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Want to go to the Movies?
Stills from the Film
Pride Foundation is proud to partner with Q-Doc, the only festival in the United States, and only the second in the world, devoted exclusively to Queer Documentaries. For seven years Q-Doc has worked closely and in connection with our friends over at the Q-Center to put on this informative festival.
With our commitment to supporting and lifting up all sides of the equality movement we will be sponsoring Girl Or Boy, My Sex Is Not My Gender.
Q-Doc festival co-founder Russ Gage describes the film as “an entertaining documentary profiling four people from Paris, Barcelona, New York and San Francisco, each on the female-to- male gender spectrum who are reinventing and questioning the border between ‘man’ and ‘woman.’”
The Festival is May 17 - 20
He also tells me they are bringing one of film’s subjects, Lynee Breedlove from San Francisco, to Portland to discuss the film.
Girl or Boy, My Sex Is Not My Gender
Friday, May 18, 6:45pm
Kennedy School Theater
(5736 NE 33rd Avenue)
Tickets: $9 general/ $7 senior/student
http://www.queerdocfest.org
Let us say thank you and take you to the movies! Pride Foundation has a limited number of tickets to give to away. To attend this event email our Regional Development Organizer in Oregon Jett Johnson.
What Prom Means To Enrique
Enrique (center) with fellow Living Room Board Members, Alexandra and Kelly
Guest blogger, Enrique, is a youth Board Member of Clackamas County’s The Living Room, a safe haven for LGBTQ youth in Clackamas County. The Living Room’s recent LGBTQ Prom was attended by over 120 LGBTQ and straight ally youth from all parts of Clackamas County, a rural community just outside of Portland, OR. Pride Foundation is proud to sponsor this important rite of passage for high school students from all parts of our community.
When I think of prom, lots of thoughts and ideas come to mind. A lot of those ideas are the clichéd images of heterosexual couples that go to prom, where the guy asks the girl in some grand gesture. Overall, prom in my mind is one of the larger ‘Coming-Of-Age’ events that high school students pass through. It’s the one night of the year that you can be as formal as you want and still have tons of fun dancing and being around friends. Being an LGBTQ youth, it’s a blessing to know that for my first prom, I can go with whomever I want – whether it is a friend or a date, a guy or a girl – without being questioned because of my sexuality. That comfort and excitement is what I think all students going to any dance should experience.
Prom is one of those coming of age events that brings me a little further in my high school experience. As an LGBTQ youth I should be able to go to prom like everybody else, even if my date is a member of the same sex. LGBTQ youths aren’t as openly invited to come to prom, which I think is totally absurd, it’s comforting to know that we have an alternative option to prom. Instead of putting ourselves at risk of having to put up with non-supportive classmates, we can go to the alternative prom where we can be in a comfortable and safe environment to experience prom like everyone else.
This choice of an alternative prom is a gift in which some don’t appreciate as much as others, but as I said “it’s a blessing”, to know that not only I, but also Clackamas County LGBTQ youth have the option of making that important rite of passage in their adolescence by experiencing prom in a safe, positive, and welcoming environment. With the deepest thanks and admiration to Pride Foundation and for those who present the option of Alternative prom to me and others, I thank you.
The Living Room programs are open to youth between the ages of 14 and 20. They currently offer weekly drop-in services in Oregon City, every Wednesday from 4:00 to 8:00 PM. In addition, they host events such as the Annual GSA Summit, Clackamas County Alternative Prom, and monthly Gay-Straight Alliance Meet-Ups.
To find out more about The Living Room or other Pride Foundation partnerships in Oregon contact Jett, Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Oregon. Email Jett.
Raising Our Voices: Lesbian Songs of Joy and Community in Oregon
The Singers of Soromundi
Guest Blogger Mary K. Robertson is part of the Pride Foundation Community in Oregon. She shares the triumphant story of Eugene’s Soromundi Choir, a musical place that celebrates song and diversity.
When Amber was in fifth grade her teacher told her to “just mouth the words.” Gani’s teacher said she was tone deaf. Kara finally got up her nerve to try out for a musical her senior year, but was given an impossibly highly-pitched piece to sing. “My audition was a train wreck,” she remembers ruefully.
Not auspicious musical beginnings — yet these three women now join over a hundred others once a week to make music together, and to heal themselves and their community. As part of Soromundi: Lesbian Chorus of Eugene — one of the country’s largest community LGBTQ choirs — members commit to a grueling practice and performance schedule because they believe their visibility and power can help bring healing.
“We think music should be available to everyone,” says Amber, Soromundi’s president. “Singing in a choir is a way to connect both with the people you sing with, and the people you sing to,” points out Gani.
Helping others gain access to music is such a passion with the choir that last month, these three joined thirty other chorus members, along with community and granting partners like Pride Foundation, to help bring music back to a local high school.
The choir practices at North Eugene High School. At North Eugene, the choir room sat empty – due to school budget cuts to the arts – except on Soromundi’s rehearsal night. “It was hard, knowing there was no school choir there anymore,” says Amber. Dingy paint and tattered acoustic tiles lining the walls didn’t help the mournful atmosphere.
North Eugene High Principal Anne Erwin and Soromundi members saw an opportunity. Why not completely renovate the North Eugene choir room resulting in a first-class choral space that could be used by the students as well as the community? It could support the school’s efforts to restore a choral music program and make another large choral space available to Eugene.
“We love having Soromundi here. They bring this incredible energy and spirit with them each week,” says Anne, a strong proponent of partnering with community groups. “We leave here at 4:00, so having them sing is a way to keep our school vibrant after the students leave for the day.”
Pride Foundation provided seed money and the school kicked in the materials for the first phase of the renovation. Soromundi members brought the scaffolding and the labor force, and the crew was able to completely refresh the room before the school’s scheduled open house for prospective students. Next on the project list is rebuilding the wooden risers, installing insulation to improve the room’s sound, and repairing the damaged acoustic tiles that line the choir room walls.
Chorus members and students alike are eager to help.
“I came to paint because I had those opportunities as a kid,” says Daryl, who joined the choir eight years ago. “I can’t imagine my life without the music education I had as a kid. I want to give a little back so other kids can learn and come to appreciate music.”
As for Kara? After her disastrous high school audition, she didn’t open her mouth to sing in front of another human until coworkers encouraged her to join Soromundi. “I was really scared but I walked through that door and was welcomed with open arms, where I’ve been happily singing ever since—that was in 2001. I cannot imagine my life without music now!”
Learn more about Soromundi: Lesbian Chorus of Eugene here. Catch Soromundi’s next concert May 19 at Eugene’s Hult Center for the Performing Arts. The letters of inquiry online application for our 2012 granting cycle will be available June 1. To find out more about Pride Foundation’s Granting cycle, email Oregon Regional Development Organizer Jett Johnson.
Celebrating Oregon’s Scholars and Volunteers
Volunteer superstar Guadalupe Quinn
Pride Foundation donors and volunteers in Oregon and throughout the Northwest are helping us transform our communities and culture. This month we’re celebrating the transformative and impactful work of our Scholarship Program — one of the largest LGBTQ and straight ally scholarship programs in the United States — with the announcement of our 2012 scholars.
Our Scholarship Program would be nothing without our team of passionate and dedicated volunteers. Our team of volunteers was made up of an amazingly diverse, smart, and talented group of individuals. Oregon’s scholarship selection committee is as diverse as the candidates themselves. One such volunteer is longtime community organizer, immigrant rights activist, and social justice champion Guadalupe Quinn.
Guadalupe is a long-time community activist who has been working for over 25 years in the areas of human rights, racial justice, economic justice, worker rights, and immigrant rights. She is the Immigrant Rights Advocacy Program Coordinator with Amigos Multicultural Services Center in Eugene. For the past 15 years, Guadalupe’s work has focused on immigrant rights at the local, state, and national level. A Mexican immigrant, she has lived in the United States for more than 60 years and in Oregon since 1978.
“One of the best things about working in the community, beside it being the best classroom, is the people and the organizations that you get to meet and work with,” says Guadalupe.
Guadalupe’s passion for youth and equitable access to education is evidenced in her relationship with the youth group Juventud FACETA which works with Latino immigrant teens in leadership development.
Luckily for Pride Foundation, Guadalupe graciously accepted our invitation to serve on the Scholarship Committee. With so many uniquely qualified applicants, Guadalupe had the difficult task of selecting our 2012 scholars. However, she still feels it was “a great opportunity to support students in their struggle to get through school” and “can’t wait to tell more people about the impact and significance of Pride Foundation’s Scholarship program.”
Pride Foundation’s Scholarship program began in 1993. Since then, it has awarded almost $3 million dollars to 1200 students. Scholarship awards support LGBTQ and straight ally students who have shown leadership to advance the LGBTQ community. The scholarships are intended to support various programs—2 year degrees, 4 year degrees, vocational programs and graduate studies, to students of all ages.
Congratulations again to all our 2012 Pride Foundation Scholars in Oregon and across the Northwest. Read more about our 2012 Scholars.
To learn more about our Scholarship Program and making an investment with Pride Foundation, email Oregon Regional Development Organizer Jett Johnson.
Valley AIDS Information Network Hosts First AIDS Walk
VAIN's AIDS Walk on May 6, 2012
Guest blogger, Daniel Howard, Vice President of the Valley AIDS Information Network–a Pride Foundation Grantee–shares with us the importance of raising awareness around HIV and AIDS in rural communities. Valley AIDS Information Network, Inc. (VAIN) is a community based all volunteer HIV/AIDS Service Organization serving Linn and Benton Counties in Oregon. Our Mission is two-fold; To prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, Sexually Transmitted Diseases and hepatitis-C by providing community education programs -and- To provide support to persons living with HIV/AIDS, their families and caregivers.
Benton, Linn, and Marion Counties are rural areas in which the Valley AIDS Information Network (VAIN) serves. There, individuals do not receive the same services or advocacy awarded to other areas with greater access to services. Our AIDS walk is very important to these communities we serve serve, Benton, Linn and Marion Counties in helping to raise awareness and help erase the stigma and misinformation associated with persons living with HIV and AIDS.
The first annual VAIN AIDS Walk 2012 has been organized in conjunction with our sponsors: Pride Foundation, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), Pastini Pastaria, Corvallis Community Alliance for Diversity the Oregon State University (OSU) Pride Center, OSU Graphics Studio Club, First United Methodist Church of Corvallis, Bristol-Meyer Squib, and VAIN volunteers.
This walk aims to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS and show support for those living with HIV/AIDS in our community. Hosted in historic downtown Corvallis on SW 2nd Street and Western Street on Sunday May 6th, registration will begins at 10:00 AM with the walk starting at 11:00 AM.
Speakers and a rally will commence at the finish line. The event will benefit our all-volunteer organization and allow the expansion of our volunteer activities as well as provide funds for future community-wide events such as the AIDS Walk 2013.
This is a unique opportunity to act as a VAIN ambassador; we invite you to show your support and enthusiasm! It is our hope that you will not only participate in AIDS WALK 2012 but also encourage your family, friends, and community members to participate as well. We are of course available to answer any questions that you might have and look forward to doing so. Please feel free to contact VAIN President Bob Skinner through e-mail or by phone at 541-752-6322.
For more information about our grantees please Contact Oregon Regional Development Organizer, Jett Johnson.
Standing on Ceremony – The Gay Marriage Plays
Visit artistsrep.org to purchase tickets
Marriage Equality is a topic that has been in the news a lot lately. While public perception is shifting, and national polls show just over 50 percent of folks believe in the freedom to marry for committed gay and lesbian couples there is still much work to be done if we’re going to win here in Oregon.
What better way to show your support for the freedom to marry and support a former Pride Foundation Grantee than to spend an evening at the theater? Bring your friends, family, and others; especially those who haven’t fully embraced marriage equality, (come on, admit it, you have that special friend who needs that extra nudge).
Artists Repertory Theatre is the longest-running professional theater company in Portland. Pride Foundation is very excited to sponsor the play, Standing On Ceremony.
The work consists of nine, 10-minute plays written by a variety of very well-known playwrights on topics and issues surrounding gay marriage, performed in a staged-reading format by local performers.
The playwrights whose short plays are featured in the Standing On Ceremony anthology are Obie and Ace Award winner Mo Gaffney, Heideman Award winner Jordan Harrison, Pulitzer Prize winner and Tony Award nominee Moisés Kaufman, Tony Award nominee Neil LaBute, Sundance Jury Prize winner Wendy McLeod, Obie Award winner José Rivera, Obie and Outer Critics Circle Award winner Paul Rudnick, and Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winner Doug Wright. To produce these plays rights-holders require that a portion of the proceeds be donated to a local organization working toward marriage equality and request that a wedding cake is served after each show.
Artists Rep has partnered with Basic Rights Oregon, who will share the proceeds of this production.
Performance Dates:
Friday & Saturday, April 6 & 7 @ 10pm
Friday & Saturday, April 13 &14 @ 7:30pm
Sunday April 15 @ 2pm
Thursday –Saturday, April 19-21 @ 7:30pm
Venue:
Artists Repertory Theatre – Morrison Stage (15th and Morrison St.)
Box Office:
503.241.1278 or www.artistsrep.org
Jett Johnson is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Oregon. Email Jett.
Kris Hermanns is Headed to the City of Roses and You’re Invited
Kris Hermanns is Coming to Oregon!
I’m sure you heard Pride Foundation has a brand-new Executive Director, and guess what; she’s headed to the Beaver State! Over the past four months since joining, Pride Foundation she has hit the ground running working on things like marriage equality in Washington and securing protections for LGBT Alaskans. There are so many great things happening across our 5 states in the northwest for equality; now is your chance to chat with Kris and fill her in on all the brilliant things you’re working on in Oregon!
On Thursday, April 26th, starting at 5:30pm the Q-Center will graciously host Pride Foundation for an early evening of conversation, laughter, and celebration. You’re invited; yes you, to meet Kris Hermanns (she’s pretty awesome). Come and introduce yourself as we show Kris a warm Oregonian welcome.
Kris is really looking forward to heading to Portland– “I relish every chance that I have to meet Pride Foundation’s grantees, donors, volunteers, and scholars – which is why I’m so excited by my upcoming trip to Portland. There is no doubt that I will be meeting creative, thoughtful and caring people that share Pride Foundation’s vision for LGBTQ equality. Oregon has such a great tradition of LGBTQ leadership with groups like past grantees Basic Rights Oregon, Western States Center, Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon (PPSO), Oregon Safe Schools and Communities Coalition, Human Dignity Coalition, and Portland Latino Gay Pride—and I really hope I get to meet some of the folks from Friendly House’s Gay and Grey program for elders!” See, I told you she was awesome.
We hope to see you all at the Q-Center on Thursday, April 26th from 5:30pm-7:30pm. If you have questions or would like more information please don’t hesitate to email or call Oregon’s Regional Development Organizer Jett Johnson, 541-603-8626 or [email protected]
Austin Unbound: The First Documentary about a Man Who is Deaf and Trans
Marquee for Austin Unbound
The groundbreaking film, “Austin Unbound,” chronicles years in the life of Austin, a trans and deaf man in Oregon. Now receiving international attention, the director, Eliza Greenwood -who received the first grant for the production from Pride Foundation in 2006 – shared with us her own journey through the production of this film.
Directors Commentary
Many people have asked what inspired me to create the film “Austin Unbound.” Along with finding Austin wildly entertaining, I decided I wanted to document the journey of this funny and fascinating character, because of a change I noticed in myself. Prior to meeting him, transgender issues were unfamiliar to me. My first instinct was to distrust the transgender experience. As someone who is incredibly comfortable with my own female body, I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to ‘disown their gender’. I was deeply immersed in the Deaf community, where I met Austin, and something inside me changed upon our meeting. Although my brain did not find logic in it, it wasn’t my place to judge. I was gifted with this moment and I wanted other people to have that chance, to meet him and accept him as a human being.
Getting to Know Austin-
He is a Deaf transman, Austin, is 31 years old. He has struggled with feeling burdened by his female anatomy all his life. In middle school, he changed his name and began to dress as a boy. Despite his challenges, Austin is a regular guy with a comedic sense and flair for romance and storytelling. Gathering varying intimate glimpses from his mother, girlfriend, and best friend, Austin shamelessly counters with his own perspective on his personal journey.
The film follows him and his best friend on the road trip to finally meet his surgeon and undergo a double-mastectomy. Inviting viewers into the operating theatre, they bear witness to the happiest day of Austin’s life. His journey is an inspiration to many, his self awareness, humor, and personality long recognized and honored in his community. The use of specific cinematography, subtitles, and sound design reflect Austin’s Deaf experience in cinematic effect.
A photo of Austin
A Film is Born
I spent seven years producing “Austin Unbound.” It finally premiered in November, 2011. Throughout production, my crew and I were convinced that Austin’s story deserved a high quality film accessible to broad audiences, while also staying true to the artistic concept of “silent film with music” which honors the Deaf community.
We ignored suggestions to hire voice-actors, while noting that securing funding with this kind of sound-design was going to be a challenge. One of our first grants came from Pride Foundation, in 2006. This award of $2150 was a godsend. It helped us hire Seattle-based Basil Shadid, a professional editor, who gelled incredibly with the project and joined in full-force, moving us towards the finish line. Because of the impact of the grant and my admiration for their work, I decided to get involved with Pride Foundation as a volunteer. In doing so I was able to further hone and develop my skills as a community leader and activist.
I am pleased to say that the sound-design and treatment of the film are exactly how we pictured it because it brings the audience into Austin’s world. Upon completion, Pride Foundation awarded an additional $1500 to help move us into this next phase of releasing the film. Thanks to Pride Foundation’s financial support of the project, as well as the skill-building I was the beneficiary of, “Austin Unbound” is finally being shared nationally and internationally.
Jett Johnson is Pride Foundation’s Regional Development Organizer in Oregon. Email Jett.
Update: Director Eliza Greenwood just let us know that Austin Unbound was selected to screen at the 3rd KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival to be held from May 23rd to May 27th, 2012!
Cliff Cook: local Bend resident, Pride Foundation monthly donor
Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love. – Lao TzuCliff Cook is a local Bend resident and recent addition to the Pride Foundation’s monthly giving program. He is also a local community leader who has created the Stars and Rainbows Group. He started his group as a way to generate community for LGBTQ and allied folks in Central Oregon. I recently had a chance to sit down with Cliff, a retired school teacher, to find out what compels him to give.
Cliff
Why do you give to Pride Foundation?
I give to Pride Foundation because I like that five Western States (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington) are involved with the funding. I believe that if all of us give a little each month then we have the opportunity together to make an impact of the lives of many people who need help for one reason or another. I don’t think you have to make a significant contribution to have an impact; slow and steady is better than no contribution at all.
With so many great organizations doing work in Oregon, why Pride Foundation? Do you give with your values?
I had the opportunity to serve on a Grant Committee and read and evaluate the Letters of Inquiry. I was so impressed with the obvious need in so many of our communities as well as the key areas Pride Foundation funds through their grants program; arts and recreation, youth and family, HIV/AIDS Service Prevention and Education, Health, and Community Service. Such good work is being done in so many locations across the state you can’t help but want to help!!
I fully support the same values that are the values of the Pride Foundation; that of diversity, and mutual respect and to celebrate complete equality. How hard is that to support?!?
Tell me about Stars and Rainbows and why you decided to start the group…
I moved back to Bend full time about 18 months ago and I realized there seemed to be few opportunities for LGBTQ folks to get together and enjoy the company of like minded people. So I met with a few of my friends and we talked about how to create the opportunity for social gatherings. I knew about the web site called Meetup.com and so we decided to simply try to promote activities like a pizza night, a movie night, a happy hour night, a snowboard/skiing day, a mountain bike ride, and book club, bowling evening and more. We picked public places where the only costs would be the event and we posted our activities on Meetup and over a period of a year we’ve grown from about 35 members to over 260. It is pretty remarkable; attendance at each event ranges from a dozen to sometimes a couple dozen. I think this is especially important in a small town where there are so few opportunities for LGBTQ folks to get together.
Jett Johnson, who interviewed Cliff, is the Pride Foundation Regional Development Organizer in Oregon. To talk to Jett about monthly giving, or other ways to get involved email [email protected].
Volunteer: From Grant Writing to Grant Giving
Volunteer and guest writer Kori Rodley with Teri Schlesinger on their wedding day
Kori Rodley, a Pride Foundation grants volunteer, shares the experience of what it was like to get to give the money away to great grantees.
As someone who has written dozens of grant proposals, the opportunity to be on the “giving” side of the granting process was one I just couldn’t pass up. While mission, purpose and work plans are important to any nonprofit endeavor—whether it be performance, direct human services, or advocacy—having the financial support from like-minded funders is what really makes the magic happen. I think it is especially critical for LGBTQ issues and challenges—we need funders like the Pride Foundation who truly understand the realities of our regional and local work, and we need a way for individual donors to get involved and connected with the Pacific Northwest community.
I volunteered to be part of the grants program—first as part of the committee reading and evaluating letters of inquiry and then as part of the committee evaluating and awarding final grants for Oregon—for a variety of reasons. My initial motivation was really curiosity—I wanted to know how the process worked and how decisions were made? I also wanted an “insider’s” look at what all the other organizations and activists were doing statewide: where was our movement headed? As executive director of Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC), part of my job is to cultivate vision and connect our local work on LGBTQ rights and issues with those regionally and nationally. We do a great deal of cross-issue social justice work and I was eager to be inspired by the work that others are doing too!
In thinking about what my contribution might have been to the granting process for this most recent round, I believe my age (45) and experience as a grassroots organizer and activist, as well as an understanding of the benefits of supporting smaller, rural, or cross-issue organizations came in handy. After years of doing this work, I tend to see the “big picture” and understand that movement building has various phases. Sometimes, one or two thousand dollars can have an enormous impact on a small town or rural county—more than $20,000 does in a large urban area. The more organizations the Pride foundation can fund and support, the stronger our LGBTQ community is statewide and around the region!
We have a responsibility to create a stronger community for future generations—both for those who are LGBTQ and those who are not. This means strengthening the infrastructure of our community—everything from PFLAG chapters to care options for our elders. For my partner Teri and I, donating to Pride Foundation was another obvious way for us to contribute and encourage the work we value so intensely. We move in the world as out lesbians, as mothers of five young adults and as foster parents to a previously homeless, queer high school senior—our home life, work life and community involvement are motivated by our passionate desire to create a world that is safe, inclusive and respectful for everyone. Our involvement with the Pride Foundation fits perfectly.
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