By Greg Hernandez It had been a decade since Lisa Chilton had a home of her own, but she tried to remain even-keeled earlier this month as she moved her belongings into a studio apartment inside the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Ariadne Getty Foundation Senior Housing. The day after moving in, the 63-year-old took the bus to a friend’s barbecue a few miles away. She ate, socialized, and had a good time. When it came time for her to return home, the Chicago native began to shake and cry uncontrollably. “It was nothing but euphoria because, when I got ready…
Author: Greg Hernandez
I became a Center volunteer because I wanted to give back to my community and be a part of all the amazing things the Center is doing to help people. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began last year, I have been helping to serve box lunches to seniors in the plaza of the Anita May Rosenstein Campus. Engaging with the seniors during the lunch service is always memorable, and I am looking forward to when we get to return to serving them hot meals inside the Senior Center again someday. I also pack boxes of food in the Pride Pantry on Thursdays and greet food…
By Dr. Robert Bolan Over the course of my medical career I have seen the profound impact of tragedies and triumphs on our community. I graduated from medical school and completed my formal training in the 1970’s when there was no education about LGBTQ health issues. The consequences of the Stonewall riots in 1969 for the social revolution we called Gay Rights were just beginning to be felt. Inspired by those brave souls who stood up for their human rights to be respected and to love whoever they chose, I resolved to devote my career to improving health care for…
I had just gotten out of a five-year relationship when I came to the Center to get tested for HIV nearly a decade ago. It was the first time I had ever been tested in my life. I was sitting in the lobby and was so scared. Then I looked at the wall and saw a plaque dedicated to Pedro Zamora who I remembered from The Real World in the 90s. When I was a kid, I identified with Pedro because he was a person of color who was advocating for health care for people like him. It was the…
By Greg Hernandez In what Los Angeles LGBT Center Director of Youth Services Lisa Phillips describes as “a once in a lifetime opportunity,” 22 youth members experiencing homelessness have been selected to receive 10 years of rental housing assistance from the federal government. “People could not be more elated,” Phillips tells LGBT News Now. “There is just a great sense of relief and excitement. For a population that we see hasn’t had a lot of breaks in life, it’s well deserved and very exciting!” When thousands of emergency housing vouchers became available throughout Los Angeles County as part of the federal…
By Greg Hernandez When Michael Arrigo celebrates his 65th birthday this week, he will mark the milestone with a roof over his head in a home he now calls his own. Arrigo, who has Parkinson’s Disease and is nearly blind, had spent much of the past two years either splitting the cost of a motel room with a friend—only when he could afford to do so—or spending the night in a park. In September he became one of the first residents to move into the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Ariadne Getty Foundation Senior Housing building. “This is so clean—I love…
The work of underserved youth who have flourished as artists with the help of Art Division will be featured in an online exhibit hosted by the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Advocate & Gochis Galleries. The exhibit goes live on Sept. 23 and celebrates the 10th anniversary of the grassroots organization that trains and supports youth studying visual arts after they turn 18. “Art Division is at the forefront of developing young artists and getting exposure for them,” says Jon Imparato, the Center’s Director of Cultural Arts. “It’s an honor to collaborate with them and bring this outstanding work to our…
By Lorri L. Jean I remember the night so well. It was November 4, 2008, and the Center had planned a big election party for the LGBTQ community at the Music Box Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Hundreds of people had already gathered at the venue when the networks announced, at exactly 8 p.m., that Barack Obama would become the first Black president of the United States. The crowd saw the announcement on the huge TV screens around the venue and, communally sensing the historic nature of the evening, erupted into a volcanic roar of joy. Our joy was short-lived. Before…
I always feel comfortable at the Center which has been there for me in so many ways including legal services and housing. I really appreciate everything. Everyone needs some type of help at some point, and that is why I like to give back in any way I can. During the pandemic, I have packed groceries each week at Pride Pantry. I put in the effort, and it is coming from love. Everyone around me is happy because I work very fast. Last week I was packing, and one of the staff members asked, ‘Can I take a picture of…
By Greg Hernandez Rainbow-colored balloons and cheerful volunteers greeted members of the public on Friday as the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s bustling Pride Pantry opened its new headquarters. Bags of fresh produce and boxes of dry goods are now being distributed each week from the Center’s building at 1111 Las Palmas Ave., one block east of its initial location on McCadden Place. Launched in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, the pantry had been housed inside of the Pride Hall event space inside of the Center’s flagship Anita May Rosenstein Campus. Many of the clients who receive food each…