PGN Dec. 20-26, 2013 by The Philadelphia Gay News

The City of Brotherly Love says “I Love Lucy” PAGE 27

Holiday lists

Family Portrait: Avis Albaladejo: Front and centered

PAGE 10 Staff holiday wishes “What holiday gift have you always PAGE 11 wanted but never gotten?”

ACLU asked to provide relationship backgrounds for lawsuit

PAGE 29

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Dec. 20-26, 2013

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Vol. 37 No. 51

Corbett backs HB 300 By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com

BACK IN ACTION: Brittany Lynn (center) unveiled new components to this year’s LGBT drag presence at the annual New Year’s Day Mummers Parade at a Dec. 17 press conference at the Mummers Museum. This year’s event will feature 17 drag performers — 11 queens and six kings, with the latter making their debut in the event. For more coverage, see page 5. Photo: Scott A. Drake

Psych exam ordered for alleged murderer of transwoman By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com A man accused of brutally murdering a transwoman this past summer will undergo a psychological evaluation before trial, according to a judge’s ruling this week. Charles Sargent, 44, came before Municipal Court Judge Teresa Carr Deni Dec. 17 for a preliminary hearing at the Criminal Justice Center. Sargent is charged with murder, possession of an instrument of crime and abuse of corpse in connection to the stabbing death and dismemberment of Diamond Williams. On Tuesday, Sargent’s attorney, J. Michael Farrell, asked Carr Deni to grant Sargent a psychological evaluation to determine if he is competent to stand trial, which the judge ordered. Investigators allege Sargent stabbed

Williams before dismembering her body in his Strawberry Mansion home. Williams reportedly came to Sargent’s home for a sexual encounter. Sargent was arrested July 20 and remains incarcerated at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility. Sargent is also charged with making terroristic threats, after he allegedly threated to kill his girlfriend if she contacted law enforcement about his alleged involvement in Williams’ murder. Carr Deni has been criticized for a 2007 case she presided over involving a sex worker who was raped at gunpoint. In that case, the judge dismissed the rape and sexual-assault charges but let stand “theft-of-service” charges. Sargent’s next hearing will take place at 9 a.m. Dec. 24 in Room 306 of the Criminal Justice Center. ■

Hearing set in Gayborhood attack By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com The two men accused of attacking and robbing a local gay man last month will come before a judge next week. Miguel Maldonado and Matthew Morris are both set for a preliminary hearing at 8 a.m. Dec. 27 in Room 906 of the Criminal Justice Center, 1301 Filbert St. They face six charges each, including aggravated assault and robbery, in connec-

tion with the Nov. 10 attack on Nick Forte in the 200 block of South Camac Street in the Gayborhood. Surveillance video from the scene appears to show Maldonado, 32, a bouncer at Voyeur, strike Forte from behind with what appears to be a flashlight, and Morris, 27, a Voyeur patron, then pummel him while Forte laid unconscious. Forte suffered a number of broken bones, including both eye sockets. D e t e c t ive R u s s e l l PAGE 2

The Republican governor of Pennsylvania announced Wednesday that he supports the long-stalled effort to instate nondiscrimination protections for LGBT Pennsylvanians. In an interview with the Inquirer this week, Gov. Tom Corbett said he is coming out in support of HB 300 — which would amend the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act to add sexual orientation and gender identity as classes protected from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations — after learning

the federal government did not offer such protections. PGN publisher Mark Segal said the governor committed to supporting HB 300 in an October meeting with him, Equality Pennsylvania executive director Ted Martin, his chief of staff, openly gay transition-team co-chair Tom Paese, Human Rights Campaign board member Chris Labonte and Betty Hill, the executive director of Pittsburgh’s Persad Center. Segal said the conversation has been taking place among Corbett’s administration for three years. “We have really looked at every way about this and

the governor had promised in that meeting that we would get it done,” Segal said. “So I told the governor, ‘We’ll do it within your comfort zone and when you’re ready.’” Corbett’s director of comPAGE 17 munica-

Methodist minister stands firm in LGBT dispute By Timothy Cwiek timothy@epgn.com

side at the news conference at Arch Street United Methodist Church and expressed support for their embattled colleague. After the jury verdict, Schaefer was told that he must surrender his credentials if he doesn’t promise to obey church rules in their entirety. PAGE 24

Surrounded by dozens of supporters, the Rev. Frank Schaefer this week vowed to resist any efforts by Methodist officials to defrock him for performing his son’s same-sex marriage. Appearing at a Dec. 16 news conference in Center City, Schaefer, 51, reiterated that he has a role to play in the church, including as an advocate for the LGBT community. “If allowed, I’d like to continue my ministry and continue to be a voice and advocate for the LGBT community, until these discriminatory statements and laws will vanish,” he said. For the past 30 days, Schaefer has been suspended as a church THE REV. HERB SNYDER (CENTER) HOLDS UP pastor, after a jury of fellow pasA LETTER OF SUPPORT FOR THE REV. FRANK tors determined that he disobeyed SCHAEFER (TO HIS RIGHT), WHO WAS SURand violated church rules by perROUNDED BY FELLOW SUPPORTIVE RELIforming his son’s marriage. GIOUS LEADERS AT A DEC. 16 NEWS CONFERBut other pastors more symENCE AT ARCH STREET UNITED METHODIST pathetic to Schaefer stood by his CHURCH. Photo: Associated Press/Matt Rourke

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

NEWS PGN

State asks for relationship history of ACLU plaintiffs By Jen Colletta jen@epgn.com

SAFER STREETS: Members of Sex Workers Outreach Project Philadelphia and Project SAFE came together Dec. 17 at William Way LGBT Community Center to discuss violence against local sex workers. The event was staged in commemoration of the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers. Guests explored the issue on a local level and shared their own stories. Photo: Scott A. Drake HEARING from page 1

Shoemaker said the two defendants did not know one another. Shoemaker said Maldonado worked at Voyeur for about six months and was let go after his arrest. Calls to Voyeur have not been returned. The cases against both defendants were joined last month. Maldonado, who lives in the 4800 block of D Street, is being represented by a public defender, while Morris, of Wilmington, Del., retained Brian Fishman of David Nenner & Associates. Fishman told PGN he was assigned to Morris’ case and reached out to him but has not yet received a response. Bail was set at $50,000 for both of the accused, and court records indicate that Maldonado is still incarcerated, while Morris posted bail Dec. 8, the day after his

arrest. Morris had never previously been arrested in Philadelphia, while Maldonado has a lengthy arrest record. Maldonado was first arrested in 2002 on drug offenses, and in 2004 was sentenced to three-six years in prison for those crimes. In 2003, he was arrested for drug and firearms charges, which were dismissed. He was arrested in 2008 for a number of charges, including possession of drugs and firearms and receiving stolen property, which were also dropped. Charges were also dismissed in a 2011 arrest for aggravated and simple assault and reckless endangerment. Shoemaker said the surveillance video was key in identifying the suspects. “Without that, we might not have solved this case,” he said. ■

Attorneys for a group of same-sex couples who are suing the state for the right to marry are arguing that state attorneys are seeking burdensome, and irrelevant, information about the plaintiffs. In a letter sent to U.S. District Court Judge John E. Jones 3d Dec. 16, Witold Walczak of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and Mark Aronchick of Hangley, Aronchick, Segal, Pudlin & Schiller requested the judge facilitate a “meet and confer” session with state attorneys. In the filing, the plaintiff attorneys say they have been attempting to schedule a conference call with the state for more than a month to no avail to discuss issues regarding the discovery process, and would pursue formal motions regarding those issues if no conference meeting is scheduled. Among the complaints, the attorneys wrote, is that the state is being “highly invasive” and “overreaching” in its request for documents from and about the plaintiffs and their relationships. The 11 couples, two children and one widow filed Whitewood v. Wolf this past summer in the first-ever challenge to the state’s ban on same-sex marriage. According to Walczak and Aronchick, attorneys for the defendants — Health Secretary Michael Wolf and the registers of wills in Washington and Bucks counties — have requested “all documents reflecting the natural parents of [plaintiffs’] biological or adoptive children,” which the attorneys question could signify sperm donors. The defense has also requested that all plaintiffs

“state whether you were ever in a relationship with and/or married to a person of the opposite sex” and goes on to request the names and addresses, as well as dates and length of relationships, of any opposite-sex exes. It also asks for names, dates and places of birth of any children produced with former opposite-sex partners. The defense is also seeking all addresses where plaintiffs have lived in the last decade, as well as names and contact information of every person with whom they’ve resided in that time period. Plaintiffs have also been asked to “identify any and all health-care providers from whom you have sought or received medical or psychological treatment or counseling for harm you have alleged to have suffered” from the denial of state recognition of their same-sex unions. The letter goes on to note that the defense has additionally requested any correspondence — including letters, diary entries or other notes — plaintiffs have written or received relating to the “subject matter” at hand, as well as federal and state taxes and W-2 forms for the past decade. The plaintiff attorneys noted that the couples have produced financial records for the past three years and would consider producing some materials related to the correspondence request but “without some significant narrowing, that cannot be accomplished.” They went on to note that they have been “exceedingly patient” in dealing with the state attorneys yet “will have no choice” but to file formal motions in response to the defense’s objectionable discovery actions if the state does not consent to a conference meeting. The case is scheduled for trial in June. ■

locations in Philadelphia PHILADELPHIA — AROUND THE GAYBORHOOD

12th Street Gym, 204 S. 12th St. • 13th Street Gourmet Pizza, 209 S. 13th St. • AACO, 1101 Market St., 9th floor • Action AIDS, 1216 Arch St. • Apt. & Townhouse Rentals, 304 S. 12th St. • ASIAC, 1711 S. Broad St. • The Bike Stop, 206 S. Quince St. • Bioscript Pharmacy, 1227 Locust St. • Cafe Twelve, 212 S. 12th St. • Charlie Salon, 203 S. 12th St. • City Hall NE Entrance • Club Body Center, 1220 Chancellor St. • Com-Har Living Room, 101 S. Broad St., 14th floor • Criminal Justice Center, 1301 Filbert St. • Cut Salon, 204 S. 13th St. • Danny’s Bookstore 133 S. 13th St. • Dignity/St. Lukes, 330 S. 13th St. • Dirty Frank’s Bar, 13th & Pine sts. • The Foodery, 10th & Pine sts. • Fusion Gym, 105 S. 12th St., 2nd floor • Giovanni’s Room, 345 S. 12th St. • I Goldberg, 1300 Chestnut St. • ICandy, 254 S. 12th St. • Independent Hotel, 13th & Locust sts. • Mazzoni Clinic, 809 Locust St. • Midtown II, 122 S. 11th St. • More Than Just Ice Cream, 1119 Locust St. • Pa. AIDS Law Project, 1211 Chestnut St., 12th floor • Paolo Pizzeria, 1336 Pine St. • Parker Hotel Lobby, 261 S. 13th St. • Phila. FIGHT/Aids Library, 1233 Locust St., 5th floor • Phila. Family Planning Commission, 260 S. Broad St., 10th floor • Planned Parenthood, 1144 Locust St. • Sansom Cinema, 120 S. 13th St., basement • Santa Fe Burrito, 212 S. 11th St. • Scorpio Books, 202 S. Juniper St. • Sisters, 1320 Chancellor St. • Spruce Street Video, 252 S. 12th St. • Packard Apartments, 317 N. Broad St. • Safeguards lobby, 1211 Chestnut St. #610 • Salon K, 1216 Locust St. • Sansom Cinema, 120 S. 13th St. • Sante Fe Burrito, 212 S. 11th St. • Tabu, 200 S. 12th St. • Tavern on Camac, 243 S. Camac St. • Toast, 12th & Spruce sts. • Triangle Medicine, 253 S. 10th St., 1st floor • Uncles, 1220 Locust St. • Valanni, 1229 Spruce St. • Venture Inn, 255 S. Camac St. • Voyeur, 1220 St. James St. • Westbury, 261 S. 13th St. • William Way LGBT Community Center, 1325 Spruce St. • Woody’s, 202 S. 13th St.

All of these locations are now visible on a zoomable Google Map at

http://www.epgn.com/pages/where_to_find WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE YOUR BUSINESS OR ORGANIZATION ON THIS LIST? Contact Don at don@epgn.com or 215-625-8501 ext. 200 to arrange for delivery of complimentary copies.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

PGN S-E-X...O: Mr. SEXO contenders Eddie Robles (left) and Damien Stretch geared up for the inaugural contest with Elicia Gonzales, executive director of GALEI: A Queer Latin@ SocialJustice Organization. The event, a partnership between GALAEI and Philly Gay Calendar, was held Dec. 12 at Woody’s to promote sex positivity within the Latino community, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status. “It was a steamy success, and the winner is all that we could have hoped for and more,” Gonzales said about winner Gabriel Martino, aka Syfr Gavriel, a 25-year-old choreographer and dancer. Martino will work with GALAEI to promote the mission of its SEXO campaign. “[Mar tino] embodies what SEXO is all about — a celebration of being sex-positive, confident and fun!” Photo: Scott A. Drake NEWS

Crime Watch Local Media Trail News Briefing Paw Prints Regional

7 5 23 7 16 2

Contents

EDITORIAL/OP-ED

Creep of the Week Editorial Letters/Feedback Mark My Words Street Talk

10 10 11 11 11

Are you out at work? Poll results from our online survey as of Dec. 18:

59% 25% 7% 5% 2% 2%

Yes, to everyone Yes, to some No, but some suspect No, and I prefer it that way I am my own boss I’m not employed

Go to www.epgn.com to weigh in on this week’s question:

When do you open your Christmas gifts? PGN 505 S. Fourth St. Philadelphia, PA 19147-1506

For advertising inquiries: advertising@epgn.com or 215-625-8501 ext. 218.

Art Director/Photographer Scott A. Drake (ext. 210) scott@epgn.com

Phone: 215-625-8501 Fax: 215-925-6437 E-mail: pgn@epgn.com Web: www.epgn.com

Advertising Director Dan Calhoun (ext. 218) dan@epgn.com

Graphic Artist Sean Dorn (ext. 211) sean@epgn.com

Publisher Mark Segal (ext. 204) mark@epgn.com Editor

Jen Colletta (ext. 206) jen@epgn.com Staff Writers Larry Nichols (ext. 213) larry@epgn.com Angela Thomas (ext. 215) angela@epgn.com Writer-at-Large Timothy Cwiek (ext. 208) timothy@epgn.com

Advertising Manager Greg Dennis greg@epgn.com Advertising Sales Representatives Prab Sandhu prab@epgn.com National Advertising Rivendell Media: 212-242-6863 Office Manager/ Classifieds Don Pignolet (ext. 200) don@epgn.com Executive Assistant/ Billing Manager Carol Giunta (ext. 202) carol@epgn.com

Philadelphia Gay News is a member of: The Associated Press Pennsylvania Newspaper Association Suburban Newspapers of America Published by Masco Communications Inc. © 2013 Masco Communications Inc. ISSN-0742-5155

The views of PGN are expressed only in the unsigned “Editorial” column. Opinions expressed in bylined columns, stories and letters to the editor are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of PGN. The appearance of names or pictorial representations in PGN does not necessarily indicate the sexual orientation of that named or pictured person or persons.

LOCAL PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Mummers Parade to feature both queens and kings By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com For a second year in a row, drag queens will sashay through the annual Mummers Day Parade on New Years Day — and this Jan. 1, for the first time, they will be joined by drag kings. At a Dec. 17 press conference at the Mummers Museum in South Philadelphia, members of the LGBT “Miss Fancy” Brigade showcased the strides they have made in creating more of an LGBT presence in the Mummers Parade and announced details about 2014’s return. The Mummers formally invited the LGBT drag group to march in the parade in 2013. Brittany Lynn and the Drag Mafia led the string bands up Broad Street to City Hall and later performed at the Convention Center, between the Fancy and Brigade acts. This year, 11 drag queens and six drag kings were selected from a variety of drag contestants to perform. All 17 will take part in leading the front portion of the parade and will perform at the A Stand along the parade route. The queens will also perform at the Convention Center again, said Lynn, portrayed by Ian Morrison, a former PGN editorial assistant.

CITY OFFICIALS AND MUMMERS PARADE ORGANIZERS WITH DRAG PERFORMERS WHO WILL PARTICIPATE IN NEXT MONTH’S EVENT PRESENTED A NEWS CONFERENCE DEC. 17 AT THE MUMMERS MUSEUM. Photo: Scott A. Drake

“It shows how great the city can be that they are allowing the LGBT community to partake in this tradition and that they are willing to put us in front of the parade,” she said. “It is a higher honor. It is just great

to work with the City Councilman [Mark Squilla] and get support from local government.” The inclusion of the drag-king performers, Lynn added, shows a unity within both

the drag and LGBT communities. “This year, we insisted that the whole community is represented. It is not always about the drag queens,” Lynn said. “If we are a part of this community, then all our community can be represented as well. We are not ashamed of our own people. Drag kings take a step back from the limelight, but here in Philly, we all work together.” Although Lynn will not be performing with the drag contingent, she will march with them. Lynn said that, last year, the Mummers made the drag group feel welcomed in the event, and she anticipates the same will happen again. “Feeling that love and support, it was thunderous,” Lynn said. “Everyone threw their kids at us and cops insisted on taking photos with us. Everybody couldn’t be more supportive.” Having the LGBT acts participate with such support, Lynn said, sends a clear message both about and to the LGBT community. “I think there has been so much going on in the Gayborhood that has been bad, that I think we need this, we need more support from the city. Maybe it will help that we are all here together. If they can accept us, it shows the city that we can come together.” ■

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

LOCAL PGN

New board leadership for DVLF By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com Delaware Valley Legacy Fund elected its new slate of board leaders Dec. 11, bringing about a change at the helm of the LGBT grantmaking agency. Beginning next month, Ron Lucente, 47, will replace former board president D. Mark Mitchell, who held the position for five years. Lucente, a Philadelphia resident, grew up in Bradford Park, a northern suburb of Pittsburgh. He attended Penn State University as RON LUCENTE an advertising and marketing major and later received his master’s in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh. Lucente currently works as director of program management at Aetna, Inc. He became involved with DVLF in 2005 and said he was immediately impressed with all the agency did for the LGBT community. “I like the whole concept and premise of our mission and the fact that we give everybody, regardless of your income level, the ability to contribute in a way that would carry on in perpetuity even when you are gone,” Lucente said. “You can rest assured that when you bequest a gift, it will be in capable hands and go to those who are truly in need.” Lucente has served in many capacities at DVLF, including as co-chair and chair of Heroes, the organization’s annual fundraising event. He has served as co-chair of TOY, DVLF’s annual holiday fundraiser, since 2010. Lucente has served as the vice presi-

dent of DVLF’s board since 2011. He said his diverse leadership experience at the agency will make for a smooth transition to president. “It is a leadership role and I will be directing people and trying to fulfill what our common goals are as a board. Even as a chair, you are in a leadership position and it was a natural progression and it allows me to become more involved.” Lucente already has plans in mind for the organization, and said he will be concentrating on enhancing DVLF’s visibility in the community. “In 2014, we hope to focus on having people understand what DVLF is and what our mission is and how it benefits the community and telling that story effectively,” he said. “I want it to be when you walk up to anyone in the community and mention DVLF, they know exactly what it is. One of our challenges is that we are not like Mazzoni Center; you can see direct results with them, but people still aren’t sure what we do.” Lucente cited the annual grants DVLF disperses to various LGBT organizations as a programmatic aspect he hopes to emphasize during the brand-building process. In addition to branching out to new audiences, Lucente said the agency plans to re-affirm its connection to current and previous donors. “I want to engage past donors and cultivate new donors to build a consistent donor database,” he said. “We want our donors to be excited and engaged with the mission of the organization, which will propel us into the future.” In addition to Lucente, Wayne Knaub was elected as vice president, Michael Grosberg as treasurer, Lauren Conrad as secretary and Fernando Gonzalez as the fifth member. For more information, visit www.dvlf. org. ■

LGBT legal group celebrates milestone By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com The Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia celebrated its 25th anniversary this week. GALLOP was founded in 1986 as Philadelphia Attorneys for Human Rights. The organization is comprised of LGBT legal professionals who serve the Philadelphia metropolitan area and who advocate for civil and human rights, particularly regarding LGBT issues. The organization celebrated its milestone with a “Gay Back in the Day” party Dec. 18. GALLOP president Angela Giampolo said the group was so clandestine at the time it was founded that membership was hard to solicit. But, with a more thriving and visible LGBT community in the city, GALLOP now boasts more than 350 members.

Giampolo, who has been involved with GALLOP since she was in law school, said the organization looks to involve people of all interests and backgrounds. “We reach out to LGBT lawyers who are established and may be looking to socialize with other LGBT attorneys. We reach out to young lawyers who may be looking to network with said more-established lawyers. We have a niche in reaching out to and involving the local LGBT law students. And we invite and welcome professionals in all industries who may want to get to know the LGBT lawyers in our community,” Giampolo said. Community support for the organization and its programs has evolved throughout the years, in large part to the number of LGBT organizations that have developed. Initially, GALLOP operated a referral system, but once Mazzoni Center established its legal department, that work PAGE 15 became less needed. The

LOCAL PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Gayborhood Crime Watch The following incidents in the Midtown Village and Washington Square West areas were reported to the 6th Police District between Dec. 2-8. Information is courtesy of 6th District Capt. Brian Korn; Stacy Irving, senior director, Crime Prevention Service; Center City District; the Police Liaison C o m m i t t e e a n d M i d t ow n Village Merchants Association. To report crime tips, visit www. phillypolice.com or call 215686-TIPS (8477). UPDATE: Police arrested two men in the Nov. 10 brutal beating of an ICandy patron. Arrested were Matthew Morris and Miguel Maldonado, who are both charged with robbery, assault and related offenses. INCIDENTS — At 3 a.m. Dec. 3, a complainant was walking past the Parker Spruce Hotel, 261 S. 13th St., when a man approached screaming and pulled a knife, stabbing the victim in the wrist. The suspect was described as black, between 25-30, 5-foot9, thin, wearing a blonde wig, a pink top and black tights. — Between 11:30 a.m.-5:50 p.m. Dec. 3, someone stole a secured bicycle from outside 1208 Pine St. — At 2:30 a.m. Dec. 5 (reported Dec. 6), a man was walking from Voyeur Nightclub and was in the 200 block of South 13th

Street when a male stole his wallet from his pants pocket. They struggled and both fell to the ground. The culprit then fled with the wallet. He was described as a black male in his 30s, 6-foot-3, thin, with short hair. — At 3:10 p.m. Dec. 6, a man was seen stealing packages from an apartment building in the 400 block of South 13th Street that had been delivered earlier in the day. The suspect was described as black, 5-foot-8, wearing a black jacket, white sneakers and a brown winter hat. — Between 3-3:10 a.m. Dec. 7, someone stole an unsecured bicycle from outside 209 S. 13th St. NON-SUMMARY ARRESTS — At 3:27 a.m. Dec. 2, while on patrol, 6th District Bike Officer Stone observed a male snatch a woman’s handbag in the 1300 block of Locust Street. Stone engaged in a foot pursuit and apprehended the suspect a short distance away. The 33-year-old suspect with a Germantown address was charged with robbery and related offenses. — At 1:35 p.m. Dec. 4, Center City District Officers arrested a man outside 1200 Manning St. who was wanted on a warrant for probation violations. The 42-year-old suspect with a North Philadelphia address was charged with escape. — At 2 p.m. Dec. 4, Center

City District Officers arrested a man outside 1200 Manning St. who was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear for court. The 48-year-old suspect with a homeless-shelter address was charged with contempt of court. — At 3:15 a.m. Dec. 7, 6th District Police Officer Auman investigated a 2000 Mercury outside 265 S. 11th St. and found that it had been reported stolen from Audubon, N.J. The 27-year-old operator was arrested and charged with unauthorized use of auto and related offenses. — At 8:25 a.m. Dec. 7, 6th District Officer Hill arrested a woman who was identified as throwing a glass bottle through a window at IHop, 1320 Walnut St. The 29-year-old suspect with an Overbrook address was charged with criminal mischief. — At 12:35 p.m. Dec. 7, 6th District Plainclothes Officers Keller and Rossi observed a man writing on newspaper boxes with a marker in the 1000 block of Market Street. The 29year-old suspect with a Port Richmond address was charged with graffiti-defacing property. — At 4 a.m. Dec. 8, 6th District Officers Erwin and Stone observed a disturbance outside 200 S. 13th St. and ascertained that a male refused to pay a taxi-cab fare. The 27-year-old suspect with a Fishtown address was charged with theft of services. ■

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News Briefing Appeals court rules against trans litigant Janis Stacy, a transwoman who alleges wrongful termination from her engineering job, received another setback in her quest for a jury trial in her case. Last week, the full Third Circuit Court of Appeals declined to hear her case. Stacy claims she was terminated at LSI Corp. due to gender, gender identity and disability bias. But Nov. 13, a three-judge panel of the appeals court upheld a lower court’s dismissal of Stacy’s case before it got to a jury, citing insufficient evidence of discrimination. On Nov. 27, Stacy’s attorneys filed a 14-page legal brief, asking that all the judges on the appeals court consider her case. But on Dec. 12, the full appeals court denied that request. “We think this case raises important legal questions that warranted the full court’s interest and consideration,” said Stacy’s attorney, Scott B. Goldshaw. “We also think the court overlooked critical evidence which, if properly considered, would have led to this case being presented to a jury.” Stacy, of Kunkletown, worked at

LSI for about 10 years prior to her termination in 2008. LSI maintained Stacy was terminated due to an “adverse economy,” and because Stacy lacked the requisite skills to help move the company forward.

Gay man to sue city Attorneys for Kamile Ladson, a gay man jailed for 18 days for allegedly assaulting a local prosecutor, recently notified the city Law Department that the city will be sued in federal court due to the incident. In March, Ladson allegedly assaulted Assistant District Attorney Andrei Govorov on the Broad Street Subway. Ladson was charged with numerous offenses, but he claimed that Govorov was the aggressor. Last month, a Philadelphia jury acquitted Ladson. Ladson, 31, said attempts were made to sexually assault him while he was incarcerated at the CurranFromhold Correctional Facility. Wiliam D. Hobson, an attorney for Ladson, said the lawsuit will be filed early next month. Defendants will include Govorov, SEPTA Police, city police and corrections officials. Mark McDonald, a city spokesperson, said: “We do not comment on pending lawsuits. The city will respond to any allegations in a suit through the legal process.” ■ — Timothy Cwiek

Haute Mexican? Haute Mexican! After ten successful years in northeast Philadelphia, Paloma is serving to-die-for French-Mexican cuisine in Bella Vista. ��

a semifinalist for the 2011 James Beard Foundation awards 763 South 8th Street (corner of 8th & Fulton) www.palomafinedining.com www.facebook.com/palomarestaurant 215.928.9500

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

LOCAL PGN

Wedding Dominick D’Ortenzio and Jonathan Esten By Angela Thomas angela@epgn.com

COMING TO TOWN: Santa Claus a break from his busy schedule to pay a visit to Philly AIDS Thrift Dec. 14. The big man in red rode down Passyunk Avenue atop a Philadelphia firetruck to the cheers of store staffers, volunteers, customers and onlookers. Santa and his elves posed for pictures with believers of all age throughout the day in the store. And, in PAT fashion, Santa’s elves presented a check from the store to Mazzoni Center’s annual Holiday Overcoat and Toy Drive for children affected by HIV/AIDS. Photo: Scott A. Drake

251 S. 17th St, Philadelphia, PA 19103 • (215) 437-3214

Philadelphia residents Dominick D’Ortenzio and Jonathan Esten celebrated the summer’s overturning of California’s Proposition 8, a measure that banned samesex couples from marrying, by getting engaged. D’Ortenzio, office manager for a local physician’s office, and Esten, an employee at Sonesta Hotel Philadelphia, will tie the knot Dec. 20 in San Francisco. The pair received their marriage certificate Dec. 16 and will marry in the city’s historic City Hall. D’Ortenzio and Esten’s journey started in one of Philadelphia’s own historic LGBT landmarks, Woody’s. They met on May 25, 1989, after being introduced by a Woody’s bartender. “[Esten] was sitting down at the bar having a drink and I came in and saw him,” D’Ortenzio said. “We both knew the bartender and he asked if we knew each other and he introduced us, and we’ve been together ever since.” D’Ortenzio said he was immediately attracted to his future partner. “I thought he was the cutest kid on the block,” he said. “I just instantly thought, Whoa, who is this great-looking guy?” The pair exchanged phone numbers and quickly planned their first date, which turned out to be a unique experience. “Our first date was at the laundromat,” D’Ortenzio explained. “I was doing laundry and left a note on my mailbox saying I was there and he came around, read the note and he helped me finish doing my laundry.” After the U.S. Supreme Court’s momentous rulings on the Defense of Marriage Act and Prop. 8 in June, the couple decided to get engaged in a state they have both grown to love. “We’ve been together for a long time. We had an apartment for a long time and when we were tired of paying rent, we bought a home together in a small little condo and after we had lived in our home for six, seven years, we had talk about getting married. We have actually talked about it ever since we met,” D’Ortenzio said. “We had fantasized about being able to legally marry; however, it was just a fantasy. In 2008, marriage was legal in California for an open window. We talked about going to California and then

D’ORTENZIO AND ESTEN

the window closed. We were disappointed and said we would wait for it to open up again and then came June.” The couple visits California frequently and D’Ortenzio said that, with marriage equality again legal in the state and with San Francisco’s rich LGBT history, the time, and place, seemed right. “[San Francisco] City Hall is quite breathtaking and is the spot of many gay events and riots and has a tremendous amount of historical impact,” D’Ortenzio said. “When we went to visit earlier, it was quite a magnificent environment. There were gay couples and straight couples lined up to get married and everyone was excited.” D’Ortenzio said he and Esten have been overwhelmed by the level of support they’ve seen in response to their wedding. “It has been amazing. The planning for the past couple of months, announcing it, posting it on Facebook has been great. We’ve had friends and relatives, men and women of past generations, responding to us on Facebook saying this is a wonderful thing and congratulating us. To have that generation say, ‘We love you and we think this is amazing’ just takes my breath away.” After nearly 15 years together, D’Ortenzio said his relationship with Esten has taught him to appreciate the big things in life. “I’ve learned to have patience for myself because I grew up in a very inpatient environment. I’ve learned more about love and affection and understanding and what it is to be loved.” ■

Have a happy Christmas and a healthy new year!

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

EDITORIAL PGN

Creep of the Week

D’Anne Witkowski

Les Kinsolving

Editorial

What is your holiday wish? Angela: My holiday wish is that everyone is happy — no matter where they are in life or what they are doing — that they are happy. Carol: I would like to hit the Mega Million, retire to Florida and join the Disney cast as one of their princesses. Of course, I would send postcards to each and every one of you. Dan: My holiday wish is that my team at PGN really gets to enjoy the holidays and spend quality time with their families. They have done a great job this year and deserve it! I’d also like to wish Don (fellow PGNer) a wonderful day as he legally marries his partner of 38 years. Don: I congratulate everyone who got married in the past year and wish Pennsylvania can join in for the coming year. Greg: Health and happiness for family and friends and a new apartment for me. Jen: That I and all of my loved ones appreciate all that we have. And for more hours in the day to fuel my newfound obsession with “Breaking Bad.” Larry: To remember to try to have more fun amid all the work. Mark: That the legislature will follow the governor’s lead and pass HB and SB 300 and send it to the governor to sign.

Prab: A nice warm fleece to keep me warm. Sandy: I really wish that all ignoramuses (ignorami?) would just shut up in the coming year so our nation can continue to make progress. I wish I weren’t so addicted to social media. And I wish for more quality time with my loved ones, and for more energy. Scott: My wish is that my boo Micheal has the best Christmas ever, that our friends all have safe, happy holidays and that my family behaves when we visit them. Oh, and world peace. Sean: My wish is for health and stability for my family and peace in the world. And more time in a day. Tim: My holiday wish already came true. My best friend, Andrew, got me a dog for Christmas. I’ve always wanted one since I was little and this year he went completely out of his way to surprise me with a dog and it worked! It’s the most thoughtful gift ever and I’m so thankful! Tim Cwiek: A trip to the Ukraine. Growing up, I was regaled with stories by my great-aunt “Tata” about its struggle for self-determination. I’d love to visit that beautiful country someday. ■

One of the antigay right’s favorite arguments is that the gays are actually the intolerant ones. It’s a pretty laughable premise, actually. When it is proposed that LGBT people shouldn’t be protected from workplace discrimination, that same-sex couples shouldn’t be allowed to get married, that transgender folks should be “put in camps,” that gays should be stoned to death, LGBT people and their allies understandably protest. And then we are accused of being intolerant of our persecutors’ religious or moral beliefs. Right-wing broadcaster Les Kinsolving has an especially insulting take on “tolerance” in a guest column posted on World Net Daily Dec. 2. Now, WND, for the uninitiated, is a rabbit hole of hate and lies for and by right-wing luminaries. The hot subject on WND right now is Nelson Mandela and how he was a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Person. Kinsolving’s column, however, focused on Mary Cheney and what an intolerant dyke she is. Kinsolving writes wistfully, “There was once a day in this nation when lesbians and others with alternate sexual orientations were comparatively mute.” Something tells me that if Kinsolving could get his hands on a time machine, he would take it back to 1969 to stop the Stonewall Riots. Kinsolving continues, “There has developed a militancy that may well know no bounds and that has torn apart the family of the former vice president of the United States.” Mary Cheney, as we all know, is a lesbian. Liz Cheney, her sister, is a candidate for the U.S. Senate. And Liz “does not believe in same-sex marriage.” Which is, I should point out, a stupid thing to say since same-sex marriage is an actual thing. The same goes for people who say, “I don’t believe in organized religion” because, duh, organized religion is real. So you’re either saying you don’t think it exists or what you really mean is that you don’t practice it or like it or whatever.

For Liz’s stance on “same-sex marriage,” Kinsolving writes, “[S]he has been publicly denounced by her militant lesbian sister, Mary Cheney, and Mary’s similarly militant lesbian mate, Heather Poe.” Poor Dick Cheney and his family, torn apart by lesbian militants. Makes you wonder why terrible things happen to terrible people. But I digress. Kinsolving reports that the Cheney sisters aren’t speaking and Mary is holding out until Liz changes her tune. He then quotes Mary as saying, “Liz’s position is to treat my family as secondclass citizens. That’s not a position I can be ‘lovingly tolerant’ toward.” Kinsolving writes, “This really begs a question: How would lesbian Mary expect her sister to regard her orientation if she were polyandrous (female polygamy), a pedophile, incestuous or a necrophiliac?” Um, no, actually it does not beg that question. At all. Not only is equating lesbianism with polygamy, pedophilia and necrophilia insulting, it’s a clear attempt to dehumanize Mary Cheney and Heather Poe and to excuse Liz Cheney’s shitty treatment of her family for her own political gain. In Kinsolving’s world, Mary is the intolerant person in this equation because she’s calling out her sister for being an asshole instead of letting Liz slap her in the face and responding, “Thank you sister, may I have another?” I say Hail Mary for calling bullshit when she sees it. ■

Poor Dick Cheney and his family, torn apart by lesbian militants. Makes you wonder why terrible things happen to terrible people.

D’Anne Witkowski has been gay for pay since 2003. She’s a freelance writer and poet (believe it!). When she’s not taking on the creeps of the world, she reviews rock ’n’ roll shows in Detroit with her twin sister.

Tell us what you think Send letters and opinion column submissions to: pgn@epgn.com; PGN, 505 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147; fax: 215-925-6437.

Please include a daytime phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity, style and space considerations.

OP-ED PGN

Finally, I can tell this story There was a secret meeting in Harrisburg some people are just grandstanding and in October. A few of us were requested to slowing the process. But Ted, Tom and others at that meeting kept quiet. And rather meet with Gov. Corbett at the governor’s than shout and condemn the governor, we residence. There was only one topic on engaged in conversation. And if you think the agenda: how to pass LGBT nondiscrimination in Pennsylvania. That is probthis was political on his part, think again. ably a shock to you, but for It might result in a primary fight the three years that Corbett for him within his own party. has been governor, several of Many people need to be us have been working on this thanked for getting us to this issue behind the scenes, most point. Some might be a surprise notably Ted Martin of Equality to you. The governor’s staff, Pennsylvania, and myself since our First Lady, our longtime lead House sponsor Rep. Dan I was already dealing with the Frankel, as well as co-prime governor on the LGBT-friendly senior housing project. sponsor Republican Rep. Chris Ross, prime sponsors Sens. When Corbett took office and we were in the middle of Larry Farnese and Pat Browne, plans for the John C. Anderson Equality Pennsylvania and Ted Apartments, we thought we Martin and the leaders in both would hit a rocky road. But, chambers who have agreed to to our surprise, the governor’s Mark Segal work with us. And to the few office has been a pleasure to who haven’t ... We want to have a dialogue with you and reach your comwork with. And to the chagrin of his staff, fort zone. But my biggest thanks goes to I used every opportunity at each meeting, call or email to push nondiscrimination. the LGBT community, which has fought They never let me feel that they were being for this legislation since 1972, many still harassed. The conversation eventually went with us and believing it will finally happen. to when it could be done. What I didn’t While the governor has now said he supports the legislation, the game is not over. know is there was another voice in their This bill has to pass both the House and ear, one of their own: the out co-chair of Senate before it goes to the governor’s Corbett’s transition team, Tom Paese. desk. At our meeting with the governor, Ted, Tom and I had our eye on the prize Ted and Tom were able to say, “Governor, — passing this legislation. Nothing else we have the votes in both chambers. Both would we allow to get in the way. Even chambers are controlled by Republicans.” the governor’s comment relating marriage equality to incest, for which he has apoloSo, again, we need friends in the gized. I for one accept that apology. You Republican Party, and we have them. might have noted that I’ve written various Condemning all Republicans is a mistake. columns stating clearly that nondiscrimiThe truth is that there are Republicans, nation has to be the LGBT community’s like Daryl Metcalfe, who will try to stall number-one agenda item in Pennsylvania. this bill, but our friends in the Republican To those who have pushed marriage equal- Party will try to get it through. As a proud ity ... very simply: You could get married, Democrat, we need to give our Republican but then be tossed out of your job, not friends in the State House the support they allowed to go on a honeymoon or book need to help Metcalfe see the light or move a hotel and maybe lose your apartment. on. So 2014 is now a year of hope. ■ Think that’s not true? Ask former Holy Ghost Preparatory School teacher Michael Mark Segal, PGN publisher, is the Griffin, as it happened to him last week. nation’s most-award-winning commentaWhile I appreciate that pressing for martor in LGBT media. He can be reached at mark@epgn.com. riage equality is the job of many activists,

Mark My Words

Letters and Feedback In October, gay marriage was legalized in New Jersey through Supreme Court Judge Mary Jacobson, who ruled “the ineligibility of same-sex couples for federal benefits is currently harming same-sex couples in New Jersey in a wide range of contexts.” Just recently, the state Senate has decided to make an effort to turn the court decision into law, introducing the Marriage Equality Act (S3109) earlier this month. However, the Assembly is not on board with the decision to move forward with the bill. In order for the bill to be sent to Republican Gov. Chris Christie, both the Senate and the Assembly would have to approve it. Christie made every effort to

halt the progression of marriage equality for the state, vetoing the Marriage Equality and Religious Exemption Act in 2012 and requesting an appeal for the judge’s ruling this year. Many gay-rights advocates are arguing against making the court decision state law, as they are afforded more rights now than they would be with the bill. The most important aspect for New Jersey citizens, as with all other states that have legalized gay marriage, is the promise of benefits. It has more to do with these couples’ lack of access to the rights and necessary securities that come with marriage than anything else. People who are often against marriage equality can only

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Street Talk What holiday gift have you always wanted but never gotten? “A juicer. I’m very healthconscious. I love carrot juice or carrot-celery juice. There’s a great drink made from apples, Abbie Alexander cucumbers, server kale, lemon Wynnefield and ginger. It will knock your socks off. I think everyone who wants to be healthy should have a juicer.”

“A gym membership. One with a pool. I grew up in Miami. I miss the water dreadfully. The ocean Sami Brussels had a student restorative Pennsport effect on me. I have leg problems. I think swimming [in an indoor pool] would be therapeutic, without exacerbating the problem.”

“A huge batch of cannabis brownies. Enough to last a whole month. I’m not a materialistic person by any means. Nicholas Shankin I realize writer that money Gayborhood can’t buy happiness. But weed is the next best thing. I’m very easy to please.”

“A lifetime gift certificate to a chiropractor. I’m 21 years old and my back already bothers me. It’s stiff and cracks easily. Alec Wright store manager I’m always Port Richmond standing at my job. I work 12-hour shifts. All that standing is affecting my back. I’ll need a chiropractor for the rest of my life.”

We want to know! If you are celebrating an anniversary, engagement, wedding, adoption or other life event, we would be happy to help you announce it to the community. Send your contact information and a brief description of the event to editor@epgn.com.

see the “traditional” institution of marriage being torn apart. But when people cling to this idea as their foundation, most arguments are not very good. The first hit? “Marriage is a holy sacrament between man and woman.” Well, gay marriage is not an issue of morality, but one of politics and legality, more specifically the allocation of rights and privileges. Since this is a democratic country and no one can be granted or denied rights based on religious beliefs, a legal definition of marriage cannot be based on a religion. Another fan favorite is “marriage is essential for the purpose of procreation.” Then in theory, there are many cases of heterosexual couples

who do not meet these qualifications either: post-menopausal women, sterile couples or those who have decided not to reproduce. According to this definition, they should be stripped of their right to marry. Any devaluation of gay marriage is rooted in prejudice from closed-minded individuals. It’s mind over matter; those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind. Every person should have the right to marry and receive the benefits that come with it. It is the right of every first-class American citizen, and that’s exactly who we are. ■ — Ashley Lucas-vera

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

AGING PGN

Room at the inn The story has been told for thousands of years: A man and a pregnant woman, an unmarried couple, arrive in town and find no room at the inn. Was there a big convention in town? Were they being discriminated against because they were leading “sinful” lives? Because they weren’t “legally” married? Who knows? Discrimination is like that sometimes. You just don’t know. In January, we take a giant step toward making sure that there will be room at the inn for LGBT seniors: the John C. Anderson LGBT-Friendly Affordable Apartments for seniors will open on South 13th Street in Philadelphia. The Ed complex is not the solution to all housing issues for LGBT older adults, but it is a beginning. And the process surrounding the development, construction and operation of the Anderson Apartments has shone a bright spotlight on the housing needs of LGBT older adults. Times have certainly changed — not just from thousands of years ago when the couple from Nazareth arrived in Bethlehem, but from just 20 or 30 years ago. Today, “retirement” communities, continuing-care communities, assisted-living facilities and others encourage LGBT older adults to live there. The financial bottom line is a big

incentive to ending discrimination — or at least brushing it under the rug. Many of these communities have empty units. They will make sure that those with the ability to pay are happy and not discriminated against by the staff — or the other residents. Bad PR is bad for business at the high-dollar end of the spectrum. Many LGBT people with the financial ability to do so are moving into these “communities.” Good for them! Many are blazing new trails and ending or diminishing discrimination against LGBTs in these areas. But these communities are not for everyone, for many different reasons. Some peoBomba ple do not have the financial resources, some do not have the desire to commune and some simply wish to stay where they are and “age in place.” What is important is that LGBT older adults have options — to choose where they live without fear of discrimination; without fear of having to be closeted; without fear of losing their connections with friends; without fear of having to be separated from their partners. The Anderson Apartments complex adds another option. Why are these options so important? One major reason is that it is legal to refuse to rent an apartment to someone

Gettin’ On

based solely on his or her sexual orientation or gender identity in Pennsylvania and 28 other states, or 32 states when you include discrimination based on gender identity. There is no federal law against this discrimination. In Pennsylvania, approximately 30 percent of local governments, including Philadelphia, have outlawed such discrimination. It is also legal to discriminate in public accommodations. You PANELISTS AT THE LGBTEI’S DEC. 11 “HIV + can be refused a hotel room, AGING: WHAT’S NEW II” EVENT AT WILLIAM WAY denied service at a restaurant or LGBT COMMUNITY CENTER Photo: Courtesy of Bill Gregor refused a taxi ride. You can also be refused a job or fired from INFO (333-4636). one. All based on your sexual orientation Two-thousand years later, there is still or gender identity. That is amazing! discrimination. Hopefully, it won’t take So, how can you find safe, affordanother 2,000 years to end discrimination able, welcoming housing? First, ask your against LGBT people and open up more friends for recommendations. Second, rooms at the inn. ■ check the LGBTEI senior-friendly housEd Bomba is communications chair of the LGBT ing resource guide at www.lgbtei.org and click the Housing tab. Finally, contact your Elder Initiative. The LGBTEI, headquartered in local area agency on aging. There is one in Philadelphia, fosters and advocates for services, resources and institutions that are competent, almost every county. culturally sensitive, inclusive and responsive to While you are at it, contact your legislathe needs of LGBT elders in the Delaware Valley tive representatives and urge them to supand beyond. To comment on this article, suggest port the Employment Non-Discrimination topics for future articles or for more informaAct (ENDA) and all other legislation to tion, visit www.lgbtei.org or call the LGBTEI at ban LGBT discrimination. Find out how to 267-546-3448, and watch for “Gettin’ On” each contact your representatives at www.usa. month in PGN. gov/Contact/Elected.shtml or at 800-FED-

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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Philadelphia Bar Association, Giampolo noted, also now has its own LGBT Committee, which handles a wealth of advocacy work. “GALLOP’s mission has been evolving since its creation and after 25 years, we always find a niche and a need within the LGBT legal community that needs support,” Giampolo said. The organization hosts many programs and social events to engage both membership and the community, such as a monthly happy hour/networking event at Tabu, as well as annual fundraising events and meetings. GALLOP has also started to provide continuing legal-education courses specific to LGBT issues for lawyers, and dinners to highlight legal issues impacting the LGBT community at local LGBT-owned restaurants. Giampolo said GALLOP members have participated in and joined amicus curiae briefs for such historic cases as Lawrence vs. Texas and the Proposition 8 case heard by the United States Supreme Court. Among GALLOP’s accomplishments, Giampolo said, is the sense of safety and support it provides for lawyers. “I’ll never forget one man who attended our monthly happy hour for five minutes. He came in and since I hadn’t seen him before, I walked up and introduced myself. He didn’t want to give me his name because he wasn’t out in the large law firm he has worked at for 22 years. He asked, if it was OK with me, could he just stand back and be in the space around all the LGBT attorneys. ‘It will be the best five minutes of my month,’ he said.” For more information, visit www.galloplaw.org. ■

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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PGN PETS

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

The heart of the matter: Cardiac disease in companion animals Cardiovascular disease is an all-toomurmur as early as six weeks. Often these common condition in our companion animurmurs resolve within a few weeks, but mals. As many as 10 percent of adult dogs occasionally they become more intense and cats have underlying cardiac issues, over time. In this case, further diagnostic and this increases to 20-30 pertesting would be indicated to rule out an underlying defect. cent as they reach senior status. There are numerous types of Diagnostics would include thoheart disease, and heart disracic radiographs (X-rays), an echocardiogram (ultrasound of ease can develop at any and all stages of life. the heart) and likely an electrocardiogram (EKG). Puppies and Congenital heart defects are problems that puppies and kittens with congenital heart kittens are born with. Some defects are often “unthrifty” congenital defects include and do not gain weight approabnormalities in the developpriately, and they may not be as playful as their litter mates. ment of valvular structures Be on the lookout for this when and development of the heart muscle itself. These defects Nicholle R. choosing a companion. can often be detected on iniThere are also many forms of Hommel, acquired heart disease, includtial exam. If an abnormality is found during a routine puppy VMD ing but not limited to valvular disease, dilated cardiomyopaor kitten exam, early treatment, including placement of a stent thy, acquired hypertrophic caror other surgical intervention, may provide diomyopathy, hypertension (high blood long-term management or, in some cases, a pressure) and arrhythmias (abnormal cardiac rhythm). While we do not typically cure. Your veterinarian may detect a heart

Paw Prints

see cardiovascular disease secondary to high cholesterol or poor diet in dogs and cats as we do in people, cardiac problems may be secondary to other types of systemic illness, such as hyperthyroidism, hypertension, malnourishment or even heartworm disease. Throughout life, biannual wellness exams and lab testing allow your veterinarian to detect changes that could indicate a problem. They will be evaluating your pet for heart murmurs, arrhythmias and changes in their pulse quality, which can all indicate underlying cardiac disease. If any of these changes are detected, further testing would likely be recommended. This would include a baseline EKG, echocardiogram and radiographs. They may also check your pet’s blood pressure and full bloodwork, including a complete blood count and chemistry screen and a heartworm test. In addition, your veterinarian can test for cardiac biomarkers (proBNP), which are expressed in patients that have changes to their cardiac muscle. An increase in this marker indicates abnor-

mal stretching of the cardiac muscle and, likely, significant cardiac disease. Routine bloodwork can also pick up diseases, such as hyperthyroidism and heartworm disease, which can cause significant cardiovascular problems if left uncontrolled. Between visits to your veterinarian, it is important to be on the lookout for signs of changes in cardiac function. This would include changes in activity level, changes in respiratory rate or effort, weakness or collapse, changes in appetite and coughing. These changes are often attributed to the aging process, and that a pet is “slowing down” as he or she gets older. However, there may be more than meets the eye. Be sure to mention any changes to your veterinarian. By the time a pet is coughing due to underlying heart disease, he or she may already be in congestive heart failure or have significant heart enlargement. Detecting these early signs can be more difficult in our feline friends. Cats will often show no clinical signs apart from being more withdrawn or having a decrease in appetite. Because these signs

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NEWS PGN

can be so difficult to detect, routine examinations are incredibly important. These examinations ensure that we are doing all we can to detect changes before there is irreversible damage. This early detection is the key to management of cardiac disease. There are many cardiac medications available for us to use in dogs and cats. These medications can help decrease cardiac stress, decrease fluid buildup in the lungs, improve overall function of the cardiac muscle, control the rhythm of the heart and help maintain a healthy blood pressure. These medications can slow the progression of heart disease and help treat clinical signs so that you can have as much time as possible with your furry friend. If you have any questions regarding the cardiovascular health of your pet, contact your veterinarian. ■ Nicholle R. Hommel is a veterinarian and medical-care coordinator at Society Hill Veterinary Hospital. For more information, call 215-627-5955 or visit www. societyhillvets.com.

CORBETT from page 1

tions, Lynn Lawson, told PGN Wednesday that there were a number of factors that led Corbett to this week’s announcement. “There was some extremely good and helpful input and concerns that members of the community shared with the governor,” she said. “He has always had a very strong background in support of antidiscrimination laws and policies and it had been his undestanding that this was covered by federal law, and he recently learned that was not the case.” Martin told PGN Wednesday that he believes Corbett took a common-sense approach to the issue. “The governor has been having conversations about this and, like a lot of elected officials, evolved. When you look at the facts, he has to weigh what’s good for economic development and issues like that, and he came to the conclusion that this is,” Martin said. “We’re in an environment where LGBT issues are being discussed and what I hoped would happen happened; people seized the opportunity to talk about how we treat LGBT people in Pennsylvania.” Pennsylvania is one of 29 states lacking an LGBT-inclusive nondiscrimination law. Legislation to rectify that has been stalled

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

for years but was reintroduced last spring with a record number of cosponsors and joint bipartisan prime sponsors. Antigay Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, chair of the State House Government Committee, to which HB 300 was assigned, in the summer pledged to block the legislation from a hearing. Corbett told the Inquirer he didn’t know how to circumvent Metcalfe. When asked what the governor would do to advocate for the bill, Lawson noted that “his support publicly is out there and I think, from that point on, the legislative process will move forward. We really have to see what comes out of chairmanships and committees and steps along the way.” “Hopefully this will bring more cosponsors, more Republican cosponsors,” Martin added. “There needs to be serious conversation about what happens now in the legislature. I think a lot of Republicans — Sen. Toomey, now the governor, the record number of cosponsors on the bill — are looking at this and saying this is an issue of fairness. That’s how we need to look at it.” While he announced his support for LGBT nondiscrimination, the governor also reaffirmed that his opposition to samesex marriage hadn’t changed. Corbett drew harsh criticism from LGBTs

and allies this fall after comparing same-sex marriage to incest. Segal said the governor expressed regret about that comment during their meeting. “He was like a hurt puppy dog about it. He knew he made a horrible mistake,” Segal said. “He was extremely apologetic and said it came out ridiculously wrong.” While Corbett’s marriage position was again raised this week, Martin noted that victories should be welcomed where they are won. “We can disagree but do things in a way that’s thoughtful. He’s there on nondiscrimination,” Martin said. “If we can work to pass HB and SB 300, that would extend protections to thousands who are currently not protected in Pennsylvania. We can disagree on different things but this is an opportunity for common ground, which is often lacking in politics.” The governor has backed the construction of the LGBT-friendly John C. Anderson Apartments and renewed a nondiscrimination order for state employees upon taking office that was inclusive of sexual orientation and gender identity. “He has been doing things quietly,” Segal said. “Credit should be given where credit is due.” ■

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Liberty City Press DEC. 15 — DEC. 22, 2013

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point

Meth-a-zoning Part I Northeast battle over methadone clinic not typical NIMBY battle

hat is a recovering heroin addict to do? Today the battle over methadone — one of the most successful drugs in the treatment of heroin addiction — has come to the streets of Northeast Philly. This is a battle that has been fought ever since the early 1970s when Dr. Vincent Dole developed the modern methadone protocol of a single daily dose. Yet it is not a battle over the efficacy of the treatment program but rather a battle over the impact methadone clinics have upon neighboring property values. It is a battle over metha-zoning. Joe DeFelice, chair of the Mayfair Community Development Corp. and the Mayfair Civic Association’s legal counsel, said at one community gathering: “I’ve heard that some [addicts] go in, get their

methadone, then go out and buy drugs on the street in front of the clinic. People have told me, ‘If you want to buy drugs, go where there’s a methadone clinic.’ “ Be careful when folks use the “people have told me” line to support a zoning policy. State Rep. Kevin Boyle told another community group that a methadone clinic would contribute to a decline in the quality of life the way other drug rehabs have harmed neighborhoods in the Lower Northeast. Yet the Baltimore Sun reports “a recent study conducted by the University of Maryland School of Medicine assistant professor debunks concerns that the clinics breed crime and drag down neighborhoods. “The study is the first of its kind that takes a geographic look at crime around clinics, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Previous research only has examined the link between crime and methadone users. “‘The concern is that methadone treatment facilities are related to a higher crime rate in the area, but there is no evidence that this is what happens,’ said Antonello Bonci, scientific director of the institute. “The research … found that crime doesn’t increase because a methadone clinic opens … Crime was more likely to occur around convenience stores, the researchers found.” If the Northeast was simply a NIMBY (not in my back yard) play by some well-organized community groups and a bunch of local pols, we might have come out on the side of The Healing Way (THW) — the corporation that went to L&I for an

over-the-counter permit to place a methadone clinic in first-floor tenant space at 7900 Frankford Ave. in Holmsburg. But this case has more to do with sneaky than NIMBY, more about clean hands than clean addicts. The record paints a picture of THW as trying to pull a fast one on the neighbors. According to Judge Idee Fox, who recently ruled on the dispute between Mayfair Civic Association and the zoning board, neither the neighbors, L&I nor any of the local pols knew that THW intended a methadone clinic when it applied for its medical office permit. That such mischief is allowed is a flaw in the city’s zoning language that does not distinguish such clinics outside of the broad “medical office” category permitted in areas zoned C-2. So a methadone clinic gets an over-the-counter in what is termed “by right.” THW’s dirty hands get dirtier when you find out, as the neighbors quickly did, that the ownership is not in the methadone clinic business. City Councilman Bobby Henon told one community group, “Their experience is in a ‘We-buy-gold-for-cash’ business in Center City.” The last clump of dirt to break the camel’s back came when THW co-owner Michelle

City Councilman Bobby Henon told one community group, “Their [THW] experience is in a ‘We-buy-gold-forcash’ business in Center City.”

Yanovsky told the Daily News that “local politicians,” whom she declined to identify, canceled several meetings to discuss the clinic. She then declined to name the pols on two subsequent occasions when asked by philly. com columnist Dan Gerringer to name names. We don’t know much about record keeping at a methadone clinic but we’re pretty sure it goes well beyond keeping records of the handful of politicians you scheduled a meeting with. We may not buy into every NIMBY argument that opposes zoning methadone clinics in residential neighborhoods. We do buy into this one. DEC. 15-22, 2013

Liberty City Press is a collaborative publication effort of the Philadelphia Multicultural Media Network.

People

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Temple Wins, Temple Loses Continued from page 12 play better and play like the veteran group that we have.” As for Temple, the Owls (44) have a long way to go if they want to be a team that will be playing in the NCAA Tournament for a seventh straight year. Lee, Will Cummings and Pepper are carrying the team right now. Contributions have been steady from sophomores Daniel Dingle and Quinton DeCosey. “I think we are learning more about ourselves,” said Dunphy. “We’re competing hard and improving.” “We are better than we were a few weeks ago,” said Duke. “Some of the core guys are really stepping into consistent roles.” The team had appeared to turn a corner by holding on late and beating the Hawks with some big plays by Lee and Cummings late in the game. “I thought we really closed this one out,” Dunphy said. Against Texas, it would be fair not to criticize the Owls for not holding a lead, like two November losses, since Texas led the game for almost 80 percent of the game. Still, it was a setback. Temple got the lead late in regulation and overtime but couldn’t hold on. Dunphy said that the Owls needed to find a way to win the game but will learn from the experience. Lee had 23 points and 14 rebounds and has really stepped up in his junior year. “I am just working really hard on the defensive end and hoping that the offense will come from there,” Lee said. “I think that I learned that the offense will come. Everything with my improvement and confidence has started with my defense. My

coaches have helped me with my positioning off the screen role and posting up. I’m trying to step up and be a leader.” The Owls played the Hawks and Texas after having a nine-day layoff. Cummings said it didn’t affect the games. “I don’t really think so,” he said. “We play hard with each other during the time off and it may have caused us to be a little [rusty]. But overall, I think coaches prepare us as well as they can to play the games.” Cummings thinks Temple will still be a viable team in its first year in a difficult American Athletic Conference. “I like the way we are playing,” he said. “We can be a good team.” St. Joseph’s lost badly to Villanova, 98-68, Saturday at Hagan Arena and was no match for Villanova (9-0) who are the surprise team of the nation so far. The Hawks are going the other way and they had high expectations in the Atlantic-10 this year. Martelli said in his press conference that he believes that the Wildcats are better than Kentucky and are going to have a “fantastic” season. Cats coach Jay Wright told Philly.com that his team has the highest basketball intelligence of any team during his 11 years at the school, including his 2009 Final Four team. Villanova is led by Ryan Arcidiacano, Darren Hilliard, James Bell, Josh Hart and Jay Pinkston. It’s a very young group that perhaps is overachieving. But squads that play well together usually beat teams with stars and role players.

Student Seeks To Be Problem Solver Carver HS freshman invited to Future Medical Leaders event by Sheila Simmons

ahn Kuock has every reason in the world not to be where he is today. His father died when he was five. His mother’s illness forced him into the foster care system, which at 80 percent posts one of the highest rates of youth dropping out of school of almost any cohort in the state. Yet Nahn racks up one academic accomplishment and opportunity after another, the most recent of which is his nomination by the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists to be an honoree and scholar representing George W. Carver High School of Engineering and Science and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania at the Congress of Future Medical Leaders conference in February in Washington, D.C. From his cozy foster home in North Philadelphia, Nahn displays a sense of maturity and compassion that belies his 15 years. He wants to be a civil or biomedical engineer, he says, because “it’s good to solve people’s problems, and to use creativity to do that.” Asked what his home life is like, which he also shares with his sister, two other foster siblings and two dogs, his foster mother Elizabeth Lugardo yells out from the kitchen “chaotic.” Nahn ekes out the slightest of smiles and says, “You get used to it after a couple years.” Foster dad Hector Lugardo pulls up a chair and reflects on his role in Nahn’s life for the past seven years. “I’m tough. I have very conservative family values. You can say I apply tough love.” Nahn loves his school, and cites reasons why: “They have a lot of varieties of students, and extracurricular activities like athletics, humanities, acting and robotics. I spend as much time in school as possible.” If he sounds like a school advocate, he is, having

Nanh T. Kuock is a Philadelphia high school student. He was nominated by the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists for academic recognition as an honoree and scholar representing George W. Carver High School of Engineering and Science and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania at the Congress of Future Medical Leaders. Photo by Sarah J. Glover

testified to the School Reform Commission against closing neighborhood schools, especially Ferguson, where he picked up STEM and set his sites to engineering. Even with the tough love, Nahn never ceases to surprise his foster father, who insists his foster son shows signs of being a prodigy “in more ways than one.” “He is driven to achieve at an academic level, but he’s very strong socially,” Lugardo offers. “When you have a person so smart and so social, you ask, how can he be both? Nahn is humble, and he has empathy and sympathy, which is unusual for a person so smart. So raising him is an easy process. He doesn’t challenge authority, and if he does, he does it with subtlety.” Dad is working to raise the $2,500 Nahn needs to attend the conference in D.C., where the prospect of meeting Nobel Prize winners particularly excites Nahn. “I would ask how to apply their processes here, to solve certain issues within the modern age, like violence and financial stability,” Nahn said.

DEC. 15-22, 2013

Liberty City Press is a collaborative publication effort of the Philadelphia Multicultural Media Network.

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Temple Wins, Temple Loses Top-20 aspirations and veteran team members were not enough to hold lead against Texas by Jeremy Treatman

ave Duke probably didn’t want to go out and recruit. The Temple men’s assistant basketball coach had just witnessed his team losing a heartbreaking overtime loss to Texas at the Wells Fargo Center on Dec. 7. But this is the life of a coach of a team that has top-20 national ranking aspirations. The job never ends, even on game days. Duke — the coach, not the university — was at Lower Merion High School to watch top players from Milford Mill (Md.), St. Benedict’s (N.J.), Lower Merion, Imhotep Charter, Roman Catholic and Lancaster McCaskey at the prestigious Famjuice Tip-Off Scholastic Play-by-Play Boosters Classic just minutes after the Owls’ loss. “Duty calls, plenty of great players to see,” he said. “It was a shame we lost the game. We had a lead late but couldn’t hold it. It’s a shame to lose a game like that.” Temple lost this game in part because Dalton

Pepper was called for a foul shot violation for going over the line after he shot the ball before his shot went through the cylinder. The made shot would have given the Owls a three-point lead. Instead, Texas buried a three-pointer to win with 3 seconds left in the extra period. Coach Fran Dunphy said in the postgame press conference that he thought that Pepper was thinking about a play teammate Anthony Lee made at the end of a win over St. Joseph’s (4-4) Dec. 4. Lee went to the foul line against the Hawks with a two-point lead late and no Temple Owls positioned up front on the line. Still, Lee missed the free throw, raced after it and retrieved it over four shocked St. Joseph’s Hawks. The play sealed the win. The play prompted Hawks coach Phil Martelli to become frustrated. “It was a play by a very young team but we are not young,” he said. “We have a great group of character guys, they are great people. But we have to Continued on page 2

Temple’s Dalton Pepper (#32) lays up two. Sixers rookie Michael CarterWilliams was in attendance. Photos by Sarah J. Glover

CUTBACKS AT TEMPLE The recent cutbacks at Temple — the school announced it was dropping seven sports including men’s and women’s crew, men’s gymnastics, baseball, track and field and softball — have as expected caused outrage, controversy, disappointment and heartbreak among members of those sports communities. The athletic department said that the $3 million the school will save can be reallocated to support other sports, namely football, and men’s and women’s basketball. “We can’t pretend that we don’t have a problem and we’re providing a great experience for our student-athletes,” Temple AD Kevin Clark said. Some of the criticism Temple is receiving is that the board of trustees meeting and vote were so private that nearly everyone affected had been so caught off guard by the announcements. “We’re not enjoying standing in front of young people and taking away their dreams.” The decisions will allow the 2013-2014 season to continue in all the sports that will be abolished at the end of this academic year. “It seems really unfair and stupid,” said one student. “These kids who play these sports deserve the same opportunity as other sports.” But money resources for the dropped sports are not there, according to Temple administrators. Personally, as a Temple graduate I understand both sides. It’s hard to run a business, and yes, Temple is still a business, without having operating funds to run these sports the correct way. But I also feel for these young people who came to this school to perform for programs with great pedigrees. Maybe a donor will step up and save these sports. It should be noted that baseball was dropped years ago but the outcry was so strong that Temple decided not to end baseball. Maybe the same thing could happen. “That’s always a possi-

Temple’s Quenton DeCosey (#25) drives the ball to the hoop. Temple head basketball coach Fran Dunphy. Photos by Sarah J. Glover

bility,” a wealthy anonymous Temple alum told me last week. Until then, there’s a lot of crying right now in the Temple sports community.

DEC. 15-22, 2013

Liberty City Press is a collaborative publication effort of the Philadelphia Multicultural Media Network.

NEWS PGN

don’t have to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. Baldwin says the judge is holding the rights of gays and lesbians in Oklahoma hostage by not ruling on the case. The judge did not return a message seeking comment.

Media Trail

The Burlington Free Press reports the Virginia pastor convicted in federal court in Vermont of helping a woman and her child flee the country rather than share custody with her former lesbian partner says the case should be dismissed because it has no connection to Vermont. Kenneth Miller made the argument in papers filed with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. Prosecutors countered that trying the case in Vermont was appropriate because the crime didn’t begin until Lisa Miller and her daughter left the country in 2009. The Millers are not related. Kenneth Miller, of Stuarts Draft, Va., was

Oklahoma’s News9.com reports a samesex couple from Tulsa knew filing a lawsuit seeking the right to marry in Oklahoma would be an uphill battle. But Mary Bishop and Sharon Baldwin never thought the lawsuit would still be in district court nine years later. Bishop and Baldwin filed the lawsuit for the right to marry in November 2004, months after Oklahomans overwhelmingly voted to pass an amendment to the state constitution banning same-sex marriage. Another couple in the lawsuit is challenging a section of the federal Defense of Marriage Act that says individual states

convicted in 2012 of aiding in international parental kidnapping. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison, but the sentence was delayed pending appeal. Oral arguments in the appeal are set for January.

USI faculty opposes gaymarriage ban

Pastor: Custody case had no Vt. connection

Couple awaits marriage ruling

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

According to the Evansville Courier & Press, the University of Southern Indiana’s Faculty Senate voted to oppose Indiana’s proposed constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Eight senators voted in favor of a motion that opposes the ban, three voted against it and two abstained during the Dec. 13 Faculty Senate meeting at a packed hall on the Evansville campus. The motion states that the proposed gaymarriage ban “is not consistent with the best interests of the faculty, staff and students of USI.” It also encourages the school’s administration and the Indiana General Assembly to oppose the ban. Faculty at the University of Evansville,

Indiana University, Purdue, Ball State, Butler and other Indiana schools have all gone on record opposing the proposed constitutional amendment.

Calif. city OKs parade despite gay exclusion ABC News reports a Southern California city has granted a private group a permit to hold a Vietnamese new year’s parade over objections that it will exclude the community’s gay and lesbian residents. Members of a gay and lesbian group pleaded with the Westminster City Council to deny the permit to the Vietnamese American Federation of Southern California at a meeting Dec. 11, but the vote to grant it was unanimous. Councilmembers criticized the exclusion and some said the controversy makes the city look bad, but that they have no legal choice but to grant the permit for the Tet Parade that has been held in the city for two decades. ■ — compiled by Larry Nichols

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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SCHAEFER from page 1

But Schaefer said he has no intention of making that promise. “I cannot uphold those discriminatory laws and the language in the United Methodist Church’s Book of Discipline that is hurtful and harmful,” he said. Schaefer also said he won’t voluntarily surrender his credentials. “I cannot voluntarily surrender my credentials because I am a voice now for many of the tens of thousands of LGBT members in our church.” If Schaefer is defrocked, he plans to appeal that decision through the church’s internal appellate procedures. Schaefer was scheduled to learn his fate Dec. 19 in a meeting with the church’s Board of Ordained Ministry. The Rev. James F. McIntire, pastor of Hope United Methodist Church in Havertown, is among Schaefer’s staunchest supporters. McIntire said church leaders shouldn’t condition Schaefer’s penalty on whether he promises not to perform another same-sex marriage. “They’d be asking him to speculate on a hypothetical situation that may never happen in the rest of his ministry,” McIntire noted. Church rules don’t always reflect the love and compassion God has for humanity, he added. “Sometimes you have to go beyond the words of the Book of Discipline for justice to happen,” McIntire said. T h e r ev e r e n d c o m p a r e d Schaefer’s actions to someone exceeding the speed limit to get to a burning building. “The [Methodist] Church is on fire, and we have to get to it quickly, so that it can move forward with the times.” McIntire also urged Bishop Peggy A. Johnson of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church to be more supportive of Schaefer. “She can be an instrument of change, with a prophetic voice,” he said. An open letter to Johnson, signed by 44 Methodist clergy, was read at the press conference. It urges Johnson to “refrain from bringing any clergy, bishops and lay members to a church trial [relating to LGBT issues] while this process of discernment, prayer and change is ongoing.” The letter also states: “We appeal to your good graces in the name of Christ’s example and teaching of unconditional love extended to all people.”

NEWS PGN

Johnson wasn’t available for an interview. But through a spokesperson, Johnson said the due-process rights of everyone involved in a church dispute must be respected. “Individual bishops cannot change the Discipline,” Johnson said. “If Rev. Schaefer loses his credentials, this is not something that bishops are allowed by the Discipline to overturn.” McIntire questioned why Johnson selected the Rev. Christopher Fisher to be Schaefer’s prosecutor, since he’s known to have strong conservative leanings. But Johnson defended Fisher. “Rev. Fisher is well-qualified to be the church counsel because he teaches polity at a local seminary and is well-versed in interpreting the Discipline,” she said. Johnson also said she tried hard to avoid a trial for Schaefer. “Mediation attempts and a just resolution were attempted but did not succeed. When that cannot be achieved, a complaint is turned over to the church counsel.” She added: “The church is divided over this [LGBT] issue and many in the church continue to pray, study and respectfully dialogue in search of a solution.” Schaefer is the father of three LGBT children. He said the support of his family has helped him get through the ordeal. He lives in North Cornwall Township and for the past 11 years was pastor of Iona United Methodist Church in South Lebanon Township. Schaefer’s two-day trial was held last month at the Innabah Camp and Retreat Center in Spring City, Chester County. Schaefer said the trial can be traced to an altercation with Deborah Boger, a former senior choir director at his church. Her son, Jon, filed a formal complaint against Schaefer for officiating at his son’s 2007 marriage, six years after the fact. “That’s what this [complaint] is about,” Schaefer said after the news conference. When contacted by PGN, Deborah Boger would only say: “Everybody should stay in prayer for each other.” Jon Boger couldn’t be reached for comment. ■

Merry Christmas one and all! ~ PGN staff

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

PGN

AC ul t ure rts

PGN FEATURE

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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Barcrawlr Family Portrait Out & About Outward Bound Q Puzzle Scene in Philly Worth Watching

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KEVIN REMINGTON (FRED), SIRENA IRWIN (LUCY), JOANNA DANIELS (ETHEL) AND BILL MENDIETA (RICKY) Photos: Jeremy Daniel

‘I Love Lucy’ musical makes Philly premiere By Larry Nichols larry@epgn.com One of the most beloved TV shows in history will come alive on stage with the Philadelphia premiere of “I love Lucy,” Dec. 26-29 at the Merriam Theater. The musical stage event transports the audience back to the golden age of television, when the show was filmed. “You’re going back in time and you’re at Desilu Studios,” actor Sirena Irwin, who plays the titular character, said. “You have one episode from 1951 and one episode from 1953.” Irwin said stepping into the role of such a legendary performer as Lucille Ball, and such a widely recognized character like Lucy Ricardo, was a bit intimidating. So much so that she almost didn’t take the role. “It’s extraordinarily daunting to do such a thing,” Irwin said. “I did try to talk the director out of casting me. But he assured me that he didn’t want an impersonator. He wanted an actor who could capture her essence and bring the character to life. So I decided to take the plunge.”

Almost everybody on earth who has access every single episode in preparation for the to electricity knows the four main characters show. of the series — Lucy, her husband and Latin “It’s been such an exciting process to get to bandleader Ricky, her best friend Ethel and know this show and get to know this character, Ethel’s gruff husband Fred — like family. At going from zero to watching all 179 episodes. least we thought everybody did. Irwin admit- I now have a section of my library that is all ted she didn’t know the show very well until dedicated to Lucy. It’s been a really interesting she was cast. journey for me.” “It’s funny, I came from a perspective of not Out actor Mark Christopher Tracy, who being familiar with the show,” she said. “It’s plays the show’s host, Maury Jasper, also crazy. Obviously I was living under a rock. I admitted he wasn’t too familiar with the show, didn’t grow up with television. Before I audi- but for different reasons. tioned for the show, I knew of ‘I Love Lucy.’ “I never watched it when I was a kid,” he I’d seen it at a friend’s said. “I had friends house a few times but where who were LucyI didn’t understand the philes and they can show. I didn’t have a quote entire episodes. very clear sense of what I love [Irwin] dearly it was other than the but she’s from another iconic image of Lucy. planet. I loved television growing up and we I was at a huge deficit. were allowed to watch Now it just seems unacceptable. But that is lots of it, within reason. But Sirena grew where I was.” up in some Bohemian But she got a crash course in all things “I IRWIN AS LUCY AND MENDIETA h o u s e w h e r e t h ey Love Lucy,” watching AS RICKY didn’t know what the

box with the screen on it was.” While he’s not playing someone who appeared on screen in the TV show, Tracy, as Jasper, takes the audience through the experience of watching the shows being taped. “Mark is really the hub of the wheel,” Irwin said of her costar. “He’s the warm-up guy and takes the audience on the journey. He’s fascinated by the early 1950s and is a collector of things from that era. He’s absolutely wonderful in the part. He’s the guide and the audience goes along with him. The audience gets to see the filming of two episodes and they are also treated to our resident singing group and they sing commercial jingles from the era. We have an orchestra on stage with us so it’s exciting.” “It’s so fun because people come to our show with a huge bag of expectations and they have the whole show imprinted on their memory,” Tracy added. “It’s not that they just saw it yesterday, they’ve seen it for 20 years. So for them to see a color, live-action version acted out in front of them in Desilu Studios is really transformative. And that’s not me saying it. That’s me quoting people who have seen it. I think it’s a really unique experience and people really dig it.” PAGE 28

FEATURE PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

LUCY from page 27

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With a number of classic episodes they could have chosen to recreate on stage, the producers wanted to focus on those that were conducive to the limitations they have in a live setting. “What they really wanted was episodes where all four of the main characters were featured prominently,” Irwin said. “They wanted episodes that had the opportunity for song. They wanted episodes where Lucy was trying to get into the show. They had to rule out anything with Little Ricky. After they went through everything, they wanted to have two sets. They wanted to have the Tropicana and the apartment. It came down to six episodes and they made their choice from that. The iconic episodes we think of, like the chocolate factory and the grape stomping, they would be harder to pull off because of props and wardrobe and trying to turn around that quickly after having chocolate all over your face.” “There are ones that lend themselves better to presentation in front of a live audience, that have a limited number of location changes and don’t involve guest stars, which is a ploy that they went to in the latter half of their run,” Tracy added. “I think it’s their intention to introduce different episodes as the ‘I Love Lucy’ experience continues. And the best part about it is that they all have to have me. So you can see why I’m tickled to be involved in this.” Tracy said that while he doesn’t have the pressure of performing as a character everybody knows and recognizes, he does carry the creative weight of being a crucial part of the show. “A friend told me that I have the hardest job, but the easiest job,” he said. “I do talk a lot. I talk for pages and pages. I have to take care of my voice. Then again, I am a creation. I’m not a real person. I’m creating this warm-up guy who is not just responsible for keeping the audience elevated but also explaining the technical aspects of television. The warm-up guys, it’s their job to tell the jokes and juggle if necessary and fill those gaps and keep the

ball rolling. With me it’s delightful. I have a great time. I have a fair amount of improv experience. I don’t generally feel unsteady on my feet. But every once in a while something will come along that requires some fast thinking. It’s the kind of thing that happens in television all the time. In our case, I can do no wrong because people aren’t comparing me against someone they are familiar with. It’s a lot of fun and I have a lot of fun doing it.” MARK TRACY Tracy said he tries to stay in 1950s character, even if the audience participating in the show doesn’t. “I try to be a stickler on the details,” he said. “I think the best thing I can do to serve the show, besides keeping the energy up, is if I do improvise, I have the responsibility to make sure the information I’m pulling out of my back pocket is accurate. And of course to not ever use any kind of modern slang and anachronistic references, and certainly not profanity. We had a lady who had a cocktail before the show, so when I asked who knew their ‘I Love Lucy’ trivia, she raised her hand. We do this thing where they have to ring in to answer. I think she was a little upset that she hadn’t rung in in time and she let go with the s-word. And the whole place froze. And I held it. I didn’t crack. The place was roaring. I thought, What would my mom say? I looked at the grand prize, which was a giant jug of shampoo, and said to the lady, ’You know, I suppose I could take that shampoo and rinse out that dirty mouth of yours.’ That’s an example of how to think on your feet in a way that maintains the decorum of the time and is not anachronistic and nasty, because so much humor these days relies on irony and having it be at the expense of the other person. If you look at ‘Lucy,’ it’s a different, more gentle kind of humor and it pays off.” ■ The Kimmel Center presents “I Love Lucy: Live on Stage” Dec. 26-29 at Merriam Theater, 250 S. Broad St. For more information or tickets, call 215-790-5800 or visit www.ilovelucylive.com.

PROFILE PGN

Family Portrait

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Suzi Nash

Avis Albaladejo: Climbing the community-center ladder If you don’t know about the William Way LGBT Community Center, then bah humbug to you! The center is the hub of all things gay in Philadelphia: Fourteen community-based organizations call the center home and atleast 85 more use the venue on a regular basis. The building is open seven days a week and is currently visited by more than 2,500 people each month. Wandering inside, you can find a library, a rotating art gallery, a Cyber Center with computers available for public use and free WiFi. At Way Gay University, you can learn to dance, speak Spanish, build a relationship or defend yourself, a skill we all might need considering the recent violence in the Gayborhood. If you’re a gamer, you can join the chess club or perhaps the Mahjong club, expand your literary world with the book club or the Queer Writers’ Collective. Stressed out? Join the Rainbow Buddhist Meditation group or take a class in Tai Chi. Did you miss one of my columns (heaven forbid)? Find a back issue of PGN in the LGBT archives. And if you’re looking for something to do this holiday season, the center is the place to be. You just missed the Holiday Extravaganza with Latin carols led by center executive director Chris Bartlett, but there’s still time to join old friends or meet new ones at the 10th annual Holiday Potluck Dinner, 2-4 p.m. Dec. 25, or the LGBT Kwanzaa Celebration, 6-9 p.m. Dec. 28. Helping to make the yuletide gay is the center’s Avis Albaladejo. With a hearty laugh that would rival Santa’s, Albaladejo took a moment out of his holiday preparations to speak to us. AA: This is my first interview ever, so sorry if I’m a little nervous. PGN: Aww, I’m your first? [Laughs.] I’ll try to be gentle. AA: Mmmhmm. I’ve heard that before! PGN: Sassy! You must be from Philly. AA: Yup, born and raised in the Olney section of the city. I’ve been in South Philly now for about 10 years. PGN: Small family? Big family? AA: Pretty big, six kids: four girls, two boys. And now 15 nephews and nieces. PGN: You had your own “Eight is Enough.” AA: For sure. And my mother pretty much raised us by herself. How she managed that, I don’t know. She’s a wonderful woman. PGN: Did your parents split when you were young? AA: Fairly young, I guess in my teens. They never actually got divorced, though — that old-school Puerto Rican anti-divorce mindset. They just separated instead.

PGN: Well, we’re not Puerto Rican, but my family’s done the same thing. The folks haven’t been together for years but are still technically married. So tell me about growing up in your big family. AA: It was fun. I was born in North Philly so moving to Olney was a step up. The school system was better, the neighborhood was better. Not saying there was anything wrong with North Philly, but for us it was a great move. We got to meet different people and it was a great experience. PGN: With that many kids, did you form a band or rugby team? AA: [Laughs.] No, we weren’t quite “The Brady Bunch.” With a single parent, I think family can get on your nerves quicker. There were times when you wanted to be an only child but then you start to appreciate having siblings and never, never being alone. PGN: Whom did you share a room with? AA: I had my own room until I was 7 and my younger brother was born.

PGN: What were some other jobs you’ve held? What was the worst? AA: They’ve all been pretty good. Wait, that’s not true, I’ve had a few crappy ones. I was the bar manager at Key West. That wasn’t one of the crappy ones, that was pretty good. I was there for 12 years. [Laughs.] I seem to usually start at the bottom and somehow hoist my way up. I started at Key West as the cleaner and worked my way up to manager, which is pretty much exactly how I started at William Way. I’d been out of work for about a year after Key West closed and my ex told me that they were looking for maintenance help here, so I went over and got the job. Then my supervisor quit and they put me in as an interim and I’ve been the permanent facilities manager ever since. PGN: I remember years ago hanging out in the lobby waiting for a meeting to start when a young girl came in and started talking to me. She was about 18 and had never been to a club or any kind of gay facility

PGN: That brat! AA: [Laughs.] Exactly! PGN: Who was the troublemaker in the family? AA: That would have been my sister Maggie. She would say exactly what she felt. We’re both middle children and very forthright.

their lives. Coming out is hard for anybody, obviously, but here they feel the sense of community when they walk through the doors of William Way. There’s always a front-desk staff person to talk to people and let them know what we’re about and direct them to resources. We have peer-counseling services available Monday-Friday 6-9 p.m., which seems to help a lot of people. But I think it’s the overall welcoming nature of the place that appeals to people most. PGN: What’s your favorite story? AA: Well, I do the rentals here. We rent out the ballroom and various spaces for people to use. We’ve had everything from baby showers to memorial services. I don’t discriminate, I’ll rent to anyone, so often we get straight people renting. For a lot of their guests, it’s the first time they’ve ever been to an LGBT place or met — to their knowledge — LGBT people. I kind of dig the fact that they come in and often have their misconceptions about gay people totally turned around. They suddenly realize that we’re just like everybody else. I really like being able to open our doors to anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, and having the potential to change hearts and minds.

PGN: What’s the best part of being an uncle? AA: Being able to give them back! Just joking. The best part is watching them grow into the amazing individuals they are. I have a nephew who’s training to be a Navy fighter pilot, a niece who’s in college on a volleyball scholarship, a nephew whose soccer team won the Catholic League championship this year, a nephew who’s being recruited by college scouts for baseball and another nephew in the robotics club at Central High School, which is pretty cool. They’re all gifted and I’m proud of all of them. PGN: So what do you do at William Way? AA: I’m the facilities director. It’s an old building so me and my staff try to keep it running as smoothly as possible. With a building like this, there are always going to be issues here and there, but we try and keep up with everything and this old building is going strong. PGN: Were you handy as a kid? AA: Not really! When my dad was around, he’d show me a couple of things, but handy, no. I was always into physical things, workwise, and not so much into office work, even though that’s a good part of what I do now! I just think that the jobs that I’ve taken have made me handier than I started out being.

or organization but had somehow found William Way. She asked me what she should do and how to deal with being gay. It was a touching moment (and hopefully I gave her some good advice and resources). It was a singular moment for me but you must have plenty of those moments. AA: Oh yes. This place is great for stories like that. We get kids but we also get people my age, in their 40s and older too, who are just coming out and need some direction or help with certain aspects of

Photo: Suzi Nash

PGN: So speaking of coming out, how did you tell the family? AA: That’s a funny story. I didn’t “come out” come out. My siblings kept sending me Facebook friend requests and I ignored them for the longest time. Finally, my dad passed away [laughs] — wait, not finally! About six months after my dad passed, I still was ignoring everyone on Facebook. Finally, my sister Lisa messaged me and wrote, “If the reason why you won’t accept any friend requests from any of us is because you’re gay, well, we already know!” I was like, “Oh wow!”

PGN: [Laughs.] No she didn’t! AA: Yes, she did! So after that it was fine. All my siblings and my mom knew. It was a lot easier than I thought. I think a lot of people find it’s not nearly as difficult as you anticipate. Growing up in the Northeast can be a little tough. I think there’s a different mindset there, but I was very lucky and didn’t lose any family or friends over it. PAGE 40

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

NIGHTLIFE PGN

Christmastime is here! There’s nothing like a little bit of snow to kickstart your holiday spirit! But, there’s nothing like a little too much snow, rain and ice to make a mess of your holiday plans. Make a resolution to not let anything stand in your way of having a safe, fun and fabulous holiday! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everybody! Kinky Christmas Grab your hos and get your “Ho Ho Ho” on at the Kinky Christmas party, 10 p.m. Dec. 20 at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St. Enjoy naughty holiday burlesque performances, a leather fashion show and sale by Wolfstryker Leather and more! Your hosts will be the incredible Maddy Milan and Bev.

to celebrate the end of 2013? Join Liberty City Kings Drag and Burlesque at 7 p.m. Dec. 31 at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St., for dinner, drinks, drag, burlesque and dancing. Dinner is at 7, show is at 9, and dance the night away starting at midnight. Tickets are $75 for VIP dinner and reserved show seating, $50 for dinner and the show, $15 for just the show in advance and $17 for the show at the door. For tickets, check out www.libertycitykings.com. Mum’s the Word! Ring in the New Year Jan. 1 with the men of Philadelphians MC! Enjoy the Mummers Parade, and when you need to warm up, drop in to their open house from noon-3 p.m. at the William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St. Then join them at the amazing Fancy Brigades Finale at 5 p.m. at the Convention Center. Tickets are $25 for the finale show, advance purchase required. Check out www.philadelphiansmc.org for more information.

Winter Wonderland Drag yourself to brunch one last time this year Dec. 21 at Fire and Ice, 312 Market St. Doors open at noon and the show starts Jim Kileyat 1 p.m. Enjoy brunch and botZufelt tomless Screws or Bloodys for $30, or just catch the show for Pink Pub Crawl — New Year’s Day only $10. All of the proceeds from the door On Jan. 1, join the only Pink Pub Crawl will benefit Foyer of Philadelphia, which where you don’t have to wear pink! It all works to find housing for homeless LGBT youth. starts at 4 p.m. at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St., then crawls around the Gayborhood, with visits to Sashaying of the Santas Tavern, Venture and ICandy. If it’s outrageous holiday fun you’re after, Tickets are $25 for everyone, dressed don’t miss the start of a brand-new tradiin pink or not, and include drink tickets, tion. It’s the Running of the Santas with a dance-floor admission, prizes and hot entertainment. For more information, see www. Gayborhood twist. Are you ready? Welcome to Sashaying of the Santas! nightlifegay.com. Registration for the holiday-costumed pub crawl starts at 4 p.m. Dec. 21 at the “South Philly Jacks New Year’s Night Party Pole,” ICandy at 254 S. 12th St. The crawl If the holidays leave you exhausted, sets off at 6 p.m., with stops at The Bike recharge your batteries on New Year’s Day Stop, Tabu, Knock, UBar, Tavern on Camac, with the guys at Philly Jacks at 1318 Walnut Venture Inn, Westbury and Woody’s. At 10 St. Philly Jacks hosts safe-sex parties for p.m., you’ll slide down the chimney to rock men 18 and over, with as many as 60 guests the night away at Voyeur, the “North Pole,” per event. Doors open at 7:30 p.m., and the where you’ll have a chance to win lots of party lasts until about 10 p.m. For more cool prizes. information, check out www.philadelphiajacks.com. Cover charge is $20 if you’re in a Santa suit or similar holiday-themed costume, and Coming soon: “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Battle $30 if not, which gets you a wristband for of the Seasons Returns! complimentary cocktails and munchies at They’re back, and this time they’re coming registration and discount drinks all night. to the Troc! Meet Ru’s girls at 9 p.m. Jan. This is your chance to say you were there 16 at the Trocadero Theater, 1003 Arch St. when it began, so don’t miss out! Check out Tentative lineup (subject to change) includes: www.phillypride.org or www.nightlifegay. com for more info. Sharon Needles, Alaska Thunderfuck, Manila Luzon, Pandora Boxx, Ivy Winters, 12 Daze of Christmas Carmen Carrera, Mimi Imfurst and Phi Phi The festive celebration continues at 9 p.m. O’Hara, with special guest hostess Michelle Dec. 22 at Tavern on Camac, 243 S. Camac Visage. St. Drop by Tavern for its annual customerTicket are $29.50 for general admission or appreciation party and holiday show star$75 for a VIP meet and greet. For more info ring all your favorite staff members and a and tickets, check out www.thetroc.com. ■ few special guests, with host Crystal Electra. Questions, comments, New Year’s resolutions There will be drink specials and surprises all night long! to share? Contact Jim at barcrawlr@gmail. com or follow him on Facebook for links to New Year’s Eve Glitter Gayla back articles and some totally bitchin’ retro music videos! Want some glamorous, fabulous burlesque

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

NIGHTLIFE PGN

PGN ART

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Artists explore gender in multimedia exhibition By Larry Nichols larry@epgn.com Queer feminist-art activists Sarah Secunda and Rebecca Katherine Hirsch have launched an interactive multimedia exhibition aimed at exploring alternate representations of gender and identity. Titled “Barbarism,” the exhibition — at Fleisher Art Memorial through the end of next month — aims to challenge injustice through comedy, caricature and art. Hirsch said the name for the exhibition, like the works in it, has a number of interpretations.

“I think we are interested in the idea of barbarism is consonance with the civilization, and also I, for a long time, called all my friends ‘Barb,’” Hirsch said. “So it’s a wonderful combination of many things. In reference to gender, we’re taking a barbarous approach to upending hetero-normativity and gender norms — all of that which has held us back.” Hirsch said the exhibition consists of works the two artists have created, along

with the works and text of people who inspired them. “The works we have put into this exhibit cover the last three years,” Hirsch said of the exhibition’s creative process. “We have made a larger and more concerted effort to put it together since we knew we were going to have an exhibition a few months ago. We work really slow and really fast. Some of the texts we have included are written by other people like Judith Butler. The exhibition features our writings and photoshopped images and various videos in various genres. During the exhibition, we are going to have a large space for people to contribute their own images and texts on the wall.” Hirsch hopes the existence of such an exhibition will get people thinking about issues of gender and identity, and thereby evolve their beliefs. “On a naïve level, I think representation of new ways of operating are powerful,” Hirsch said. “Mostly what we do is video. We take on characters of various people. We intermix and mash up a lot of videos in order to give voice to different voices that are a combination of all of our voices. It is the representation of otherness, and otherness being other than what one thinks it might be, that is helpful and powerful.” ■ Check out “Barbarism” through Jan. 31 at Fleisher Art Memorial, 719 Catharine St. For more information, call 215-922-3456 or visit http://vimeo.com/barbarism.

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TELEVISION PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Worth Watching IN LIVING COLOR: The “I Love Lucy Christmas Special” is a one-hour event featuring two newly colorized, backto-back classic episodes of the 1950s series, 8 p.m. Dec. 20 on CBS. Photo: CBS/ Screen Grab

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR: The Peanuts gang is back and ready to help Linus break away from his childhood security blanket in “Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown,” 9 p.m. Dec. 20 on Fox. Photo: Fox

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LEAVE A DRAGON UNDER THE TREE FOR ME: Join Hiccup and Toothless as the holiday spirit spreads throughout Berk in the animated holiday special “DreamWorks Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury,” 8:30 p.m. Dec. 25 on Fox. Photo: Fox

TRAVEL PGN

Outward Bound

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Jeff Guaracino

Hawaii: The destination of the year It has been a fabulous year for gay and lesbian travel. I have covered destinations, tour companies and hotels offering extraordinary experiences tailored for our community. There was even a quiz on travel planning. Each December, this column looks at the very best in the travel industry and bestows the “Destination of the Year” award. This year it goes to the Aloha State — Hawaii. On Dec. 2, same-sex marriage became legal there, making Hawaii the 15th state in the nation to recognize and offer same-sex marriage and equal marriage benefits. Considering that the Hawaiian Islands have long been a popular honeymoon and destination-wedding state for our heterosexual friends and family, it is especially symbolic that our community can finally say Hawaii is a place where we can have our relationships recognized too. And those relationships are big business. The University of Hawaii estimated an additional

$217 million will be spent in the next three years on same-sex weddings. Hawaii really isn’t the newest state to be enlightened. In fact, in many ways the culturally rich Pacific island has led the way on the issue, well before same-sex marriage was among the national dialogue. The spirit of Aloha celebrates diversity, freedom and sexual expression. Hawaii has extraordinary natural beauty and among the best beaches and views in the world, but it is the people of Hawaii who make this destination a must-visit in 2014. Before the arrival of our Western influence, same-sex relationships were embraced in the independent island kingdom. “Aikane” was the Hawaiian term that denoted those in same-sex relationships. Fast-forward about 100 years and it was the Supreme Court of Hawaii in the early ’90s that ruled that state’s refusal to grant same-sex marriage was discriminatory. It took until 2012 for

civil unions to become law and this year for full marriage equality for residents and visitors to become a reality. Properties of the Year To celebrate the passage of the law, the Sheraton Waikiki Resort held a marriage gala shortly after midnight Dec. 2, where 39 samesex couples — including lesbians, gay men and transgender people — married. Kelly Sanders, area managing director for Starwood and the Sheraton Waikiki Resort, hosted the lavish event overlooking Diamond Head on romantic Waikiki Beach. For those interested in getting married in Hawaii, Starwood offers one-stop wedding planning for its properties — the Sheraton, the Royal Hawaiian or the Mona Surfrider — a Westin Resort and Spa. You can get your marriage license on property at Sheraton, have a glorious spa day at the Westin and then hold the ceremony at the iconic “pink palace of the Pacific,” the Royal

HAWAII’S SHERATON WAIKIKI RESORT Hawaiian. One person at the hotel can plan all your events among the properties, which are located within a scenic walking distance to one another. Another perk is that several gay bars are close to all three Starwood hotels and the weekly Hulu’s catamaran sail departs from the beach adjacent to the Sheraton. To get your marriage license, you simply need to bring your

birth certificate or passport and a driver’s license, answer five simple questions and pay a $65 fee. Your permanent license will come in the mail six weeks later. But you can get married immediately while in Hawaii. You can complete your marriage application online at https://emrs.ehawaii.gov/emrs/public/home.html. There are several Hawaiian hotels that embrace the LGBT traveler. You can choose from the Hilton Waikiki Beach, the Aston Hotel and Resorts, the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort and Spa and the Aqua Waikiki Wave. However, with the distinction of the Sheraton being the only property with an on-site marriage office and for hosting the historic wedding this month, Starwood’s Sheraton Waikiki is the Hotel Property of the Year. After your wedding, it is time for the honeymoon. The St. Regis located in Princeville on the island of Kauai — Hawaii’s oldest island — overlooks the gorgeous Hanalei Bay. The hallmark of this hotel is the service. The staff is so well-trained that a same-sex couple having an Aloha Island Spirit massage and a Lomi Lomi massage seems like an everyday event. Visitors to the island are awed by its natural beauty and, at the St. Regis, you will be wowed by your hotel room’s view. For the hotel’s exceptional staff service to samesex couples and for many frontline staff being native Hawaiian, the St. Regis Princeville shares the title of Hotel Property of the Year. ■ Jeff Guaracino is the author of “Gay and Lesbian Tourism: The Essential Guide for Marketing.”

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

PGN

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Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT LISTINGS PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

OUT & ABOUT The week ahead Fri. 12/20 Tribe of Fools Holiday Burlesque: The Rise of Nasty Frosty Tribe of Fools hosts its fourth-annual holiday burlesque show 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Adrienne Theatre, 2030 Sansom St. Huggy Lowdown’s Holiday Comedy Showdown The radio personality hosts a comedy show 8 p.m. at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.; 215-222-1400. Peek-a-Boo Revue Holiday Tease-a-Thon The burlesque group performs 8 p.m. at the

Trocadero Theatre, 1003 Arch St.; 215922-6888. Theatre OUTing: Gender Comedy, A Less Stupid 12th Night Gay Fantasia The William Way LGBT Community Center hosts Curio Theatre Company’s world-premiere play that skewers the absurdity of Shakespeare’s stories 8-10 p.m., 1315 Spruce St.; 215732-2220. Lil’ Steph presents Rasputin’s Room Philadelphia’s only All-Classic Burlesque Show begins 9 p.m. at Ruba Club Studios, 416 Green St.; 215627-9831.

MST3K: Santa Claus The 1956 Mexican horror film is screened and lampooned by sarcastic robots 9:45 p.m. at Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610917-0223. Holiday Stimulus The LGBTQ dance party hosts its last event of the year 10 p.m.-3:30 a.m. at Voyeur Nightclub, 1221 St. James St.; 215735-5772. Kinky Christmas A holiday dance party 10 p.m.-2 a.m. at Tabu, 200 S. 12th St.; 215964-9675.

Sat. 12/21 A Christmas Story The holiday film

is screened 2 p.m. at Colonial Theatre, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville; 610-917-0223. Kenny G The saxophonist performs 8 p.m. at Harrah’s Casino Hotel, 777 Harrah’s Blvd., Atlantic City; 609-4415501. ComedyGasm! Holiday Spectacular! Stand-up comedians perform 8:45 p.m. at The Irish Pol, 45 S. Third St.; 856-2875376. Karaoke Gung Show: Holiday Edition The free allages events starts 10 p.m. at the Trocadero Theatre, 1003 Arch St.; 215922-6888.

1 year 12 months 52 issues Hundreds of stories What were the important stories for LGBT Philly in 2013? What had you talking this year?

Revisit 2013’s Top Stories Dec. 27

GOING HARD ON THE BARD: Curio Theatre Company presents the world premiere of the new comedy production “Gender Comedy, A Less Stupid 12th Night Gay Fantasia,” written by Harry Slack, injecting gender bending and cyborgs into Shakespearian stories, through Jan. 4, 4740 Baltimore St. For more information or tickets, call 215-525-1350.

Samantha Ronson The out DJ performs 10 p.m. at the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa Mur Mur Nightclub, 1 Borgata Way, Atlantic City, N.J.; 609-3171000. XXXmas Luau Wear a swimsuit to this party for a discount, 10 p.m.-2 a.m. at ICandy, 254 S. 12th St.; 267324-3500.

Sun. 12/22 Upbeat! Joyful Songs for the Holidays A holiday concert of familiar songs, 4-6 p.m. at Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton, 50 Cherry Hill Road, Princeton, N.J.; 732-5798449. Messiah The Philadelphia Orchestra performs with The Philadelphia Singers Chorale 8 p.m. at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800. Holidelic The holiday-funk extravaganza starts 7:30 p.m. at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.; 215-222-1400.

Mon. 12/23

Thu. 12/26

Free Quizzo & Board Game Night Roll the dice, 7 p.m. at World Cafe Live at the Queen, 500 N. Market St., Wilmington, Del.; 302-994-1400.

Splintered Sunlight The Grateful Dead tribute band performs 8 p.m. at Sellersville Theatre 1894, 24 W. Temple Ave., Sellersville; 215-257-5808.

Lipstick Mondays A weekly drag show featuring a changing roster of queens takes the stage 9 p.m. at The Raven, 385 W. Bridge St., New Hope; 215862-2081.

Tue. 12/24

The Burlesque Show The new event kicks off 9 p.m. at the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa Music Box, 1 Borgata Way, Atlantic City, N.J.; 609-3171000.

Think Pink Floyd The tribute band performs 9 p.m. Dec. 26 at TLA, 334 South St.; 215-922-1011. Bob and Barbara’s Drag Show The outrageousness begins 11 p.m. at Bob and Barbara’s, 1509 South St.; 215545-4511.

Fri. 12/27 Sing-a-long Sound of Music Sing along with the film 8 p.m. at World Cafe Live at the Queen, 500 N. Market St., Wilmington, Del.; 302-994-1400.

Not a creature was stirring ... Seriously ... go to Midnight Mass or something ...

Wed. 12/25 Holiday Potluck RSVP to indicate what you will bring to the 10th annual event, 2-4 p.m. at William Way LGBT Community Center, 1315 Spruce St.; 215732-2220. Christmas Night Say WTF with ICandy! Celebrate Christmas, 8 p.m.-2 a.m. at ICandy, 254 S. 12th St.; 267-3243500.

GETTING FUNKED UP FOR CHRISTMAS: Out performer Everett Bradley brings his funkadelic-inspired Holidelic concert to town 7:30 p.m. Dec. 22 at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St. For more information or tickets, call 215-222-1400.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT PGN LISTINGS

Opening Disney on Ice Animated characters come to life on skates Dec. 26-Jan. 6 at Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St.; 215-389-9543. I Love Lucy The stage production based on the classic TV show runs Dec. 26-29 at Merriam Theater, 250 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800. Jim Bruer The comedian performs Dec. 26-28 at Helium Comedy Club, 2031 Sansom St.; 215-496-9001.

Continuing Barbarism A queer, gender-upending multimedia exhibition, through Jan. 31 at Fleisher Art Memorial, 719 Catharine St.; 215-9223456. From Philadelphia to Monaco: Grace Kelly, Beyond the Icon James A. Michener Art Museum hosts an exhibition tracing the unique path Grace Kelly took from Philadelphia to Monaco through Jan. 26, 138 S. Pine St., Doylestown; 215-340-9800.

JINGLE BELL ROCK STARS: TransSiberian Orchestra turns up for its holiday-rock spectacle 3 and 8 p.m. Dec. 21 at Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St. For more information or tickets, call 215389-9543.

SPEND YOUR H O L I D AY S W I T H A M E R I C A’ S FAV O R I T E FOURSOME

Léger: Modern Art and the Metropolis Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of 160 works and a multimedia exhibition of important paintings by the French painter Fernand Léger through Jan. 5, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100.

A FROSTY FANTASIA: Characters from a number of animated classics strap on some skates for “Disney on Ice,” Dec. 26-Jan. 6 at Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St. For more information or tickets, call 215-3899543.

Gender Comedy, A Less Stupid 12th Night Gay Fantasia Curio Theatre Company presents the world premiere of the new comedy by Harry Slack, through Jan. 4, 4740 Baltimore St.; 215-525-1350. Jersey Boys The Tony Award-winning Best Musical about Rock and Roll Hall of Famers The Four Seasons hits the stage through Jan. 5 at Forrest Theatre, 1114 Walnut St.; 215923-1515. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Media Theatre presents the classic Andrew Lloyd Webber musical through Jan. 4, 104 E. State St., Media; 610-891-0100.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Live Cinema/Fiona Tan: Inventory Philadelphia Museum of Art presents a multiprojection installation inviting viewers to consider museum collections as well as the human compulsion to capture the transience of time and lived experience, through March 23, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100.

Notices Send notices at least one week in advance to: Out & About Listings, PGN, 505 S. Fourth St., Philadelphia, PA 19147 fax: 215-925-6437; or e-mail: listings@epgn.com. Notices cannot be taken over the phone.

Marc Newson: At Home Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of furnishings by the influential designer through April 20, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100.

LUCY � RICKY FRED � ETHEL

Nerds The Philadelphia Theatre Company presents the story of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs as they went from garage inventors to Silicon Valley mega-billionaires, through Dec. 29 at Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St.; 215-985-0420. Sophie Tucker: The Last of the Red Hot Mamas Walnut Street Theatre presents the story of America’s queen of the double entendre through Dec. 29, 825 Walnut St.; 215-574-3550. The Surrealists: Works from the Collection Philadelphia Museum of Art presents an exhibition of the museum’s unique collection of great masterpieces and lesser-known works of the movement through March 2, 26th Street and the Parkway; 215-763-8100.

Closing The Glorious Sounds of Christmas The Philadelphia Orchestra performs its annual holiday concerts through Dec. 21 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215-790-5800. Holiday POPS! Peter Nero and the Philly POPS! perform through Dec. 21 at Kimmel’s Verizon Hall, 260 S. Broad St.; 215790-5800. ■

ADAPTED FROM THE MOST BELOVED TELEVISION SHOW I N H I S T O RY !

kimmelcenter.org 215.731.3333 Broadway Philadelphia is presented collaboratively by the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and The Shubert Organization.

FUN PGN & GAMES

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Q Puzzle I will Across 1. It made the Titanic go down 5. They call balls 9. To trot 13. Drop ___ (moon) 14. Gay nightlife district London 15. Proscribed act 16. Browser bookmarks 17. He played Jack, once in a gay sitcom 19. Place to become husband and husband 21. More cut and dry 22. Get to second base, perhaps 23. Rick Rodgers preparation 24. Versatile vehicle 26. “I Will ___” 28. With 44-Across, singer of 26-Across 30. Marilyn Monroe’s two big ones 31. What one does to one’s loins 33. H.S. junior’s chal-

lenge 34. “I, Will, ___” (famous trio, to Jack?) 37. Like a David Hockney swimming pool 40. Coin on the Continent 41. Foot fetish digit 44. See 28-Across 47. Debra, once of a gay sitcom 49. Useful hint 50. Doctors, doggystyle 52. Metronome speed 53. One-dimensional 55. Former NFL player Tuaolo 56. Eric, once of a gay sitcom 58. Plumbing passage 60. Word to a dominatrix 61. “Nurse Jackie” protrayer Falco 62. Treated a swollen member 63. First name in detective stories

PORTRAIT from page 29

PGN: And do you have a partner? AA: Yes, his name is John and he’s a good guy. I’ve been fortunate to always have good partners. I’m still friends with most of my exes. I’ve been lucky in love. PGN: I’m excited that William Way is having a big Christmas dinner. Have you gone before? AA: Yes, for the last three years. It’s a fantastic time. It’s a good way to gather with old friends and meet some new ones. We get 60-90 people for a big sit-down dinner from 2-4 p.m. It’s a potluck so most people bring things but, if not, people are still more than welcome to stop by and share in the food and festivities. People really love it. I hear a ton of compliments and praises for it each year. PGN: How did you get involved? AA: The center is open 365 days a year and each staff member has to volunteer to work a different holiday. I chose Christmas. It was a great decision, as I’m sure you know most nonprofits rely heavily on volunteers and William Way is no exception. So we have volunteers who come in and help out for the potluck. People bring in appetizers or desserts and soda, etc., and we provide the big stuff like the hams and turkeys. PGN: Sounds festive. AA: Yeah, there’s a really nice mix of young and old, men and women, people of all gender expressions and folks from all different backgrounds. PGN: That’s great. I think a misconception people might have is of it being a lonelyhearts dinner for people with nowhere to go. AA: No, that’s not the case at all. There are some people who may be in that boat, but it’s not the tone of the night. Even if you’re not

64. Six feet under 65. Uncool sort Down 1. AC unit 2. Indication that a writer pulled a boner 3. Salon cylinders 4. Composer Mahler 5. R. Nureyev’s land, once 6. He comes between Larry and Curly 7. What parents may hope homosexuality is 8. Essayist Susan 9. Word with warts or retentive 10. Peeping Toms 11. Staying power? 12. Two, in Toledo 18. Corridor 20. Get straight 22. U-turn from NNW 23. Come together 25. Enjoy Stephen Pyles 27. Film, briefly 29. Eliza Doolittle’s aspiration 32. Oil containers

34. “Atlas Shrugged” author Rand 35. “You ___ what you eat” 36. The bottom lines 37. Guy under J. Edgar? 38. Track vehicle 39. No surprise 41. _Evita_ lyricist 42. Not oral 43. I problem 45. Out partner 46. Worked the inside of a hole 48. Come in the cracks 51. It may be rough 54. Alaska city 55. Barely made, with “out” 56. Mrs., to Moliere 57. Org. in many spy movies 59. Jay’s announcer

with your biological family, you’re here with chosen family and community. We’ve got music playing and good food and good company. It’s a great time. PGN: And your big Puerto Rican family doesn’t mind you missing Christmas? AA: Our big day is Christmas Eve. That’s when the whole family gets together. [Laughs.] It can be a little much, but that’s fun too. Then I come back to the center on Christmas for more merriment! It’s perfect. PGN: So what do you do for fun when you’re away from the center? AA: I’m a big comic-book geek. I’m old school, “X-Men.” PGN: Are you a big-enough geek that you’ve been to the conventions? AA: [Hesitantly] Yeees ... I’ll admit I have been. Not regularly, but I have been. PGN: In costume? AA: No! I’m not quite that big a geek. PGN: Aww, you just lost some points. What does John do? AA: He works as a project manager in the international division of the National Board of Medical Exams, so he travels quite a bit and I get to tag along! We’ve been to Rome, Prague, Lisbon, you name it. It’s a nice perk to being with him! PGN: What was your craziest travel adventure? AA: It was actually before John. I went to Spain by myself and caught one of those gypsy cabs. He charged me 80 Euros to go about 15 minutes. I told him, “I think there’s a little mistake here,” but he insisted the fare was correct. I knew I was getting screwed but I realized that all my bags were in the trunk

and I was afraid if I refused to pay him, as soon as I got out of the cab, he’d drive off with all my belongings. So I paid him and he gave me my bags. As he drove off, I realized that I was nowhere near my destination. So I was wandering around with my bags, not knowing which way to go. Finally, after walking around for about two hours, this little gypsy kid came up and asked me for change. I said that I didn’t have any and next thing I knew I was surrounded by 12-13 kids. It was like a scene from “Children of the Corn.” I was shouting “Get back!” as they drew closer and closer. They were some frightening little kids! Then a really nice lady walking by helped me out. She happened to have a place to stay so I spent the night there and the next day she helped me find my hotel. Also on that trip, I was sightseeing and this older woman grabbed my hand and started reading my palm! She told me I was going to marry a big woman and then tried to charge me about 80 Euros for telling my future. PGN: A big woman! You should have told her that her crystal ball needed a little polishing! AA: I know! When I refused to pay her, she gave me the evil eye and put a curse on me. PGN: Wow, that was an adventure. OK, random questions. Worst pickup line ever used on you? AA: When I first came out, I was trying to make friends by going to the bars. I met this one guy and we started talking about some movie. I mentioned that I’d always wanted to see it, so he invited me to his place to watch it. As naïve as I was, I really just wanted to see the movie, but next thing you know he was all over me wrestling me to the ground and I ended up with a broken nose. [Laughs.] I’m so sorry, this is not exactly a funny pickup-line story! More like a near date-rape!

PGN: That’s more of a cautionary tale! Yeesh, glad you’re OK! What’s your go-to karaoke song? AA: It’s Elvis Presley’s “Don’t Be Cruel.” I do pretty good with that. PGN: Any pets? AA: I share custody of a cute little Boston terrier that I adopted with my ex. He lives with him but I get to see him pretty often. A big reason that we are still friends is our mutual love of Tank. PGN: I often crave ... AA: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. It’s the go-to present for me. If you can’t figure out what to get me for my birthday or Christmas, a package of Peanut Butter Cups is always a good choice. PGN: Now I know what to bring to the potluck! ■ For more information about William Way LGBT Community Center, visit www.waygay. org or call 215-732-2220.

Classifieds Real Estate Sale

PGN

Real Estate Sale

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Real Estate Sale

POCONOS REAL ESTATE LET GINGER B REALTY FIND YOUR POCONO HOME

Call Ginger or Steve

Ginger B. Broker

570-894-3400

LGBT FRIENDLY - VERY

Steve G.

Associate Broker

954 Route 196, Tobyhanna, PA 18466

YES, that’s a rainbow in our logo!

587 Coles Mill Road, Haddonﬁeld, NJ Three-story contemporary with natural landscaping & views of Cooper River. Open ﬂoor plan, cathedral ceilings & lots of glass. 4 BRS, 2 BAS, FR, 2 decks & more. One block to nature trails & jogging/biking paths.

$439,000 Call Mark Lenny • Lenny, Vermaat & Leonard, Inc., 856-428-5150 Ext 239

SECLUDED HISTORICAL DISTRICT OF LUMBERTON Beaut. rest. 1870’s home, 3 BR, 1.5 BA, 30 mins to Phila. 3 ﬂoors, all new HVAC, screened porch, 3/4 acre, mod. kit & baths, beaut. details. $285,000. 609-784-8324. _____________________________________________38-10 VENTNOR, NJ House for sale in Ventnor NJ. 2 story 5 bedroom house, needs some repairs. Priced right. Call 215 468 9166. ________________________________________38-01 TURNKEY FAMILY CAMP FOR SALE Beautifully Finished Cabin on 5 Acres, Woods and Nice Lawn, Quiet County Road, Stocked Fishing Pond & Guest Cabin. On Snowmobile Trail. Only $69,995. Call 800-2297843 Or visit www.LandandCamps.com ________________________________________37-51

Help Wanted Heavy Equipment Operator Training! Bulldozers, Backhoes, Excavators. 3 Weeks Hands On Program. Local Job Placement Assistance. National Certifications. GI Bill Benefits Eligible. 1-866-362-6497. ________________________________________37-51 Regional Owner Operators for dedicated run hauling plate glass needed. All Miles Paid! Also need regional stepdeck and RGN Contractors. Contact Daily Express 800-669-6414. ________________________________________37-51 Exp. Reefer Drivers: GREAT PAY /Freight lanes from Presque Isle, ME, Boston-Lehigh, PA. 800-277-0212 or driveforprime.com ________________________________________37-51 WANTED: LIFE AGENTS Earn $500 a Day; Great Agent Benefits; Commissions Paid Daily; Complete Training; Leads, Leads, Leads; NO LICENSE NECESSARY TO APPLY. Call 1-888-713-6020. ________________________________________37-51

For Sale SAWMILLS from only $4897.00- MAKE & SAVE MONEY with your own bandmill- Cut lumber any dimension. In stock ready to ship. FREE Info/DVD: www.NorwoodSawmills. com 1-800-578-1363 Ext.300N ________________________________________27-51 FOR SALE Tom of Finland Retrospective, Tom of Finland Retrospective II. Collectable prints are 8x11, 200 pages. Call Jim, 215-462-0723, leave number and message. _____________________________________________24-51

Pets Sweet but rambunctious 6 month old cat needs forever home with no small children in it. Super loveable and cuddly, a bit rough with little people. Fixed and has his shots. Please call (315.790.0756) to give Dexter a tryout. ________________________________________37-51 All real-estate advertising is subject to Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended. Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended, prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental and ﬁnancing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and handicap (disability). PGN will not knowingly accept any real-estate advertising that is in violation of any applicable law.

Services AIRLINE CAREERS Begin here - Get FAA approved Aviation Technician training. Financial Aid for qualiﬁed students. Job placement assistance. CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance 1-888-834-9715. _____________________________________________37-51

Notices & Legal Notices Construction Bids. Statewide ezIQC, indefinite quantity construction contracts. Prebids: December 9-13. Bid openings: January 3, 2014. Contact Keystone Purchasing Network for details: (888) 490-3182 or visit: www. theKPN.org _____________________________________________37-51 Court of Common Pleas for the County of Philadelphia, November Term, 2013, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on November 19, 2013, the petition of Deyanira Dachira DeJesus was filed, praying for a decree to change her name to Deyanira Dachira Dennis. The Court has fixed December 18, 2013 at 12:30pm, in Room No. 691, in Philadelphia City Hall for hearing. All persons interested may appear and show cause if they have, why the prayer of the said petitioner should not be granted. ________________________________________37-50 Court of Common Pleas for the County of Philadelphia, September Term, 2013, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on October 21, 2013, the petition of Daria Alexandra Gerson was filed, praying for a decree to change his name to Darius Alexander Gerson. The Court has fixed December 18, 2013 at 12:30pm, in Room No. 478, in Philadelphia City Hall for hearing. All persons interested may appear and show cause if they have, why the prayer of the said petitioner should not be granted. ________________________________________37-50 Court of Common Pleas for the County of Philadelphia, November Term, 2013, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on November 12, 2013 the petition of Akeem Addul Betts was filed, praying for a decree to change her name to Mia Patrone. The Court has fixed December 18, 2013 at 12:30 p.m., in Room No. 691, in Philadelphia City Hall for hearing. All persons interested may appear and show cause if they have, why the prayer of the said petitioner should not be granted. ________________________________________37-50 Court of Common Pleas for the County of Philadelphia, October Term, 2013, NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on October 10, 2013 the petition of Benjamin Joseph McIvor was filed, praying for a decree to change her name to Venyamína Harmonella McIvor. The Court has fixed December 18, 2013 at 12:30 p.m., in Room No. 691, in Philadelphia City Hall for hearing. All persons interested may appear and show cause if they have, why the prayer of the said petitioner should not be granted. ________________________________________37-50

PGN does not accept advertising that is unlawful, false, misleading, harmful, threatening, abusive, invasive of another’s privacy, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, hateful or racially or otherwise objectionable, including without limitation material of any kind or nature that encourages conduct that could constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability or otherwise violate any applicable local, state, provincial, national or international law or regulation, or encourage the use of controlled substances.

PGN

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Friends Men

Services

LOOKING FOR ROMANCE Attractive GWM, warm, sensitive, caring, 48 y.o. with a smooth gymnast build looking for other GWM, 30-50, who is also in good shape. I live in NE Phila. I’m looking for guys who are also sensitive, caring with a fun personality. If this sounds interesting to you feel free to call me, David, 215-698-0215. ________________________________________37-52 Big tool BM top needs ginger boy bottom : Scottish or Irish men. Must be uncut for docking. Please call 6 PM to 2 AM weekends only, 215-763-3391. ________________________________________37-52 WM, NE Phila. If you’re looking for hot action, call 215-934-5309. No calls after 11 PM. ________________________________________38-02

Massage David, 64, 6’, 200 lbs., attentive. 215-569-4949. (24/7) ________________________________________38-12 Hi, my name is Diego. I’m a black male, med. honey brown gold complexion. I’m interested in massaging guys, all different sizes, body types, ages and races. I’m 5’2”, 110, strong muscular hands. $50/hr, $30 1/2 hr. 267-333-5026. ________________________________________37-51

wishes you a gay holiday season.

THE BIGGER, BETTER & CLEANER CLUB IN THE CITY...

SEASON CELEBRATION

Saturday, Dec. 21st Time: 11pm-3:30am WHAT TO EXPECT: • DJ David Dutch • Complimentary Food & Beverages • A Full House of Guys To Choose From & So Much More CHECK IN EARLY IF YOU WANT A ROOM... ROOMS GO QUICKLY!!!

Christmas Eve: Close at 4pm CHRISTMAS DAY: CLOSED

Re-Open: Thursday, December 26th at 8am - We Wish Everyone A Safe & Happy Holiday Season With Friends & Family -

BUSY TIMES FOR US:

These our are most popular days when people come-

SATURDAY AFTERNOON DELIGHT 4 Hour Lockers (8am - 4pm) Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00

SUNDAY RELIEF

Half Price Rooms (6am Sunday till 8am Monday) Members: $12.50 and Non-Members: $22.50

MONDAY thru FRIDAY:

Business Mans Locker Special (8am to 4pm) Members: $5.00 and Non-Members: $15.00

TUESDAYS

Half Price Rooms (6am till 12 Midnight) Members: $12.50 and Non-Members: $22.50

WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY NIGHT CRUISE

$12 Flat Rate for Locker Admission & Clothing Optional (4pm-12 Midnight) Check out our website for our WEEKLY SPECIALS & JOIN OUR e-mail List to get the latest information on upcoming events....

Don’t forget to visit the Adonis Cinema right next door!! 2026 Sansom St/ PH: 215-557-9319

PGN

12-step programs and support groups Al-Anon

■

Pennsylvania Al-Anon Alateen Family Groups: Events, meeting times and locations at pa-al-anon.org

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)

■ Acceptance meets 7:30 p.m. on Fridays at

Episcopal Church, 22nd and Spruce streets.

■ Community meets 8 p.m. on Thursdays at

Holy Communion Church, 2111 Sansom St. Gay and lesbian, but all are welcome. ■ Early Night Out meets 5:30 p.m. daily at Washington West Project, 1201 Locust St., second ﬂoor; 215-985-9206. ■ GLBT Alcoholics Anonymous meets 7 p.m. on Sundays and 8 p.m. Wednesdays at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, 100 W. Windsor St., Reading; 484-529-9504. ■ Living Sober meets 8:30 p.m. Saturdays at the William Way Center. ■ No Other Way Out meets 11 a.m. Sundays at the William Way Center. ■ Night Owl meets 11:30 p.m. daily at the William Way Center. ■ Stepping Stone meets 2:30 p.m. Mondays at the William Way Center. ■ Sober and Gay meets 8:30 p.m. SundayFriday at the William Way Center. ■ Young People’s meets 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays at St. Mark’s Church, 1625 Locust St.

Crystal Meth Anonymous (CMA)

■ Meets 7 p.m. on Sunday, Tuesday,

Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the William Way Center.

Emotional Support

■ Pink and Blues, a free peer-run mental-health

support group for LGBT people, meets 7 p.m. Wednesdays at St. Luke and The Epiphany Church, 330 S. 13th St.; 215-627-0424. ■ Survivors of Suicide Inc. meets 7:30 p.m. on ﬁrst Tuesday of the month at 3535 Market St., Room 2037; 215-545-2242; www.phillysos. tripod.com. ■ Survivors of Suicide Inc., Chester County, meets 7:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of the month at Paoli Memorial Hospital, Willistown Room, Medical Ofﬁce Building; 215-545-2242; phillysos.tripod.com.

HIV/AIDS

■ Strength In Numbers

Visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ SINPhiladelphia.

Mondays: ■ Positive Brothers, a support group for men of color living with HIV/AIDS, meets 6 p.m. at 112 N. Broad St., 11th floor; 215-496-0330. Tuesdays: ■ A support group for HIV-positive men and women meets 1:30-3 p.m. at BEBASHI — Transition to Hope, 1217 Spring Garden St., first floor; 215-769-3561; bebashi.org. ■ “Pozitive Light HIV/AIDS Support Ministry,” presented by Unity Fellowship of Christ Church Philadelphia HIV/AIDS Ministry and Girard Avenue Pharmacy, meets 5-7 p.m. at 112 N. Broad St., first-floor group room; 267481-5085; blaclikme@comcast.net. ■ Encuentros, a group for HIV-negative Latino men who have sex with men, meets 6 p.m. the first and third Tuesday of the month at 1201 Locust St. ■ “Feast Incarnate,” a weekly ministry for people affected by HIV/AIDS, meets 5 p.m. at University Lutheran Church, 3637 Chestnut St. Bible study follows at 6 p.m.; 215-387-2885. ■ A support group for people recently diagnosed with HIV/AIDS meets 6:30-8 p.m. at Mazzoni

Center; 215-563-0652 ext. 235.

■ Youth Outreach Adolescent Community

Awareness Program’s Voice It Sistah, a support group for HIV-positive women, meets 11 a.m. ﬁrst and third Tuesday at YOACAP, 1207 Chestnut St., Suite 315; 215-851-1898.

Wednesdays: ■ AIDS Services in Asian Communities’ weekly volunteer work group meets 6-8 p.m. at 340 N. 12th St., Suite 205; 215-629-2300. ■ Project Teach, a peer-education and empowerment program for people living with HIV/AIDS, meets at Philadelphia Fight, 1233 Locust St.; ﬁght.org. ■ Positive Effect, for HIV-positive people 18 and over, meets 5-7 p.m. the second and fourth Wednesdays at Camden AHEC, 514 Cooper St., Camden, N.J.; 856-963-2432. Thursdays: ■ A support group for HIV-positive men and women meets 6-8 p.m. at BEBASHI — Transition to Hope, 1217 Spring Garden St.; 215-769-3561. ■ Diversity, an HIV/AIDS support group for all infected or affected, meets from 7-9 p.m. at Arch Street United Methodist Church, 55 N. Broad St.; call Zak, 215-848-4380; azaklad@craftech.com. Saturdays: ■ AIDS Delaware’s You’re Not Alone youth support group meets during the school year. Call 800-810-6776 for location and time.

Debtors Anonymous

■ Meets 7-8 p.m. Monday and Thursday at the

William Way Center.

Overeaters Anonymous (OA)

■ Open meeting, Tuesdays, 5:45 p.m., and

7 p.m. Fridays, at Hahnemann University Hospital, 245 N. 15th St.; call Troy for ﬂoor/ room number, 215-514-3065; www.oa.org. ■ Meets 11 a.m.-noon at the William Way Center.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

Community Bulletin Board Community centers

■ The Attic Youth Center 255 S. 16th St.; 215-545-4331; atticyouthcenter.org. For LGBT and questioning youth and their friends and allies. Groups meet and activities are held 4-7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday and 48:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday. Case management, HIV testing and smoking cessation are available MondayFriday. See the Youth section for more events.

■ Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center at the University of Pennsylvania 3907 Spruce St., 215-898-5044; center@dolphin. upenn.edu. Regular hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday; noon-6 p.m. Saturday; noon-8 p.m. Sunday. Summer hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.

■ ActionAIDS: 215-981-0088 ■ AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania: 215-587-9377 ■ AIDS Law Project of Southern New Jersey: 856-933-9500 ext. 221 ■ AIDS Library: 215-985-4851 ■ ACLU of Pennsylvania: 215592-1513 ■ AIDS Treatment Fact line: 800662-6080 ■ Barbara Gittings Gay and Lesbian Collection at the Independence Branch of the Philadelphia Free Library: 215-685-1633 ■ The COLOURS Organization, Inc.: 215-496-0330 ■ District Attorney LGBT Liaison: Helen “Nellie” Fitzpatrick, 215-6869980, helen.fitzpatrick@phila.gov

S.A.R.A.

■ Substance Abuse – Risk Assessment; day and

evening hours; 215-563-0663 ext. 282.

Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous

■ Meets 7:30 p.m.Thursdays at All Saints

Church, 18 Olive Ave., Rehoboth Beach, Del.; 302-542-3279.

SEPCADD

■ Safe space to meet and discuss substance

abuse problems at the William Way Center.

Health

Alder Health Services provides LGBT health services on a sliding-fee scale; 100 N. Cameron St., Ste. 301 East, Harrisburg; 717-233-7190 or 800-867-1550; www.alderhealth.org. Anonymous, free HIV testing with Spanish/ English counselors, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. MondayFriday at Congreso de Latinos Unidos, 3439 N. Hutchinson St.; 215-763-8870 ext. 6000. HIV treatment: Free HIV/AIDS diagnosis and treatment for Philadelphia residents available 9 a.m.-noon Mondays and 5-8 p.m. Thursdays at Health Center No. 2, 1720 S. Broad St.; 215685-1803. HIV health insurance help: Access to free medications and confidential HIV testing available at 17 MacDade Blvd., Suite 108, Collingdale; 722 Church Lane, Yeadon; and 630 S. 60th St.; 610-586-9077. Philadelphia FIGHT provides HIV primary care, on-site lab services, clinical trials, case management, mental-health services and support groups for people living with HIV regardless of insurance status or ability to pay; 1233 Locust St., fifth floor; 215-985-4448; www.fight.org.

■ Rainbow Room — Bucks County’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Allies Youth Center 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays: Salem UCC Education Building, 181 E. Court St., Doylestown; 215-957-7981 ext. 9065 rainbowroom@ppbucks.org.

■ William Way Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center 1315 Spruce St.; 215-732-2220; www.waygay.org. Hours: 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Peer counseling: 6-9 p.m. Monday through Friday Library hours: noon-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; noon-3 p.m. and 6-9 p.m. Friday; noon-6 p.m. Saturday. Volunteers: New Orientation: First Wednesday of the month at 7:30 p.m.

Key numbers

of Lesbians and Gays (Philadelphia): 215-572-1833

■ Equality Pennsylvania: 215731-1447; www.equalitypa.org

■ Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations: 215-686-4670

■ Equality Forum: 215-732-3378

■ Philadelphia Lesbian and Gay Task Force: 1-877-pride-2000

■ GALAEI: A Queer Latin@ Social Justice Organization: 215-8511822 ■ LGBT Elder Initiative: 267-5463448; info@LGBTEI.org ■ LGBT Peer Counseling Services: 215-732-TALK ■ Mayor’s Director of LGBT Affairs: Gloria Casarez, 215-6862194; Gloria.Casarez@phila.gov; ■ Mazzoni Center: 215-563-0652; Legal Services: 215-563-0657, 866-LGBT-LAW; Family & Community Medicine: 215-563-0658 ■ Parents, Families and Friends

■ Police Department liaison — Deputy Commissioner Kevin Bethel: 215-686-3318 ■ Philadelphia Police Liaison Committee: 215-760-3686 (Rick Lombardo); ppd.lgbt@gmail.com ■ Philly Pride Presents: 215875-9288 ■ SPARC — Statewide Pennsylvania Rights Coalition: 717-9209537 ■ Transgender Health Action Coalition: 215-732-1207 (staffed 3-6 p.m. Wednesdays and 6-9 p.m. Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays)

Health

Anonymous, free, conﬁdential HIV testing Spanish/English counselors offer testing 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday at Congreso de Latinos Unidos, 216 W. Somerset St.; 215763-8870. ActionAIDS Provides a range of programs for people affected by HIV/AIDS, including case management, prevention, testing and education services at 1216 Arch St.; 215-981-0088; www.actionaids.org. GALAEI: A Queer Latin@ Social Justice Organization Free, anonymous HIV testing from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 1207 Chestnut St., fifth floor; noon-6 p.m. Tuesdays at the Washington West Project, 1201 Locust St.; 215-851-1822 or 866-222-3871; www.galaei. org. Spanish/English HIV treatment Free HIV/AIDS diagnosis and treatment for Philadelphia residents are available from 9 a.m.-noon Mondays (walk-in) and 5-8 p.m. Thursdays (by appointment) at Health Center No. 2, 1720 S. Broad St.; 215685-1821. HIV health insurance help Access to free medications and confidential HIV testing

■ Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia Board meetings at 6:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at 100 S. Broad St., Suite 1810; free referral service at 215-6279090; www.galloplaw.org. ■ Greater Philadelphia Professional Network Networking group for area business professionals, selfemployed and business owners meets monthly in a different location throughout the city; www. gppn.org; 215-922-3377. ■ Independence Business Alliance Greater Philadelphia’s LGBT

11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays at 13 S. MacDade Blvd., Suite 108, Collingdale; Medical Office Building, 722 Church Lane, Yeadon; and 630 S. 60th St.; 610-586-9077. Mazzoni Center LGBTQ counseling and behavioral health services, HIV/ AIDS care and services, case management and support groups; 21 S. 12th St., eighth floor; 215-563-0652; www. mazzonicenter.org. Mazzoni Center Family & Community Medicine Comprehensive primary health care, preventive health services, gynecology, sexual-health services and chronic-disease management, including comprehensive HIV care, as well as youth drop-in (ages 14-24) 5-7p.m. Wednesdays; 809 Locust St.; 215-563-0658. Washington West Project of Mazzoni Center Free, anonymous HIV testing. Walk-ins welcome 9 a.m.-9 pm. Monday-Friday, 1-5p.m. Saturday; 1201 Locust St.; 215-985-9206.

Professional groups Chamber of Commerce, providing networking, business development, marketing, educational and advocacy opportunities for LGBT and LGBT-friendly businesses and professionals; www. IndependenceBusinessAlliance. com; 215-557-0190; 1717 Arch St., Suite 3370. ■ National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association Philadelphia chapter of NLGJA, open to professionals and students, meets for social and networking events; www.nlgja.

org/philly; philly@nlgja.org. ■ Philadelphia Gay Tourism Caucus Regional organization dedicated to promoting LGBT tourism to the Greater Philadelphia region, meetings every other month on the fourth Thursday (January, March, May, July, September and the third Thursday in November), open to the public; P.O. Box 58143, Philadelphia, PA 19102; www.philadelphiagaytourism. com; 215-840-2039.

Philadelphia Gay News www.epgn.com Dec. 20-26, 2013

PGN