Diversity Center July

July 7, 2013Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, July 9th meeting will feature The Diversity Center

Tuesday, July 9th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

pflag-diversity — Join PFLAG and the Diversity Center

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to learn about the Diversity Center and the many important programs they offer to the Santa Cruz County community. Discussion to follow. All welcome!

The Diversity Center will be sharing about their extensive programming in Santa Cruz County so that parents and the community at-large can access these important programs. Some of the programs offered by the Diversity Center include:

Santa Cruz LGBTIQ Pride: Produces the annual Santa Cruz LGBT Pride Festival and downtown Pride March. Pride is the largest LGBT gathering in the county.
Conexiones: The Latino/a program is committed to further expanding the Diversity Center’s accessibility, inclusivity, and outreach to the LGBT Latina/o and Spanish speaking community.
Triangle Speakers: An LGBT educational speaker’s bureau that works to eliminate the fear, prejudice, and hatred of individuals that are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and their allies.
Youth Program/STRANGE: A safe space for queer youth and allies to meet and socialize. Program co-run by SCCCC.
Transgender Program: The Diversity Center offers people who find themselves somewhere on the transgender spectrum a place to meet others, access transgender resources, and explore the possibilities in a respectful and caring environment.
Senior Program/60 Plus: Holds monthly socials for seniors, performs out-reach to mainstream service providers and needs assessment survey for the LGBT senior community.
Center Art Gallery: The Diversity Center is proud to feature local LGBTIQ and LGBTIQ-friendly artists at the Diversity Center Art Gallery located at 1117 Soquel Ave.
Rainbow Veterans of Santa Cruz County: Providing advocacy, recognition, education, support and resources for LGBT active duty personnel, veterans, their partners, family and friends.
GLBT Business and Professional Mixer: Join us for a great evening of food, beverages, and networking with other GLBT Business and Professionals.
Resource Directory: Online Resource Directory of people, businesses, and organizations serving the LGBT community of Santa Cruz County.
Community Center and Library: A place to relax, find community resources and borrow books from their lending library
“Night at the Museum” Casino Night 2013: Oct. 5, 2013: Save the date!

The Diversity Center guest speakers will be available to answer questions.

About the Diversity Center

The Diversity Center is dedicated to enhancing lives and promoting fairness for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) people in Santa Cruz County. Our vision is a healthy, vibrant, and diverse LGBTQ community in Santa Cruz County that is free from fear, hatred, and prejudice.

The Diversity Center is the only LGBTQ Community Center on the Central Coast of California. The Diversity Center produces the 3rd oldest Pride celebration in California and the largest free gathering on the Central Coast.

The Diversity Center serves the larger community through events and has specific programming for teens, seniors and the transgender community. Additionally we have our Triangle Speakers program, which is an educational speaker’s bureau that works to eliminate the fear, prejudice and hatred of LGBTQ individuals and their allies.

For more information about The Diversity Center, please visit www.diversitycenter.org or contact (831) 425-5422.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) of Santa Cruz County meets the second Tuesday of every month from 7-9 pm at First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz at 900 High Street in Santa Cruz.

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Diversity Center

July 7, 2013Uncategorizedjordan

Join us as the Diversity Center’s newest young
adults program, Out and Beyond, speaks to PFLAG

Tuesday, May 14th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

The ﬁrst hour of our meeting is dedicated to support groups, followed in the second hour by our speakers for the evening. Out and Beyond is a young adult group that ranges in age from 18-29 years old. They meet every Friday at the Diversity Center from 5:30pm-7:30pm for a fun game night, followed by a beach bonﬁre where they connect and ﬁnd fellowship and belonging. They participate in the LGBTQ Community and do fun activities that promote awareness of LGBTQ issues. Out and Beyond is a wonderful place for them to meet cool and interesting like-minded young adults.

Check them out on Facebook at Out and Beyond-Young Adults, or email them with questions at OutandBeyondCoordinator@gmail.com.

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Sharon Papo & Patti Weiss

April 10, 2013Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, April 9th meeting will feature Sharon Papo, new Executive Director of the Diversity Center, and Patti Weiss, Sharon’s mother-in-law

Tuesday, April 9th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to hear from Sharon Papo, new executive director of the Diversity Center, and Patti Weiss, Sharon’s mother-in-law. Sharon will share her experiences of being a love activist (which led her to get married 8 times to her beloved, Amber Weiss). Sharon will also share how being married has affected her as a spouse, parent and family member. Sharon’s mother-in-law Patti Weiss, will speak about her experience of being a parent. Discussion to follow. All welcome!

Sharon Papo

Sharon Papo is a Bay Area native who has been a community activist for over fifteen years. Before joining the Diversity Center, Sharon was the Executive Director of 3rd Street Youth Center and Clinic, a multi-service health center in Bayview Hunters Point, San Francisco. Sharon has also coordinated the Santa Cruz-based LGBT youth program “STRANGE” and worked as a counselor serving marginally housed youth. Additionally she was a health educator for foster care, homeless and incarcerated youth and served as the Program Director of Puente: Building Between Jews and Latinos. Sharon holds a BA from UC Santa Cruz in Feminist Studies and a Masters in Social Welfare from UC Berkeley with a concentration in management and planning Sharon lives in Santa Cruz, with her wife, Amber Weiss, and their son Skyler.

Patti Weiss

Patti Weiss is a Soquel resident who is a retired neo-natal nurse. Patti is a proud wife, mother, mother-in-law and grandmother. Patti is a talented jeweler and her company is called SHMLEY (See How Much I Love You) Creations. Patti donates all of her jewelry. Patti enjoys cooking amazing feasts, gardening, and putting Martha Stewart to shame with festive holiday decorating.

About the Diversity Center:

For more information about The Diversity Center, please visit www.diversitycenter.org or contact (831) 425-5422.

To reach Sharon Papo, Executive Director of The Diversity Center, call (831) 425-5422 x 101 or email spapo@diversitycenter.org

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

March 12th – Transfamily Support Group

February 27, 2013Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, March 12th meeting will feature the Transfamily Support Group

Tuesday, March 12th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Ron-&-Heidi-Koronkowski — Ron & Heidi Koronkowski

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to learn about the Transfamily Support Group and hear from some of the families who have benefited from the group. Discussion to follow. All welcome!

Transfamily Support Group

Originally founded by Shane Hill, the Transfamily Support Group has blossomed into a community of parents who are dedicated to supporting and loving one another through the process of their children’s transition. Now led by Heidi Koronkowski, the Transfamily Support Group is a parent-led peer-to-peer opportunity for parents of transgender-identified people to gather and share their experiences with one another as they receive the support they need.

The Transfamily Support Group of dedicated parents has been able to ask the questions, voice the fears, and see that they are not alone while being supported by one another. Through social events for parents and their kids and by providing parent-to-parent support, these once-isolated families continue to develop a thriving community. The Transfamily Support Group is a vital asset to the Santa Cruz families and continues to make an immeasurable impact on the lives of all they touch.

In 2012, the Transfamily Support Group received the Organizational Ally to Queer Youth Award at the 16th Annual Queer Youth Leadership Awards.

For more information, contact Heidi Koronkowski, Facilitator of the Transfamily Support Group, at info@santacruztrans.org or (831) 251-7749 or visit www.santacruztrans.org

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

LGBT Love Stories

February 7, 2013Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, February 12th meeting will feature LGBT Love Stories: Hear from local LGBT Couples

Tuesday, February 12th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Bring your family and friends, as will be celebrating with a wonderful holiday dessert
reception, and will highlight our first year of meetings.

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to hear from LGBT Couples & their love stories as well as a parent of a high school lesbian couple. Discussion to follow. All welcome!

Shaun & Michael (Mikey) Ordinario: “We will never forget May 23, 2008. It was the day that a chance meeting changed both of our lives forever. A chance meeting led to the most amazing relationship either one of us has ever had! We are best friends as well as partners! On July 24, 2010, we were married in front of 90 of our friends and family.”

Nanci Ryker-Judd, mother of Molly Jean Judd, shares about being the mother of a lesbian teen that has her heart set on activism. She will share the joys, the worries & the pride she has for her daughter & her partner, Kayla.

Adam & Scottie: Together since meeting in 2010, Adam and Scottie live together in the Seabright area of Santa Cruz, with their 2 dogs Pumpkin and Penny. Both Adam and Scottie work full time, and outside of work, Scottie is a local artist and Adam volunteers with the Diversity Center. Both Adam and Scottie identify as female to male transgender.

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

God and Gays: Bridging the Gap

December 29, 2012Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, January 8th meeting will feature the acclaimed documentary “God and Gays: Bridging the Gap”

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Bring your family and friends, as will be celebrating with a wonderful holiday dessert
reception, and will highlight our first year of meetings.

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to watch the documentary “God and Gays: Bridging the Gap” with a discussion to follow. All community members are welcome!

God & Gays: Bridging the Gap explores the religious struggle reconciling sexuality and spirituality. It gets into the head, heart and lives of the people who have found homosexuality and the Bible as their self-defining work. The film wrestles through the eyes and experiences of people wanting a relationship with the very religion that rejects them – Christian (Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Methodist, Baptist) Mormon, Catholic, Jehovah’s Witness, Jewish, Muslim and more. No matter the religion, the experience of oppression and repression is the same. Fortunately, many soon find it’s God that brings them out. A content-driven open and honest reflection of what it’s like to be gay and religious in America. Includes Rev. Dr. Mel White, Rev. Deborah L. Johnson, Jason Stuart, Mary Lou Wallner and Darlene Bogle. For more information about the film, visit: www.godandgaysthemovie.com

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Holiday Mixer 2012

December 6, 2012Uncategorizedjordan

Join us in celebration of PFLAG Santa Cruz County’s First Year Tuesday, December 11th!”

Tuesday, December 11th, 2012
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Bring your family and friends, as will be celebrating with a wonderful holiday dessert
reception, and will highlight our first year of meetings.

pflag-celebration — Click on image to download PDF

Help kick off our 2nd year of:

Supporting families
Monthly Support Groups
Monthly Programs
Community Outreach

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Supervisor Neal Coonerty

October 26, 2012Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, November 13th meeting will feature “An Evening with Santa Cruz County Supervisor Neal Coonerty”

Tuesday, November 13th, 2012
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Photo-of-Supervisor-Coonerty — Supervisor Coonerty

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to hear from Supervisor Neal Coonerty as he shares intimate stories during his years as a strong ally to the LGBT community, including his experiences with passing the first non-discrimination ordinance in the City of Santa Cruz which prohibited discrimination in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation & Gender Identity in 1992 as well as his experiences with building Bookshop Santa Cruz as one of the early book stores with an LGBT book section and LGBT Community bulletin board.

Neal Coonerty was elected to the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors in June 2006 and re-elected to another four year term in June 2010. Before being elected to the Board of Supervisors, Neal Coonerty was the owner and operator of Bookshop Santa Cruz in downtown Santa Cruz, a business he successfully ran since 1973. Supervisor Coonerty also served on the Santa Cruz City Council from 1990 to 1994, and was elected to serve as Mayor of Santa Cruz by his fellow council members in 1994.

While on the City Council, Neal introduced the City’s first non-discrimination ordinance which prohibited discrimination in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation & Gender Identity. In 1992, the City of Santa Cruz became one of the early cities to include Gender Identity.

Supervisor Coonerty graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, as an English literature major in 1969. He was born in Santa Maria, California, and grew up in Van Nuys, California. His wife, Lucie, is a retired elementary school teacher. His son, Ryan, a lecturer in legal studies at UCSC and Cabrillo College, was elected to the Santa Cruz City Council in 2004, and re-elected in 2008, and twice served as mayor of Santa Cruz in 2008 and 2011. His daughter, Casey Coonerty Protti, currently operates the family business, Bookshop Santa Cruz.

In addition to Supervisor Coonerty’s long-standing support of GLBT issues through the Bookshop and his tenure on the city council, he has continued his advocacy while serving on the Board of Supervisors by supporting critical legislation at the state and federal level and ensuring that county policies protect the rights of everyone in our community.

A special evening with Supervisor Neal Coonerty is not to be missed!

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Meet the Parents

October 5, 2012Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, October 9th meeting will feature “Meet the Parents: Celebrating National Coming Out Day”!

Tuesday, October 9th, 2012
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Sherry Register with her three foster children

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together for an intimate conversation with community leaders Jim Brown and his mom, Sherry and Steph Taylor and her mom, DeeDee. Hear their parents’ perspective about not only having a child coming out, but having them become a leader in the LGBTQ community.

The first hour of the PFLAG Santa Cruz County (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians & Gays) meeting is dedicated to discussion groups followed by a brief break. The second hour will be dedicated to our October keynote speakers “Meet the Parents: Celebrating National Coming Out Day.” Discussion around parents coming out within their extended family and community is an important aspect for LGBTQ community members. Please join us for this important and intimate conversation.

Sherry Register is a mother of three gay sons. She is also step mother of three and foster mother of three more! She was raised in the Mormon church, but left the church in her mid-twenties when she discovered deep inconsistencies in church doctrine.

Resources

National Coming Out Day was founded by Robert Eichberg and Jean O’Leary on October 11, 1988 in celebration of the second gay march in Washington D.C. a year earlier. The purpose of the march and of National Coming Out Day is to promote government and public awareness of gay, bisexual, lesbian and transgender rights and to celebrate homosexuality. National Coming Out Day is a time to publicly display gay pride. Many choose this day to come out to their parents, friends, co-workers and themselves.

Parents as Allies

It has been said that when gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender children come out, their parents go in the closet. Part of this angst is borne from the misconception that having a GLBT child means that the parents must have done something wrong in how they raised the child. One way parents can overcome some of their negative feelings is by educating themselves about the issues and talking with other parents of GLBT children. Through groups such as Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays parents are able to realize that they aren’t the only ones and can move from reacting to the news to acting on behalf of their child.

Most parents, once they are more comfortable with their gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender child, take their next step and come out to others. It may be when a family friend innocently asks when a son or daughter is “finally going to get married,” or when a relative tells an anti-gay joke at the family reunion. Some parents stop their journey once they have come out to family, while others come out to everyone possible.

In a conversation with Betty DeGeneres, Jeff Ellis, a conservative Christian and father of a gay son, said he was motivated by an anti-gay column in his local paper. “I just couldn’t stand it any more. I basically outed our family in the local paper and then wrote a letter to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.”

Ellis and his wife, Patti, could be considered “super-allies,” creating and maintaining a website for the parents of gays called Family Acceptance.

“Somehow I knew during those times that were so hard for us that there were parents out there who were struggling the same way we were and keeping silent about it,” said Patti Ellis. “But I knew that if I could ever get through this and find my way to the other side, I would try to do something for parents who were like us. Parents who weren’t ready to go to PFLAG but needed some answers, needed some comfort.”

Frequently asked questions about Coming Out

What is a straight supporter? How do I come out as a straight ally?

A straight supporter or straight ally is someone who supports and honors sexual diversity, acts accordingly to challenge homophobic remarks or behaviors and explores and understands these forms of bias within him- or herself. Just as it takes courage for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people to be open and honest about who they are, it also takes courage to support your LGBT friends or loved ones.

Straight allies are some of the most effective and powerful advocates for the LGBT movement and have proven to be invaluable personally and politically, and increasingly important in the fight for LGBT equality.

October is Queer History Month!

A special evening celebrating National Coming Out Day is not to be missed!

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

Jana Marcus

August 27, 2012Uncategorizedjordan

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, September 11th meeting will feature documentary photographer Jana Marcus!

Tuesday, September 11th, 2012
7:00 – 9:00 pm
First Congregational Church of Santa Cruz
900 High Street, Santa Cruz, 95060

Please join families from around Santa Cruz County as they come together to hear from documentary photographer Jana Marcus as she discusses her award-winning book Transfigurations and understanding the transgender community.

The first hour of the PFLAG Santa Cruz County (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians & Gays) meeting is dedicated to discussion groups followed by a brief break. The second hour will be dedicated to our September keynote speaker, documentary photographer Jana Marcus, who will talk about the making of Transfigurations and be joined by several of the people featured in her book.

Marcus’ book recently won the National Independent Publisher’s Gold Award for Best GLBT Non-Fiction Book of the Year, and BAYMEC named her the 2011 Community Activist of the Year.

Jana Marcus
Jana Marcus has been creating award-winning documentary photography for over 20 years. She is a professional photographer in the California Bay Area focusing on the documentary, editorial and performing arts genres. Her work has been exhibited across the United States and extensively published in newspapers and magazines. Jana received the UC Berkeley Center for Photography’s International Photojournalism Award for her series After Midnight: Youth Subcultures of New York City and she was recently named one of 50 Exceptional International Photographers by Exposure of New York.
Transfigurations, originally a 58-piece exhibit which toured galleries and universities across the U.S. from 2004 to 2010, was included in the prestigious Best Photos of The Year in both 2004 and 2005 by Photo District News of New York, as well as The International Photography Awards, The Phelan Art Awards, The Excellence in Photography Award from San Jose State University’s School of Art & Design, and The Center for Photographic Arts Awards.

Jana received her MFA from San Jose State University, a BA in Community Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz, and studied photography at The School Of Visual Arts in New York City. Jana’s first book, In The Shadow of the Vampire: Reflections From The World Of Anne Rice, was published by Thunder’s Mouth Press of New York. She frequently lectures on the subject of documentary photography.

Transfigurations_Book_cover — Transfigurations Book Cover

Transfigurations
Known for her compassionate and revealing photographic images of underground subcultures, documentary photographer Jana Marcus brings to book format her award-winning work, Transfigurations, a startling and ground-breaking photographic series on the transgender community.

Transfigurations explores transsexuals and their notions of masculinity and femininity as they change gender identities. Discovering that gender is both real and illusory, natural and constructed, Marcus’s photographs shed light on the transformation from one sex/gender to another. The series also explores the importance of the body to gender identity as well as the effects of transformative practices on the body, creating a reality beyond ordinary experience.

Get your autographed copy of Transfigurations during the September 11th PFLAG meeting at the special price of $20 per copy.

A special evening with Jana Marcus and her guests is not to be missed!

For more information please visit Jana Marcus Photography at www.janamarcus.com or www.7angelspress.com

Contact us at pflagscc@gmail.com, www.pflagscc.org, or call (831) 427-4016

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, July 9th meeting will feature The Diversity Center

Join us as the Diversity Center’s newest young adults program, Out and Beyond, speaks to PFLAG

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, April 9th meeting will feature Sharon Papo, new Executive Director of the Diversity Center, and Patti Weiss, Sharon’s mother-in-law

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, March 12th meeting will feature the Transfamily Support Group

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, February 12th meeting will feature LGBT Love Stories: Hear from local LGBT Couples

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, January 8th meeting will feature the acclaimed documentary “God and Gays: Bridging the Gap”

Join us in celebration of PFLAG Santa Cruz County’s First Year Tuesday, December 11th!”

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, November 13th meeting will feature “An Evening with Santa Cruz County Supervisor Neal Coonerty”

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, October 9th meeting will feature “Meet the Parents: Celebrating National Coming Out Day”!

PFLAG Santa Cruz County is proud to announce the Tuesday, September 11th meeting will feature documentary photographer Jana Marcus!

Join us as the Diversity Center’s newest young
adults program, Out and Beyond, speaks to PFLAG