Join us at The Laugh Cellar on January 6th for a fundraiser to benefit The Anova Center for Education – Sonoma County’s only nonprofit school for children living with autism. Anova’s Santa Rosa campus was destroyed in the North Bay Fires, leaving 120 students ranging from 5 to 22 years old without a school. Proceeds from this night will go to their Phoenix Campaign, which will help rebuild their K-12 classrooms, transition program, occupational therapy equipment, and many other specialized needs of our students.
All-Star Stand Up Comedy Line Up with:
Jennie McNulty, Ronn Vigh, Irene Tu
And…
Dance the night away after the show with DJ Lady Char!
Plus! Raffle & Silent Auction
WIN!
Great Wine, Hotel Accommodations, Restaurant Gift Cards & More!
$35 General Admission
Doors 6PM
Comedy Show 7PM
Dance Party 8:30 – 11:00PM
21+ Please no outside food or drink
Great selection of beer & wine, and non-alcoholic drinks +
fun snacks like our Comedy, Dogs! Wisecracking Cheese Plates
& Fresh Popped Popcorn. VIEW OUR MENU
Complimentary Parking Easy to get to location in Santa Rosa
Corey Johnson was elected City Council speaker in an overwhelming vote Wednesday, capping months of maneuvering that will make him the city’s second-most-powerful elected official.
Johnson — a Manhattan Democrat who is gay and HIV positive — was chosen in a 48-1 vote. Councilwoman Inez Barron, who mounted her own last-minute bid for speaker to protest the lack of black candidates, was the lone no vote.
The new leader is expected to pose a challenge to Mayor de Blasio — saying he won’t hesitate to push through bills over the mayor’s veto, which never happened under his predecessor — although their progressive ideological views largely align. He takes over from Melissa Mark-Viverito, who left the job because of term limits.
The Massachusetts native, 35, recalled moving to New York at age 19, with two bags and no idea where he was going to live.
“I want New York to be a place where you can still be 19 years old and come here and still survive. And it’s becoming more and more difficult if you don’t come from a wealthy family to be able to do that,” he said.
“It should be a place where you can come as a young person and stay here and go to school and get a good job.”
Johnson worked aggressively to shore up support in what had once been a wide-open field of eight candidates. He was all but assured of the job after he got the blessing of the Queens and Bronx Democratic parties, particularly Queens boss Joe Crowley, who reclaimed his traditional role as Council kingmaker four years after being shut out when Mark-Viverito was selected for the job.
Many of his first seven rivals quickly dropped out, though Councilman Jumaane Williams (D-Brooklyn) did not concede before Wednesday, and his last opponent, Barron (D-Brooklyn), mounted her challenge late last month.
Johnson stressed he will be “independent” of the mayor — and unlike de Blasio, supports congestion pricing, as well as giving more city money to the MTA if there are assurances on how it will be spent. He also said there’s little appetite on the Council to revive Hizzoner’s push to ban horse carriages.
“I’m fine with overriding vetoes,” he told reporters after the vote. “I’m more than willing to do that.”
The biggest controversy over Johnson’s selection centered around race, with some Council members and civil rights groups objecting to giving the job to a white man. Three of the four citywide officials are now white and male.
“Black, Latino and Asians are the majority in this city, yet we have never, ever had a black speaker,” Barron said on the steps of City Hall Wednesday, before nominating herself for the job. “It’s our turn now.”
Barron blasted it as “unconscionable” that the Democratic Party in 2018 would “conspire” to block a black candidate from capturing the job. But while several members applauded her bid, she did not garner any votes from the 51-member Council besides her own.
Johnson receives applause after he was elected Council Speaker on Wednesday.
Williams, who is also rumored as a possible primary challenger to Gov. Cuomo, opted to skip the vote and instead attend Cuomo’s State of the State speech in Albany. Debi Rose (D-Staten Island) was the other Council member not in attendance.
Another black candidate for the post, Brooklyn Councilman Robert Cornegy, stayed in the race for more than a week after the deal to anoint Johnson. Cornegy objected to the selection of a white candidate, but he eventually offered his support — and seconded Johnson’s nomination Wednesday.
“The black community is the base of the Democratic Party. And we were given short shrift,” said the Rev. Jacques Andre DeGraff, associate pastor of Harlem’s Canaan Baptist Church, who backed Cornegy.
Johnson said he understood the racial concerns, and would make sure leadership and powerful committee posts go to a diverse group of pols.
“I am never going to compare my experience to that of a person of color in New York City,” he said. “When I walk into a Duane Reade, I don’t get followed around by someone because they think I’m going to shoplift.”
Johnson, who has spoken openly about his past struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, has chaired the health committee for the last four years, and represents Chelsea, the Village and Hell’s Kitchen.
The future speaker first made headlines while still in high school, when he came out as gay while co-captain of his football team.
With his mother, Ann, looking on Wednesday, he said he was “suicidal, despondent, and I didn’t want to live” when he first told her he was gay.
Then he had to tell his 82-year old, Mass-attending Irish Catholic grandfather.
“He said, ‘Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I thought you were going to tell me you were a Republican. You can be gay, but you have to be a Democrat,” he recalled his grandfather saying.
Besides supporting congestion pricing to raise money for the crumbling subway, Johnson — who has never owned a car, but will get a car and driver with the post — said he’ll continue to ride the trains regularly as speaker.
“I actually like the subway when it works,” he said. “It’s good people watching.”
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and Equality Pennsylvania today released new polling data conducted by Hart Research Associates one year out from the 2018 midterm elections, showing that likely voters across Pennsylvania overwhelmingly support LGBTQ-inclusive policies and are less likely to vote for a candidate who does not. HRC is on the ground in Pennsylvania, a priority state through HRC Rising — the largest and earliest grassroots expansion in its 37-year history.
“A year out from the midterm elections, the data clearly show that Pennsylvanians overwhelmingly support LGBTQ equality,” said JoDee Winterhof, Senior Vice President for Policy and Political Affairs. “Just as they have in North Carolina last year and Alabama earlier this month, Pennsylvania voters will stand up to reject candidates who target LGBTQ people. These polling results make it clear — hate is not a winning political strategy.”
”This polling data reaffirms what we’ve been seeing for the past year as we talk to our members in every single county across the state,” said John Dawe, Interim Executive Director at Equality Pennsylvania. “As the the LGBTQ community was repeatedly attacked with hateful legislation and policies during the past year, the number Pennsylvanians standing up and making LGBTQ issues a priority in their activism also grew exponentially.”
Following the defeat of anti-LGBTQ politicians like former North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory and Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, the new polling makes clear that voters in Pennsylvania resoundingly reject elected officials who attack and discriminate against the LGBTQ community. Almost half of voters (46 percent) say they would feel less favorably toward an official who opposes LGBTQ equality, versus 11 percent who say it would make them more favorable toward the official. This 35 point margin demonstrates just how toxic it is to attack LGBTQ people for perceived political gain.Voters will no longer tolerate discrimination against their family, friends and neighbors.
Pennsylvania voters also oppose the Trump-Pence administration’s efforts to roll back LGBTQ equality, with 53 percent opposing Trump’s efforts to ban qualified transgender people from serving in the United States armed forces. By a wide 22 point margin, voters also oppose laws granting business owners a dangerous license to discriminate.
Overall, Pennsylvania voters support LGBTQ equality and protections for LGBTQ people such as banning so-called “conversion therapy” and prohibiting discrimination against prospective LGBTQ parents and kids in foster care and adoption. Other key findings from the poll:
71 percent of Pennsylvania voters support LGBTQ employees having access to paid family and medical leave, without fear of losing a paycheck or their job for the birth or adoption of a child, or to care for a sick family member.
59 percent of Pennsylvania voters support allowing LGBTQ people to legally adopt children.
56 percent of Pennsylvania voters support making it illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ people in employment.
53 percent of Pennsylvania voters support making it illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ people in housing.
Pennsylvania voters also support passing the Equality Act by a 56 to 25 percent margin. This crucial federal legislation would provide consistent and explicit non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people across key areas of life, including employment, housing, credit, education, public spaces and services, federally funded programs, and jury service.
In July, HRC announced HRC Rising, the earliest, largest grassroots expansion in its 37-year history ahead of 2018 midterms. This historic campaign to win equality in states from coast-to-coast, resist the politics of hate, fight anti-LGBTQ legislation, and fuel pro-equality candidates and initiatives, will include six priority states: Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, HRC has identified more than 2,005,000 Pennsylvanians as likely “Equality Voters” — those who are strong supporters of policies that advance LGBTQ equality, including marriage equality and other measures prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
A new UCLA study finds that 27 percent, or 796,000, of California’s youth, ages 12 to 17, report they are viewed by others as gender nonconforming at school.
The study also assessed differences in mental health among gender nonconforming youth and gender conforming youth in the state and found no significant difference in the rates of lifetime suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts between gender nonconforming youth and their gender-conforming peers. However, gender nonconforming youth were more than twice as likely to have experienced psychological distress in the past year.
“The data show that more than one in four California youth express their gender in ways that go against the dominant stereotypes,” said lead author Bianca D.M. Wilson, the Rabbi Barbara Zacky Senior Scholar of Public Policy at the Williams Institute. “However, the heightened psychological distress we see among gender nonconforming youth indicates that we must continue to educate parents, schools and communities on the mental health needs of these young people and reduce known risk factors, such as bullying and bias.”
The study, released by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, analyzed data collected from nearly 1,600 California households in the 2015-2016 California Health Interview Survey. It is the first time this survey has included questions about gender expression among teens.
Gender nonconforming refers to people whose behaviors and appearance defy the dominant cultural and societal stereotypes of their gender. The health interview survey measured gender expression by asking adolescents how they thought people at school viewed their physical expressions of femininity and masculinity. Youth who reported that people at school saw them as equally masculine and feminine were categorized as “androgynous.” Girls who thought they were seen as mostly or very masculine and boys who thought they were seen as mostly or very feminine were categorized as “highly gender nonconforming.”
Key findings of the study include:
27 percent, or 796,000, of California’s youth, ages 12 to 17, report they are viewed by others as gender nonconforming at school, including 6.2 percent who are highly gender nonconforming and 20.8 percent who are
Highly gender nonconforming, androgynous and gender conforming youth do not statistically differ in rates of lifetime suicidal thoughts and suicide
As a group, both highly gender nonconforming and androgynous youth reported higher levels of psychological distress compared to their gender-conforming
The finding that gender nonconforming youth in California do not have higher rates of suicide differs from the findings of some previous research. The study co-authors suggest that the variation in findings may be due to sample-size limitations of this study or possibly to the state’s supportive policies for gender nonconforming people. California is one of several states that expressly prohibit bullying and discrimination against gender nonconforming people in schools and public accommodations, among other arenas.
“It’s possible California’s policy environment has made it safer for adolescents to be gender nonconforming,” said Tara Becker, a co-author and statistician for the health survey, which is conducted by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. “But given events at the national level, we should by no means relax our stance. California can and should strive to be an ongoing model of acceptance and inclusion.”
NEW SENIOR CENTER LGBTQI PROGRAMS: With the help of an LGBTQI Giving Circle grant, Sonoma County Adult and Aging Services was able to provide the staff of three Sonoma County senior centers — Finley Community Center’s Senior Wing in Santa Rosa, Vintage House in Sonoma, and the Sebastopol Area Senior Center — with cultural competency training in LGBTQI aging issues in 2016-2017. All three have since added new special programs for LGBTQI seniors including “Aging Gayfully” classes (see below). The Sebastopol Area Senior Center has also scheduled an exciting February field trip to the GLBT History Museumin San Francisco as well as committed to continuing their extremely popular bi-monthly LGBT Seniors Dance (next one February 24th) and their very informative on-line LGBTQI Eldership Resource Center.
NEW “AGING GAYFULLY” CLASSES: I am so grateful and excited that the three free “Aging Gayfully” classes offered last fall by Santa Rosa JC’s Older Adults Programs will resume January 17th & 18th at the three senior centers for the Spring Semester (see attached flyer). These classes are an outgrowth of the 8-week workshops that were given at a number of Sonoma County locations under an earlier grant from the LGBTQI Giving Circle. I hope you will check out the attached flyer and consider contributing your life stories as well as your humor and insights to our fun and informative weekly discussions. Continuation of this unique opportunity for us to gather depends on adequate enrollment so come to one of the first class meetings and check it out!
NEW NORTH BAY RAINBOW NETWORK: Many members of our community were affected by last October’s fires, some severely with the loss of housing, income. vital healthcare equipment or pets and others perhaps less severely but perhaps left with physical or emotional health challenges from the stress of responding to the crisis and/or prolonged evacuation. A group of concerned individuals has formed the North Bay Rainbow Network to (1) create greater awareness of fire recovery organizations of the fires’ impact on our community and (2) to connect affected community members with these organizations who can help in a variety of ways. While the website (www.northbayrainbownetwork.org) is still under construction, there will soon be a survey that you can complete to let us know how you were affected and your needs. Perhaps this could continue to be a virtual way for us to connect with needs and resources!
NEW OPENING DOORS FOR LGBTI SENIORS COALITION: To continue the work that has been done under two previous LGBTQI Giving Circle grants, Sonoma County Adult and Aging Services has contracted with my colleague Nancy Flaxman to facilitate a series of meetings of representatives from senior service agencies in the county and help them develop strategies for increasing our accessibility to services and community support with greater confidence and comfort.
NEW LGBTQI SENIOR DISCUSSION GROUP: A new Russian River group was started in 2017 and meets the 2nd Saturday from 12:30 – 2 pm in the Marshall House at the Russian River Senior Resource Center in Guerneville. Volunteer-led LGBTQI senior discussion groups also continue to meet in Santa Rosa (fourth Tuesdays 1-3 pm at the Glaser Center) and in Sonoma (third Fridays 10 am – noon at Vintage House). For home-bound or transportation-limited LGBT seniors, the Senior Center Without Walls also offers a semi-monthly LGBT Telephone Chat Group.
NEW SENIOR RESOURCE GUIDE: The Sonoma County 2018 edition should be coming out soon and will continue to have the special section of resources for LGBTQI seniors that was included for the first time just two years ago. I think of that section as “The Lavender Pages” when it comes to locating resources that can help with our LGBTQI-related aging challenges.
NEW LGBTQI ORAL HISTORY PROJECT: This exciting inter-generational project is sponsored by the organization Listening For a Change with funding from the LGBTQI Giving Circle. The project invites LGBTQI youth to videotape interviews with LGBTQI elders and vice versa. Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in this unique project! See attached flyer for Spring workshop dates.
NEW INTER-GENERATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: With Positive Images continuing its innovative work with youth and now the expansion of LGBTQ Connection into Sonoma County, there were a number of inter-generational events planned and hosted by LGBTQI youth in 2017 that gave those of us who helped pioneer our rights movement an opportunity to see what the younger generation is doing to further our work. Look for more of these events in 2018!
NEW LGBTQ+ SUMMIT: The first free annual gathering for Sonoma County LGBTQ+ individuals and allies of all ages was held in September under sponsorship of Positive Images with partial funding by the LGBTQI Giving Circle. It was such a huge success that another is being planned for this coming September. Don’t miss it!
NEW SONOMA COUNTY PRIDE EVENTS: Already in the planning and promising to be bigger and better than ever, somark your calendars for the first weekend in June for an all-age county-wide celebration! The Sonoma Valley LGBT Seniors Group will also be hosting a Gay Pride Tea Dance for older adults on Thursday, June 7th at Vintage House.
NEW LGBTQI FILM FESTIVAL: In 2017 OutWatch Film Festivalpartneredwith the Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival to bring us some short films of interest to our community and then, in spite of the fires, went ahead with their popular annual fall festival bringing us another great selection of films that mirror our lives and donating festival profits to our community’s fire victims. We look forward to more great films in 2018!
CONTINUING ON-LINE AND MEDIA SUPPORT: Our go-to website for news and LGBTQI events will continue to be www.gaysonoma.com with its special section for Seniors and station KRCB will continue to bring us current news and interesting interviews that address our community’s issues on its Outbeat Radio program.
CONTINUING CONNECTION OPPORTUNITIES: LGBTQI adults can continue to access informal networks such as Sonoma County Gaydar and LGBTQ Meetups.
Free film screening! El Canto del Colibri, Thursday, January 11th from 6:30-9 pm at the Arlene Francis Center- El Canto del Colibri is a documentary exploring the relationships between Latino immigrant fathers and their LGBTQ family members. This film is in Spanish with English subtitles, and we will have time before and after to share food and build community. This event was rescheduled after the fires in October, and we are really excited to share it with you all! This event is free but capacity is limited. Please reserve your spot here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/el-canto-del-colobri-film-screening-tickets-41027866453?aff=efbeventtix
Celebrate the renewal of our Santa Rosa LGBTQ youth group! Wednesday, January 17th, from 6-7:30 pm at VOICES Youth Center in Santa Rosa. Formerly known as Umbrella Union, our youth leaders are reimagining and reviving this bi-monthly support and social group to create some fresh energy and fun for the new year! Join us to share in this revisioning as we set intentions for the year and enjoy each other’s company.
Volunteer Orientation: Thursday, January 18th, 5-6 pm at VOICES Youth Center in Santa Rosa. Are you interested in helping support LGBTQ Connection by helping us out at community events, in the office, or at trainings? Come by our office on Thursday evening to learn more about how you might get involved. We will have snacks and community! Please shoot me an email if you plan to attend.
Half of us will become unable to speak for ourselves in a future medical situation, yet only 23 percent of adults have written advance health care directives defining our health care wishes.
To help residents think ahead about documenting their health care wishes, My Care My Plan: Speak Up, Sonoma County will host a free advance care planning workshop, Who Will Speak for You If You Can’t Speak for Yourself?, on Tuesday, January 16, 1:30–3:30 p.m., at the Redwood Credit Union Community Room, 3033 Cleveland Avenue, Santa Rosa. Register online at MyCareMyPlanSonoma.org under Events, by phone at (707) 565-5950 or by email to aasecretary@schsd.org.
“A medical crisis can happen any time that might leave us unable to speak for ourselves,” says Dorothy Foster, MFT and co-chair of My Care My Plan: Speak Up, Sonoma County. “That means that friends and family would need to make difficult choices for us. Having the conversation about your wishes is a gift to loved ones faced with that situation.”
The workshop will be led by Foster and Gary Johanson, MD, Medical Director, Memorial Hospice and Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Medical Director of Palliative Care Services. Attendees consider the type of care they’d want in a health crisis, and how to make their wishes known through thoughtful advance care planning and clear, written, advance health care directives. Presenters will also offer ideas for how to talk with family, loved ones, and health care providers about advance care plans and wishes.
My Care, My Plan: Speak Up, Sonoma County’s (MyCareMyPlanSonoma.org) vision is for every adult in the county to become educated and empowered to express his/her wishes about end-of-life care, that they have the opportunity to do so, and to have their wishes honored in a medical crisis. It is an initiative of the Committee for Healthcare Improvement and Sonoma County Health Action, which mobilize community partnerships and resources to achieve equity and improve health for all in Sonoma County. MCMP is a collaborative of organizations and individuals from the private, public, nonprofit, and volunteer sectors, including local health care and social service organizations and other community partners.
A group of 25 to 35 HIV/AIDS and drug pricing advocates, including many from AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), will stage a protest and picket line in front of the district office (4350 Executive Drive, Suite 105 in San Diego) of San Diego Congressman Scott Peters (D-CA, 52nd District) today Dec. 28 at 1:45 p.m. to denounce and protest his recent introduction of federal legislation that would severely curtail nonprofit hospitals’ participation in a federally-administered drug discount program that costs the government and taxpayers nothing, and which was specifically created to extend the lifeline of care and services that safety net hospitals and providers are able to deliver. Peters, a San Diego Democrat, co-sponsored the bill with Rep. Larry Bucshon (R-IN).
Peters, who has served in Congress since 2013, has taken more than $100,000 in contributions from the drug industry and biotech companies during his tenure. He introduced the bill, (H.R. 4710) which stops additional hospitals from participating in the 340B drug pricing discount program, on the Friday before Christmas with little public notice or input.
“Congressman Peters has taken well over $100,000 from pharma and biotech companies during his tenure in Congress, placing drug company profits over the health and wellbeing of his own constituents,” said Tracy Jones, National Director of Advocacy Campaigns for AHF. “His bill will make it much harder for nonprofit hospitals to participate in a program that provides more care—and costs the federal government nothing—in order to make his pharma donors and friends richer. Peters’ bill strangles hospitals with useless red tape, which will undoubtedly mean they will use the program less. Peters all but introduced this bill under cover of darkness on the Friday right before the Christmas holiday. He’s the Grinch who gave America a lump of coal, and drug companies even more money on top of their fat tax cut.”
Notably, there is also no mention or press release about H.R. 4710 on the congressman’s official website.
“Normally, when Members of Congress introduce bills, they trumpet the accomplishment in order to grab headlines and demonstrate to the public and their constituents that they are getting things done. Congressman Peters’ webpage features a lot of that,” said Tom Myers, General Counsel and Chief of Public Affairs for AHF. “However, there is nothing anywhere on his website for this bill, which suggests he is not proud of it. He likely knows it is bad policy and will not be popular, and that people will recognize that he is doing the bidding of pharma.”
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has announced key national and in-state staff to lead HRC Rising, a bold, proactive grassroots campaign to accelerate progress in states from coast-to-coast, resist the politics of hate, fight anti-LGBTQ legislation, and fuel pro-equality candidates and initiatives in 2018, 2020 and beyond.
HRC has begun recruiting at least 45 full-time political, field, grassroots organizing, volunteer engagement, communications, and digital staff for this earliest, largest grassroots deployment in its 37-year history. Today, HRC announced the first 12 staff, who will join more than two dozen existing staff working on the HRC Rising initiative. They will immediately begin working with HRC’s 32 existing, volunteer-led, local steering committees to expand local partnerships, recruit volunteers, mobilize constituents, register voters and grow the organization’s grassroots army to flex political muscle in legislatures and at the ballot box.
In Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, HRC is making an especially strong, early push to organize against the Trump-Pence agenda and support pro-equality candidates in coming elections. Newly hired State Managers will manage state staff and volunteers, and work with state and local organizations and partners in coalition to bolster efforts to advance equality, defend the LGBTQ community against attacks, and deliver wins for pro-equality candidates in order to lay the groundwork for future legislative victories. As part of HRC Rising, HRC will also expand its public education and programmatic initiatives to raise awareness about the scope and consequences of inequality and engage a broader swath of the public in our efforts to empower and improve the lives of LGBTQ people everywhere. This will include education about the lack of federal non-discrimination protections that leave LGBTQ people in 31 states at risk of being fired, denied housing, and denied services for who they are or whom they love.
The launch of HRC Rising comes after a year in which HRC significantly expanded its grassroots engagement and proved that the ten million LGBTQ voters in America — five percent of all voters — are one of the most important and effective voting blocs in the nation. Over the last year, HRC has refined its digital outreach, organizing and targeting, including the development of an “Equality Support” model. HRC can now target with a high degree of accuracy not only LGBTQ voters but allies — “equality voters” — who are likely to oppose candidates who attack the civil rights of LGBTQ people.
“The defeat of Pat McCrory in North Carolina and Roy Moore in Alabama show anti-equality politicians everywhere that ‘Equality Voters’ are a powerful voting bloc that can determine elections,” said JoDee Winterhof, HRC Senior Vice President of Policy and Political Affairs. “With so much at stake in 2018, it was more important than ever for us to make this crucial investment in on-the-ground staff a year before the election. Their work mobilizing, activating and harnessing the energy of our grassroots army of more than three million members will truly make the difference come November, and we’re excited for them to join the team as we enter the next stage in the fight for full LGBTQ equality.”
Geoff Wetrosky, former National Campaign Manager for the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), has been named Campaign Director for HRC Rising. Wetrosky has a decade’s worth of on-the-ground experience working on Democratic presidential, gubernatorial, US Senate, US House, and municipal-level campaigns in 11 different states. Long-time HRC Senior Regional Field Director Lynne Bowman, who has overseen HRC’s field efforts in the midwest and northeast since 2012, and Jonathan Shields, who helped lead HRC’s election efforts in North Carolina and across the country in 2016, have joined Wetrosky as Deputy Campaign Directors. Wes Schrock, who most recently built and executed the Democratic Party’s national volunteer program for Virginia’s 2017 elections, is serving as Campaign Coordinator.
HRC also announced four State Managers: Pennsylvania State Manager Allison VanKuiken, Ohio State Manager Shawn Copeland, Wisconsin State Manager Wendy Strout, and Nevada State Manager Briana Escamilla. HRC is also hiring state managers in Arizona and Michigan, who will be on board early next year.
VanKuiken, the former deputy field director for Pennsylvania Competes, joins the team after serving as Equality California’s program director and brings extensive campaign experience in state races in Michigan. Copeland comes to HRC after years leading field campaigns in Ohio for organizations including the Progressive Turnout PAC, NextGen Climate Ohio and Equality Ohio. Strout has deep experience in Wisconsin’s nonprofit advocacy world, building Emerge America’s statewide program in Wisconsin, and most recently leading field work for the Wisconsin AFL-CIO. Escamilla joins HRC from the League of Conservation Voters, where she was Nevada field director, and has also worked for the Nevada State Assembly and the State Democratic Party.
The state managers will manage incoming regional organizing leads, oversee statewide recruitment, cultivate and train volunteer leaders, and mobilize “Equality Voters” ahead of crucial 2018 elections in their states.
HRC is also expanding its digital and communications operations, with staff dedicated to strategic work supporting these in-state teams. Ianthe Metzger, who previously worked at HRC, is leading communications for the six priority states. Prior to rejoining the team she worked at the PR firm BerlinRosen where her clients included Planned Parenthood, the Southern Environmental Law Center and the Democratic Attorneys General Association. Senior Manager of Online Strategy Jacob Shlomo and social organizers Curtis Clinch and Charles Girard will be expanding HRC’s digital communication with members in the six priority states. Shlomo most recently worked at digital strategy firm Mothership Strategies, Girard comes from the HRC Foundation’s Welcoming School program, and Clinch has an extensive background in public relations and marketing for nonprofits.
July was AIDS Walk time for all of us at The Spahr Center. Thanks to the efforts of our board and staff, we raised over $20,000 to support HIV prevention and education in schools and the community. Many thanks to everyone who donated to make this fundraising event a huge success!
Academy of Friends Gala
The Spahr Center participated in The Academy of Friends Gala in February and we received a $10,000 grant at their awards ceremony.
New Grants
Innovation Grant
We received a $50,000 Innovations grant from the Marin County’s Behavioral Health Department in November to support LGBTQ youth and young adults in building community. This is the first grant The Spahr Center, or our predecessors, have received from the Behavioral Health Department. The funds will be renewed next July and extend to June 2019.
We also received our first grant from The Horizons Foundation in November for $5000 to support working with LGBT seniors.
Our new website!!
We hope everyone has had a chance to check out our new website. If not, we hope you will visit it soon – www.thespahrcenter.org. You can find the link for the calendar of events at the top on the right. Please let Bri know about events to be posted. She can be reached at 415-457-2487 x115 or email her at bsilva@thespahrcenter.org.
LGBT Senior Notes and News
The LGBT Senior Steering Committee formed as the outgrowth of our Senior Needs Assessment Lunch in October 2016. The committee divided in two, one group focusing on LBGT social activities and the other on program and service needs and fundraising.
Four LGBT senior luncheons were held at The Marin Yacht Club. The new LGBT Social Committee expanded the format to include music, dancing and a raffle. Committee members are now welcoming new people to be sure everyone feels included.
Nancy Flaxman conducted two cultural competence trainings, one in the spring for Marin County’s Older Adults Department and one in the fall at WhistleStop. Buz Hermes also did a training for an Older Adults conference in June. We also contracted with Buz to lead an eight week workshop on Aging Gayfully.
We are now offering a Senior LGBT exercise group here at The Spahr Center! Group meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays. Check it out on our calendar here
June PRIDE Picnic
We held a Marin Pride Picnic in June, co-sponsored by The Microsoft Store at The Village Mall in Corte Madera and The Kaiser Community Benefit Fund. The picnic was attended by by over 100 LGBTQ community members and allies. U.S. Representative Jared Huffman, Supervisor Damon Connolly and Bob Harmon of ACLU’s Marin Chapter, Janie Spahr and Floyd Tompkins spoke.
Board Notes
The board held a day-long retreat in September to outline goals for the next several years. Their primary focus is on increasing funding for LGBTQ programs and the costs of general administration including rent, operating costs and administrative staff.
Thank you to our Supporters for helping make this Holiday season inclusive for all our clients
At Thanksgiving, we provided Holiday bags with a turkey and trimmings for over 40 of our HIV+ clients and their families.
We held a Holiday Tea for LGBT seniors at WhistleStop on December 12th and a holiday party for HIV+ clients in The Spahr Center’s community room on December 20th.
Lastly
We close the year with a beginning. We’re forming a new, collaborative relationship with Marin Community Clinics as they begin providing HIV medical care for patients transferring from the county’s clinic which will close January 24th.
