By Greg Hernandez When U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff paid a visit to the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Anita May Rosenstein Campus on Thursday, he quickly got to work handing out free boxed lunches in the courtyard. “Is that Adam Schiff?” asked a surprised Carolina Lynn as she waited in line for her meal. “I’m glad he came!” So were lunch recipients Vernel Primus and Dolly Boyd who, after receiving their food, excitedly asked the low-key Schiff to pose for some socially-distanced selfies. Schiff helped to distribute boxed meals consisting of chicken and rice salad with roasted collard greens, Brussel sprouts,…
Author: Greg Hernandez
When I got furloughed from my job, I realized I’d have a lot more time on my hands and wanted to give back to the community. I began volunteering at the Center in the Senior Pride Pantry where I am putting together packages of food and supplies and delivering them to senior clients. Food scarcity is increasing during the pandemic, and the needs of our seniors has grown. It is very moving to me to see the gratitude on the recipients’ faces—through a mask, of course—and hearing them say that I’ve made their day. Getting those bags of groceries is…
The COVID-19 pandemic has deprived local audiences of live theater for more than six months. But that will change beginning October 17 with the inaugural production of the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s innovative new live theater series, Garage Theatre. MARCH, an original political drama of peril and liberation, will be performed in the unique, experimental space of an underground parking structure located below the Center’s Anita May Rosenstein Campus in Hollywood. “This is something everyone is hungry to do. We thought we wouldn’t see live theater until 2021, but here we are in the fall with live theater,” says director…
I came to work at the Center because I really love helping young people, and I wanted to make a difference. I began as a Youth Advocate then became a Life Skills Specialist and now I’m a Youth Care Specialist for our drop-in space. I was a teenage mom, and I’ve been on my own since I was 16. I understand that our clients are young, and they have to go through their bumps and bruises just like I did. I’ve learned to be transparent and let them know that we all have troubles and struggles. It’s about being human and not having a…
By Greg Hernandez Robert Harrison had just graduated from UCLA with a degree in psychology in 1980 when he decided to become a Center volunteer. He had no idea that 40 years later—through law school, the AIDS crisis, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, marriage equality, six presidential elections, and now a worldwide pandemic—he’d still be volunteering. Harrison was 23 when he became a facilitator of a men’s discussion group and soon after the men’s coming out group. “It was mostly men getting together and worried about coming out and being discriminated against,” he recalled. “The main discussion was about trying to…
It was 2004 when The MisMatch Game performed for the first time onstage at the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Renberg Theatre. Over the course of 16 years, creator and host Dennis Hensley and a rotating company of 48 lunatic celebrity impersonators have done 82 shows and raised more than $164,000 for the Center. And, not even the COVID-19 pandemic can stop them. On September 25 and 26, the outrageous parody of the ‘70s TV game show The Match Game will once again take place but, for the first time, online. The cost to tune in from home is $15 —…
I’m retired and have plenty of spare time so I know how easy it is to become isolated from time to time. When someone from the Center’s Hello Club called to check in on me last spring, I decided to volunteer and become a Hello Club caller myself. I managed to work through minor frustrations like technical glitches and realized I am still capable of learning and becoming better at doing things. I approach the people whom I call as peers because I have been through—and still going through—many of life’s ups and downs and sheer boredom. One of the…
Midway through the September 12 Love in Action telethon benefitting the Los Angeles LGBT Center, co-host Jane Lynch told KTLA 5 and livestream viewers worldwide that she had a feeling in her bones. “I just know we’re going to exceed our $1 million goal tonight,” predicted the five-time Emmy winning actress and TV game show host. Lynch was absolutely correct. By the end of the incredible two-hour show a total of $1,273,063 had been raised for the Center’s vital programs and services which have been in more demand since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of Tuesday, the Center confirms donations were still coming in with a final total that could exceed the $1.3…
My position at the Los Angeles LGBT Center is the first job I’ve had where I’ve been able to be out as a queer and nonbinary person from day one. I haven’t had to worry about teaching Transgender 101 to all of my colleagues—the team I work with respects my pronouns—and I have never had to worry about being discriminated against for my identity. My previous job in customer service at a large corporation was, objectively, a good job, but I didn’t find a lot of meaning in it. What I did enjoy about that job was the emphasis on volunteerism, and I…
By Greg Hernandez It was tough emotionally for Clarence R. Williams to watch as others took to the streets this summer for Black Lives Matter marches and demonstrations. He channeled his feelings into a poem he titled I Could Not March in which he wrote in part: There will always be driving while Black, shopping while Black, jogging while Black, and bird watching while Black. And yes, Barbecues with loud music, Skittles, and ice tea. Allies, will you still stand after the photo ops and Twitter feeds die? Will you stand in the truth of justice and righteousness? Or will…