Last weekend’s Pride kickoff events–Sonoma County Pride parade, festival, park celebration, our youth leaders awareness raising performance, & our Napa sock-hop themed youth dance–were huge successes & so much fun. And the fun continues this week (& all month long)!
Los eventos del finde pasado que iniciaron nuestras celebraciones del Orgullo LGBTQ–el desfile del Condado de Sonoma, el festival y celebración en el parque, el espectáculo que presentaron nuestrxs líderes jóvenes para aumentar conciencia, y nuestro baile juvenil en Napa con el tema de la decada de los 50–fueron grandes éxitos y muy divertidos. ¡Y siguen las oportunidades para divertirnos esta semana (y por el resto del mes)!
Tuesday, June 4:10:15a – 12:00p, “LGBT Seniors Pride Breakfast” at Queen of the Valley Community Outreach, 3448 Villa Lane, Suite 102, Napa (completely free, LGBT seniors)Wednesday, June 5:7:00p, “The Look of Love: Kellie Fuller Sings the 60s” at Blue Note Napa, 1030 Main St, Napa (benefit, all ages)Thursday, June 6:5:00p – 9:00p, “Napa Pride Kickoff at the Q” at The Q Restaurant and Bar, 3900 Bel Aire Plaza, Suite D, Napa (no entrance fee, benefit, all ages)Saturday, June 8:doors, 7:00p, show, 8:00p, “Drag Queens of the Valley Benefit Show” at JaM Cellars Ballroom at Margrit Mondavi Theater, 1030 Main St, Napa (benefit, 18+)Sunday, June 9:doors, 11:00a, show, 12:00p, “Drag Queens of the Valley Drag Brunch Pajama Party” at JaM Cellars Ballroom at Margrit Mondavi Theater, 1030 Main St, Napa (benefit, 18+)Reply to this email or call LGBTQ Connection for questions / Para preguntas responda a este email o llame a LGBTQ Connection: Sonoma County events 707-579-4327 or Napa County events 707-251-9432.
The 32nd annual Sonoma County Pride Parade happens June 1, 2019, in downtown Santa Rosa on 4th Street. Parade starts at 11AM, followed by our Pride Festival from noon to 6PM. This year’s theme is Stonewall to Sonoma, a Heritage of Love. In 1967 thousands of young people from around the country descended on the bay area for the summer of love. Rejecting cultural pressure to conform, they were determined to MAKE change happen and create the world they wanted to live in. On June 28th, 1969 the Stonewall riots (also referred to as Stonewall uprising) happened at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, New York City. Violent demonstrations by members of the LGBT community took place as they fought back against the police harassment and raid. The LGBT community stood up and said we are not going to take it anymore. These riots constitute the most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and modern fight for LGBTQ rights. The world has never been the same.
Starting with our Pride Festival in June, join Sonoma County LGBTQI Pride as we reimagine that summer for a new generation through a season of events and activities that celebrate diversity and queer culture and inspired by that spirit of freedom and LOVE. Exhibitors are encouraged to use this theme when thinking about their contingency.
The LGBTQ+ Spiritual Conversations group is a safe and sacred place to explore our spiritual journeys in light of our sexual and gender identities. Participants learn contemplative listening practices and share spiritual journeys with each other for support and encouragement. Each session begins with a spiritual practice and silent contemplation, and although we are a Christ-centered spiritual community, people of all faiths or no faith are welcome to participate.
Free/Drop in. Donations welcome. They meet the second and fourth Monday of the month.
Facilitator: Matt Nightingale, Spiritual Director, musician, pastor, and writer.
He is a teacher at Sonoma County Day School in Santa Rosa and the worship leader at The Quest in Novato.
For seventeen years, Matt worked as a full-time worship pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church, serving churches in Redwood City, CA; Houston; Tulsa; Seattle and Santa Rosa. He recently completed The Journey Center’s 2-year Spiritual Director Formation Program.
Matt is passionate about the intersection of sexuality and spirituality. Through his writing, speaking, podcast appearances and even a TEDx talk, he works to create safe, sacred space for people exploring their own understanding of these important matters.
Matt lives in Santa Rosa, and is the proud father of Joshua (23), Jacob (21), Emily and Zachary (17).
Janice Robinson is a 50-year-old American singer who was a member of Livin’ Joy before embarking on a solo career. Livin’ Joy were a Eurodance group with Italian brothers Paolo and Gianni Visnadi.
She was the lead singer of the dance outfit, before she left the group in 1999.
Janice co-wrote and sang the lead vocals on ‘Dreamer’, which was an international hit and reached number one in the UK in 1995.
Reyna
Milwaukee-by-way-of-Texas sister-duo REYNA (Victoriah and Hannah Gabriela Banuelos) First appearing in 2016 with their glorious debut single ‘Spill Your Colors’ and attracting over 20K streams in the first day, it was clear to see REYNA were onto something much bigger. No strangers to the music scene, the sisters previously found success with their former project, Vic & Gab, in 2011 when their track “So Long So Tired” found its way to music supervisors at MTV and was used on their hit US series ‘Skins’.
This was followed by their debut LP which received great praise from tastemakers such as SPIN and Paste Magazine and saw them open for artists such as BLEACHERS and Death Cab For Cutie as well as former President Obama at a rally. In 2014, after showcasing at SXSW, they caught the attention of Saiko Management (known for artists such as Lorde, Parson James, The Aces and Glades), who signed them a deal.
The sisters went on to collaborate with producer Drew Pearson (Kesha, Lights,), and travelled to both LA and NYC which in turn changed their approach to songwriting and gave them a new set of creative tools with which to work. After recording a number of songs, they decided to give their new sound a new name. REYNA. Shortly after the release of their debut single Spill Your Colors, it wasn’t long until they were opening for the likes of CHVRCHES and released a series of singles which have so far garnered 4 million combined streams on Spotify to date.
Spencer Ludwig
Since being the original trumpet player in the multi platinum band Capital Cities from 2012 – 2015 the Los Angeles-born half-Filipino vocalist-instrumentalist has gone rogue, adding a new dimension of possibility to not only his sonic weapon of choice, but to pop music as well. His first single “Diggy” exploded right out of the gate as it soundtracked the 2016 Fall campaign for Target and was featured in the blockbuster Happy Death Day, the Netflix original movie Step Sisters and the popular video game Just Dance 18. His follow up single “Got Me Like” launched through a global Herbal Essences campaign and is also featured on the soundtrack for Madden 18. His independent debut single release in 2017 “Just Wanna Dance” debuted at #47 on the Spotify US Viral Chart and was also featured in an Apple ad and his latest release “Best Life” can be heard soundtracking the new global campaign for Royal Caribbean.
Additionally, Spencer is prominently featured modeling in the 2019 Spring and Summer global Tommy Hilfiger campaigns. He has turned audiences around the world into believers since his performance on Late Night With Seth Meyers and also at Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Bonnaroo, LA Pride, Milwaukee Pride, Buffalo Pride, Mexico’s Corona Capital and on tour supporting Fonseca, Betty Who and BeBe Rexha in the US and in Europe. This year he also landed a residency on the last Friday of every month in his hometown of Brooklyn, NY at the Freehold where he will debut new songs and curate a fully immersive Spencer Ludwig experience. With everything he does, he strives to continue to redefine what’s possible for himself and independent pop artists alike.
Tatianna
Tatianna is the stage name of Joey Santolini, an American drag performer, hair stylist, make-up artist and performing artist from Falls Church, Virginia. She is best known for being a contestant on Season 2 of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
Tatianna was revealed to be a contestant for the second season of RuPaul’s All Stars Drag Race, where he was eliminated on episode 2. Due to a twist that occurred on episode 5, Tatianna returned to the competition alongside previously-eliminated queen; Alyssa Edwards.
She was eventually eliminated by Alaska in episode 6. Her elimination caused an uproar among fans and she is widely regarded as one of the breakout stars of All Stars 2.
Tatianna was known as one of the most controversial queens of Season 2 and was often complimented as the “prettiest” or “fishiest” of her season.
Tatianna was also often looked down on by her competitors in Season 2, especially Raven, for being one of the youngest queens and even the prettiest of the season.
Tatianna served glamour and fish, but was criticized for not having fashion-forward outfits and extravagant performances. However, she was highly praised and won the Snatch Game challenge for her Britney Spears performance. Other queens don’t think she deserved the win.
Sonoma County caregivers can earn $25 and become certified to care for older and disabled adults at free, LGBT+ Awareness Trainings in May and June. The four-hour classes help improve caregivers’ skills when working with two often hidden and underserved populations, LGBT+ older adults and LGBT+ adults with disabilities.
Family members who are care providers and professionals working for In-Home Supportive Services, private home care agencies, and assisted living or skilled nursing facilities are encouraged to attend.
· Thursday, May 2, 1 – 5 p.m., Petaluma Senior Center, 211 Novak Drive, Petaluma. Register: ihss050219.eventbrite.com.
· Thursday, May 16, Noon – 4 p.m., Adult & Aging, 3725 Westwind Blvd., Santa Rosa. Register: ihss051619.eventbrite.com.
· Thursday, June 6, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Employment & Training Division, 2227 Capricorn Way, Santa Rosa. Register: ihss060619.eventbrite.com
LGBT seniors are five times less likely to access mainstream health, housing and social services without knowing that providers value LGBT-inclusive practices. Class content builds awareness and understanding of the unique needs of LGBT+ older adults, how the caregiver’s approach affects clients’ care and ways to improve communications with and about LGBT+ older adults.
To earn a Certificate of Completion and $25, participants must: 1) register online by one week before the training, 2) arrive at the training on time, and 3) complete the four-hour class.
Certification is by SAGECare, the only national, LGBT aging, cultural competency training program. Clients of local senior service agencies and facilities will be informed that they can choose a caregiver who completed the training
The trainings are provided by the In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority, the Sonoma County Area Agency on Aging, SAGECare, which is part of the advocacy group SAGE, and LGBTQ Connections.Thetrainings funded and sponsored by the County of Sonoma, the Sonoma County Area Agency on Aging, In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority and the LBTQI Giving Circle Sonoma County. Sponsors hope to train and certify 180 local care providers through October in a total of eight workshops.
First meeting of people who want to set up a support ‘accompaniment’ team to help LGBTQI asylum seekers and detainees. There has been calls from immigrant support networks along the border to find sponsors and support to allow asylum seekers to get out of detention centers. Come to a meeting Thursday, May 2nd at 6pm to talk about what we can do. Contact stormsx11@yahoo.com for more info. Meeting will be at 5037 McFarlane ROAD, Sebastopol….cross street Hessel Road….2nd driveway on left on McFarlane Road.
Pink Sonoma Saturday rstein.With a long background in the hospitality business, Saperstein leveraged his time in local institutions like the Auberge du Soleil and the Girl and the Fig to start Out in the Vineyard 11 years ago.
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The event will be held Saturday, May 4, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the General’s Daughter restaurant in the town of Sonoma. It will feature over 20 wineries pouring their current rose, a DJ, light bites, and an auction to benefit Positive Images, which provides support and advocacy for LGBTQ youth in Sonoma County.
Young people served by Positive Images will be staffing the silent auction, featuring items donated by wineries. The restaurant also donated the space for the event.
Tickets are $65, with $5 from every ticket going to Positive Images.
A husband-and-wife team of developers faced mounting backlash in Sonoma this week after a series of anti-gay online posts made by the wife went viral this month.
Stacy Mattson who, together with her husband Ken, has spent $80 million the past three years purchasing 26 properties throughout Sonoma Valley, made the controversial comments on her then-public Facebook page. In one post, she described herself as “disgusted” by the 2013 Rose Bowl Parade being “high-jacked by the gay agenda,” adding that “the last thing I want to see in the parade is promotion of sin by being forced to watch a gay marriage ceremony.”
In a 2015 post, she wrote that upon returning from a trip to China, she “found our country in an even bigger mess than when [I] left thanks to some truly horrible Supreme Court filings… Obamacare, gay marriage.”
Her most recent public political post was a photo of the couple in early 2017 as they prepared to attend President Trump’s inauguration. The posts are no longer viewable as her Facebook settings were changed to private earlier this week.
Stacy Mattson’s Facebook posts began making waves several weeks ago when screen shots of the anti-gay remarks first started to spread through the community. The posts came under wider scrutiny after the Index-Tribune published an April 8 story about the couple’s real estate buying spree in town. Since 2015, the Piedmont couple have assembled a giant portfolio of Sonoma Valley properties, with the latest wave of purchases taking over high-profile commercial sites that include Cornerstone shopping center, Ramekins culinary school and the General’s Daughter event center.
As the extent of their holdings became known, the couple and their online profiles drew even closer attention from local residents. A week after the Index-Tribune story ran, Sonoma food writer Sarah Stierch posted screen shots of the Stacy Mattson’s Facebook posts, which have since been shared almost 100 times.
The resulting backlash has been vocal and increasingly public, even coming from within some of the Mattsons’ new properties.
Kyle Kuklewski, executive chef of Ramekins and General’s Daughter, raised rainbow flags on Tuesday to show solidarity with the community.
“We 100 percent disagree with their personal beliefs and we told them that,” said Ramekins general manager David Daniel, referring to an email he said he sent to the couple on Tuesday.
Ken and Stacy Mattson declined to be interviewed but provided a statement on Thursday that sidestepped the content of the posts. Originally from Rancho Cordova, Ken Mattson has worked in the financial services industry for 35 years, most recently as a financial planner. Stacy Mattson is originally from Fairfield. They have been married for almost 30 years and have four children, all of whom are in their 20s.
“The businesses we have purchased in Sonoma have a proud history of being inclusive in terms of employees and clientele,” he wrote. “As new owners, we have insisted that this history of inclusion continue. We also know that a truly diverse community benefits from the discussion of a broad range of ideas. We hope that all our guests, clients and employees will join in on this discussion.”
The controversy has erupted in a city that has sought to make overt shows of support for LGBTQ residents and visitors. It has hoisted the rainbow-colored flag over City Hall, serves as host for the popular summertime Gay Wine Weekend and is home to a growing array of businesses that cater to the gay community.
Gary Saperstein, who runs Out in the Vineyards, the promoter of the Gay Wine Weekend and other gay-centered wine country events, said that Stacy Mattson’s posts are “disturbing to say the least.”
“To have this going on in our very own backyard is a reminder that hate exists in all corners of the world… even here in Sonoma,” Saperstein said. “I’m concerned for the employees who work in these businesses as I know that they do not stand with the owners.”
Daniel said that the Mattsons have treated the staff “with respect and kindness since day one,” and are hands off — trusting him to make the right decisions for their business. “We have a total inclusive and supportive culture here which will continue. Kyle and I are both huge advocates for that.”
But adding to the furor over Stacy Mattson’s expressed views on gays and gay marriage was news that the couple’s business partner, Tim LeFever, has served as chairman of the board of the Capitol Resource Institute, which has lobbied to repeal state legislation that ensures gay people and gay rights are included in school textbooks and that sexual orientation is protected against discrimination in the schools. LeFever was also part of a group, Privacy for All, that in 2015 proposed a state initiative which would have banned transgender people from using bathrooms in government buildings that matched their gender identity.
LeFever’s current ties with the groups could not be independently confirmed this week.
Marcelo Defreitas, a local philanthropist and the city of Sonoma’s 2018 alcalde, or honorary mayor, conveyed his distress over the posts.
“We don’t need this kind of divisiveness here,” Defrietas said. “We are one in this community. We work together. Those posts are not what our values are.”
Defreitas, who is gay, said that he has been accepted in Sonoma since he moved here 20 years ago. “From day one,” he said. “It wasn’t even a question.”
Out in the Vineyards’ May 4 spring soiree, Pink Sonoma Saturday, was booked to take place at the General’s Daughter prior to its sale to LeFever-Mattson. The space was donated to Saperstein.
“I am glad that the owners are not making money from my event,” he said, adding that the event is also a fundraiser for support and advocacy for local LGBTQ youth. “As one friend said to me, ‘All the more reason to gay it up at Pink Saturday and show ‘em just how gay friendly Sonoma is!’”
According to Daniel, several same sex weddings are on the books at Ramekins and General’s Daughter and they will take place as scheduled, and new bookings continue to be accepted.
Sonoma-based developer and lobbyist Darius Anderson oversaw the January sale of Cornerstone, Ramekins and General Daughter to the Mattsons and LeFever. He said his team does background research on prospective buyers, but they don’t look into or take into consideration religious beliefs or political background when evaluating a transaction.
“But over the past 20 years, Kenwood Investments has been a leader in supporting diversity and equality, and in our own company policy we provide benefits for domestic partners,” Anderson said of his development firm. Anderson is managing member of Sonoma Media Investments, owner of the Index-Tribune.
Several community leaders said they intend to take action in the wake of Stacy Mattson’s comments coming to light.
Mayor Amy Harrington said that she and fellow council member Logan Harvey have asked City Manager Cathy Capriola to agendize a request to discuss the city’s current policies with regard to discriminatory practices at a future City Council meeting. The request will be discussed at the May 6 council meeting.
Meanwhile, Springs resident Dmitra Smith, vice chairwoman of the Sonoma County Commission on Human Rights, designed a poster to offer Sonoma Valley businesses with a “We Welcome All” message, in both English and Spanish.
“When they go low, we go high,” said Smith.
She said that two dozen local businesses have already ordered the posters, slated for distribution next Thursday.
“Portland originally made these and they are long overdue in Sonoma Valley,” Smith said.
Community activist Jennifer Gray Thompson said she has met numerous times with Ken Mattson to discuss his development projects in the Springs. While she said she disagrees wholeheartedly with Stacy Mattson’s posts, she does not support boycotting the businesses who rent from the Mattsons — a measure some critics of the posts had initially proposed.
In a lengthy Facebook comment this week, Gray Thompson described herself as having “outrage fatigue.”
“And have come to the conclusion that, for me, the best road is the toughest one: I choose humanity, listening and compassion,” she wrote before speaking with the Index-Tribune on Tuesday. She said she will continue to meet with Ken Mattson and have “tough conversations,” but, she continued, “I will not dehumanize them in an effort to get them to see the humanity in others. The more fundamental the disagreement, the more talking we need to do.”
The Russian River Chamber of Commerce invites you to join us in a celebration of food and wine to kick off the summer season. Celebrate the Rise of the Russian River after the rainy winter. On April 27th, 2019 from 1-4 pm over 30 gourmet restaurants and wineries will be serving up a variety of local Sonoma County foods and delicious wines. The event is taking place in the tree-lined, center of town right next to Trios Restaurant. Nearby you’ll find art galleries and shops to browse after enjoying tastings from world class restaurants and wineries in the casual and relaxed atmosphere of Guerneville along the Russian River. Cost is $50 for unlimited Food & Wine, $30 for food only. Come and enjoy world class tastings from restaurants and wineries along the Russian River. First 100 tickets sold will be entered to win a Magnum of Woodenhead Pinot Noir! Advance Tickets here. A sampling of the wineries and food purveyors sampling for you at the Spring Fling:
The Napa Valley College LGBT Studies Program invites you to attend a special workshop in celebration of Pride this Jun TURNING SHAME INTO PRIDE With Finn Deerhart, Founder of Queer Connect
Many of us gay, queer, and trans men enter into this world with secrecy and shame surrounding our sexualities. From birth, sex and spirit are divided, separate parts of our personalities that often seem to be in conflict with each other. We may spend our entire lives trying to get back to a sense of wholeness within ourselves. We tend to make choices about sex, the emotional and physical safety of it, or lack thereof, based on our greater community?s ideas about what it means to liberate ourselves sexually. We seek refuge in places like the Bay Area where we can identify openly with other men about the sex that we want to be having, should be having, or are actively pursuing.
Against insurmountable odds, many of us have learned to live openly to the best of our abilities, but beneath our newfound freedom, the scars remain. We have been divided in half, leaving many of us without a spiritual framework that really makes sense to us. Naturally so, because we have been spiritually abused, internalizing our culture?s judgmental attitudes about who we are. In response, we create identities and relationships based largely on sex, our own subcultures that value copious amounts of free sexual expression. We need deep healing, but we often look to the act of sex, itself, to heal us?and it cannot?until we embrace the shame that defines it. True pride is born from a grounded sense of self-acceptance.
In this workshop, you will learn practical tools to have more fulfilling, satisfying connections, whether you are single or in relationship.
This event will focus on: ? Intimacy?How connection with others over our personal journeys is essential to authentic relationships ? Desire?How desire leads us into our shadows so that we might be able to heal what keeps us blocked ? Healing??The wound is the medicine.? How the places that have caused us the greatest pain can be transformed into the basis of authenticity and personal pride
What to Expect: ? A blend of group discussion and practical exercises. ? Drawing on Tantra, Nonviolent Communication, Hakomi, current theories in couples therapy, sex therapy, EFT, and mythology, we create a safe container for you to share about your experience.
