Dear Friends:
Ever since I came on board in February, we have faced one challenge or crisis after another. Where do we move the thrift store if the building sells? Do we continue to repair the fifty- year- old boiler? There’s another plumbing leak in the building. How do we recruit more bingo volunteers?
Then, every so often, something happens that puts everything in its proper perspective. That was the case the other day when the phone rang. The caller was a very distraught woman who shared that she was struggling with her sexual orientation and did not know anyone in our community.
Thankfully, staff member Cindy Bray was here to reassure her. Cindy compassionately shared with the caller information about our women’s support groups plus other community resources. Hopefully we will meet our new
friend soon.
A few weeks ago a volunteer shared with me a bit of her personal journey. She had visited Diversity Thrift numerous times, but it took about seven trips to gather the courage to walk through the doors of the Community Center. She wanted what all of us want: acceptance, companionship, friendship, support.
That woman is now a viable part of the life at GCCR, sharing her passion, guidance and wit with us all. A happy ending.
So, no, we don’t have all our problems solved just yet. But, in the mean while, we know that the Center has touched the lives of countless numbers of people who were walking in darkness and found light on Sherwood Avenue. And that happens because before the Center is anything else, it is humans reaching out to humans. And that is
something that leaky pipes can’t take away.
Best,
Bill Harrison
Bill Harrison
Interim Executive Director
Bill.Harrison@LGBTRichmond.net
On SATURDAY, APRIL 14TH the NOH8 Campaign will set up our mobile studio at THE GAY COMMUNITY CENTER OF RICHMOND in RICHMOND, VIRGINIA!
The photo shoot on SATURDAY is scheduled to begin at 2:00PM and end at 6:00PM. The NOH8 Campaign would like to thank the GAY COMMUNITY CENTER OF RICHMOND for helping to coordinate our first event in VIRGINIA!
You do not need to make reservations; it’s first come, first served – and we move quickly! When you arrive, you will receive a numbered model release to fill out, followed by receiving your NOH8 tattoo. We will call numbers throughout the day, and your corresponding release number will signal your time to line up to have your photo taken.
The costs of doing a NOH8 portrait break down as follows:
SOLO PORTRAITS ………. $40.00
COUPLE & GROUP PORTRAITS ……….. $25.00 per person
The NOH8 Campaign accepts cash, most major credit cards, and checks made out to ‘NOH8Campaign’. Fees cover services & processing for one retouched digital print only (made available through www.NOH8Campaign.com) and do not include physical prints. Read More…
Sat. April 14th | 5 pm | Greater Richmond Convention Center
The Annual Commonwealth Dinner is Equality Virginia’s signature annual event and Virginia’s largest black-tie gala gathering for the Commonwealth’s GLBT community and their supporters. Each year, the dinner has attracted over 1,000 guests and is promoted through electronic and print media to the many thousands of GLBT and straight ally Virginians living across the Commonwealth.
Held at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, this year’s dinner will be bigger and better. You and your guests will enjoy live entertainment from noted invitees, a silent auction with chances to win one-of-a-kind prizes while bidding for weekend getaways, dinners out and more.
Equality Virginia’s 9th Annual Commonwealth Dinner will take place on April 14, 2012 Virginia in celebrating their OUTstanding Virginians for 2012 (soon to be announced!) along with our special guests for the evening David McFarland from The Trevor Project and Emmy-nominated actress Dot-Marie Jones, known for her role as Coach Beiste on the hit TV series Glee!
For Details and To Purchase Your Tickets.
Sunday April 1st | 4 pm | GCCR Event Hall
Gaye Adegbalola, Founding member of Saffire, the Uppity Blues Women, brings her dynamic presentation on Women in the Blues to GCCR, to help raise money for GLSEN Richmond. This workshop will be on Sunday April 1 at 4 pm in the GCCR Event Hall. Suggested donation of $5 ( more if you can, less if you can’t, no one turned away).
Gaye traces the history of blues women from the 1920s to today. She shares video and/or audio clips from Bessie Smith to Billie Holiday, from Rosetta Tharpe to Big Mama Thornton, from Etta Baker to Etta James and many others. She illuminates how the history of working class black women is documented in blues lyrics. Musically, she highlights the many vocal techniques (wails, syncopation, phrasing, growls, etc.) that are used that give drama and immediacy to the performances of blues women.
Snacks and drinks also available for a donation.
For more about Gaye Adegbalola.
ROSMY Launches LGBTQ Middle-School Support Group
WHEN: Wednesdays 5:30 – 6:30
WHERE: 2311 Westwood Ave. Richmond, VA
All lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and question youth Ages 12-13 are welcome!
Join us for an 8-Week long program geared toward middle-school youth, with topics including self-identity, relating to others, building trust, relationships and friendships, and getting along in society.
For more information, contact Lee Steube at (804) 644-4800 or youthprograms@rosmy.org.
Join us for our first six week educational support group for adoptive parents who identify as members of the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Community. This six week group will meet every other Saturday for an hour and a half. The cost is $15 per session per person or $25 per session per couple.
Suggested Topics for Discussion:
* the strengths of GLB adoptive families
* helping your adopted child “come out”
* the impact of secrecy on family relationships and intimacy
* talking openly about adoption and sexual orientation
* Helping children manage being perceived as different, etc…. Read More…
Purchase your ROSMY Springtime: A Southern Affair Tickets TODAY! Early Bird Ticket Sales End March 31st!
The early bird ticket rate of $100 for ROSMY’s Springtime: A Southern Affair ends tomorrow so act fast! The event will be held on May 5 at the Tuckahoe Woman’s Club from 7-11 p.m. and will include a cocktail reception, music by Roger D. Carroll & Chez Roue’ and a silent auction to benefit ROSMY’s programming. Read More…
Saturday, March 17 | 8 pm | GCCR Event Hall | $5 in advance
Experience the dynamic and compelling performance of Adegbalola and Barnes as they conjure up another era and put on one hell of a show.
“Gaye Adegbalola embraces and redefines the classic style of the great blues divas of the 1920′s and 1930′s, those of the fiercely independent ‘wild women’ who were unashamed to lay their souls bare and unafraid to give advice. She invokes the spirit and addresses the lyrics and improvisational techniques of the classic blues women and brings history to life” Gaye was a founding member of Saffire the Uppity Blues Women and is truly the epitome of “Uppity.” Roddy Barnes is a classically trained pianist and can play any genre, but excels in the old-timey sound that works best with this music.
Saturday, March 17 at 8 pm. Doors open at 7:30 pm. All seating is general admission.
Tickets are $5 in advance, $10 at the door, at Diversity Thrift and DT2. Tickets are also available online here. Tickets purchased online include a $1 service fee.
Tues. March 27th | 8 pm | The Renaissance Conference Center
Fun for a Cause is a revitalized idea for the Richmond LGBT community based on events from the city’s past that had unmistakable success. Based on the ideas of creating a stronger and more unified Richmond, Fun For A Cause was created and hosted in March of 2009 by Richmond’s legendary drag queen Tiffany Devereaux.
In 2012 – plans have been put in place to help not only the Fan Free Clinic but also the Gay Community Center of Richmond and ROSMY, organizations that help create a stronger and more unified Richmond. Since 2009, Fun For A Cause has helped donate over $40,000 to Richmond organizations and also helped the community grow stronger and more unified. With the continued support of wonderful Sponsors including and the fabulous community, Fun For A Cause will continue to grow with the hopes of becoming the signature event for Richmond’s LGBTQ community.
For more information and to purchase tickets.
Sunday, March 18th | 4 pm | GCCR Classroom | $5 suggested donation
2012 marks the 100th anniversary of Bayard Rustin’s birth. A master strategist and tireless activist, Bayard Rustin is best remembered as the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, one of the largest nonviolent protests ever held in the United States. He brought Gandhi’s protest techniques to the American civil rights movement, and helped mold Martin Luther King, Jr. into an international symbol of peace and nonviolence.
You are invited to a screening and discussion of the award-winning film “BROTHER OUTSIDER: THE LIFE OF BAYARD RUSTIN” on Sunday, March 18th, at 4 PM in the GCCR Classroom. A $5 donation is suggested. Read More…
