships, and “education throughout our company.”

She offered “a sincere thank you to Project 515 for honoring Target.” Strong gave a plug for the company’s new Pride shirts that will be available in the Minneapolis and Richfield stores.

That prompted host Matt Brickman to quip, “I’m amazed Kim can be so sincere and still sell t-shirts.”

The Courageous Leader Award, named after Sen. Scott Dibble and Rep. Karen Clark, went to House Majority Leader Erin Murphy. Dibble said that Murphy represented the “very best in public service. She worked tirelessly to defeat that [anti-gay marriage] amendment.”

Clark added, “There has seldom been an ally as strong as Erin Murphy.”

Murphy said, “I’m honored that you are recognizing me but I don’t think it’s courageous to do what’s right.”

The History Maker Award was presented to the John Larson Foundation. Karen Larson said, “The only thing wrong with this process is we should have been [the first state to achieve marriage equality]. We now have 515 more reasons to love this beautiful place.”

Project 515 board chair John Larson closed the evening by announcing the impending closure of Project 515.

“We decided at a board retreat last summer that we were going to go away. I’m here to announce that we have a board meeting this week, and it happens to be on May 15 [the anniversary of marriage equality being signed into law], so I’m asking our board to shut down our organization as of June 15.”

Larson said that OutFront Minnesota would receive half of the organization’s assets, and the other half will go to the Equality Federation.

“The legacy of the organization,” Larson said, “is the weddings of countless same-sex couples in Minnesota.”