8/30/17 V8i35 by South Florida Gay News

local name global coverage August 30, 2017 vol. 8 // issue 35

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forbidden NEW DOCUMENTARY FOCUSES ON A QUEER LATINO UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT paGE 43

WOMEN'S ISSUE: PART TWO

FLORIDA AGENDA CREDITORS: LIKELY TO LOSE ALL

PAGES 16 - 35

SOUTHFLORIDAGAYNEWS

COMMUNITY LOSES TWO GREAT SUPPORTERS

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SFGN.COM

NEWS highlight

Photo courtesy Change.org.

SouthFloridaGayNews.com

August 30, 2017 • Volume 8 • Issue 35

2520 N. Dixie Highway • Wilton Manors, FL 33305 Phone: 954-530-4970 Fax: 954-530-7943

Publisher • Norm Kent Norm.Kent@sfgn.com

Chief Executive Ofﬁcer • Pier Angelo Guidugli Associate Publisher / Executive Editor • Jason Parsley Jason.Parsley@sfgn.com

Editorial

alaBaMa parents deMand reMoval of pride flaG, students Clap BaCK

Brittany Ferrendi

arents are throwing a fit over a flag meant to celebrate inclusivity. Last week, an Auburn High School classroom in Alabama put an LGBT pride flag on display made by members of a school club. Now, hundreds of people have signed a petition to have it torn down. The online petition compares the pride flag to a Confederate flag due to its “political” nature. “Flying of the Pride Flag can create a hostile and uncomfortable learning environment for students who come from families that do not support the LGBTQ+ community,” the petition said. “Subjecting or explicitly exposing students from diverse political backgrounds to political views differing from theirs can make students uncomfortable and distract them from learning the material assigned to them, preventing them from reaching their full potential." The petition also claims this brings attention and alienates students with “unpopular political and/or religious views” which “further deteriorat(es) the classroom and learning environment.” “[We] would like for you to consider the uproar and chaos that would ensue were a teacher to hang for example a Confederate, Christian, or Heterosexual Flag in their

classroom. There would likely be protests, emails from teachers, and threatening of lawsuits from parents with differing viewpoints.” “[We] ask that the Pride Flag be removed from Auburn High School in order to preserve a welcoming, beneficial, and unbiased learning environment for students from all political backgrounds attending Auburn High School.” But there are two sides to this decision, and the opposing side — led by student Brandon Sinniger — has created a rival petition to combat the removal of the rainbow flag. “The pride flag and the AHS Educate club has served to provide a healthy environment for our LGBT+ peers to feel comfortable being who they truly are,” it said. “The flag represents this safe space, and frankly, the sentiment for removing the pride flag is an affront to the work that has been done nationally to fight for recognition of the community.” “[We] not only refute the points of the original complaint, but stand by [the teacher]’s decision and right to display the pride flag, especially as the sponsor of the AHS Educate MEMBER club.” Auburn City Schools Superintendent Dr. Karen DeLano released a statement on the pride flag and rivalling petitions, stating that MEMBER

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as of noon that day she was not given the petition and that the issue would be handled internally. “It is our mission to ensure each student embraces and achieves his or her unique intellectual gifts and personal aspirations while advancing the community through a school system distinguished by compassion for others, symbiotic relationships with an engaged community, the creation and sharing of knowledge, inspired learners with global perspectives and the courage to determine our future,” the statement read. “In our country today, people are often seen addressing their objections through violence and hate. It is my sincere desire to assist our students in learning to address their opinions and their values in a calm and respectful manner.” As of Tuesday morning, the pride flag still stands in the classroom, Sinniger told Alabama news station WRBL. “Obviously, the administration and my community have sent a pretty clear message that the flag is going to stay exactly where it is,” he said. “I hope it stays exactly where it is. I have talked personally with the signer of the original petition, but basically, this is where we stand right now, and unless something drastic happens, which I doubt, but the flag is going to stay up, and I’m glad that it is.”

MEMBER

Associated Press

MEMBER Cover: Illustration courtesy of "Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America." © Sisters Unite Productions.

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Art Director • Brendon Lies Artwork@sfgn.com Designers • Char Pratt, Max Kagno Digital Content Director • Brittany Ferrendi Webmaster@sfgn.com Associate Editor • Jillian Melero JillianMelero@gmail.com Copyeditor • Kerri Covington Arts/Entertainment Editor • JW Arnold JW@prdconline.com Social Media Manager • Tucker Berardi TBerardi2014@fau.edu Food/Travel Editor • Rick Karlin Gazette News Editor • Michael d'Oliveira HIV Editor • Sean McShee Senior Photographer • J.R. Davis JRDavis12000@hotmail.com

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Dori Zinn • Richard • Donald Cavanaugh • Christiana Lilly • Denise Royal • Sean McShee • David-Elijah Nahmod

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NLGJA Journalist of the Year South Florida Gay News is published weekly. The opinions expressed in columns, stories, and letters to the editor do not represent the opinions of SFGN, or the Publisher. You should not presume the sexual orientation of individuals based on their names or pictorial representations. Furthermore the word “gay” in SFGN should be interpreted to be inclusive of the entire LGBT community. All of the material/columns that appears in print and online, including articles used in conjunction with the AP, is protected under federal copyright and intellectual property laws, and is jealously guarded by the newspaper. Nothing published may be reprinted in whole or part without getting written consent from the Publisher, at his law ofﬁce, at Norm@NormKent.com. SFGN, as a private corporation, reserves the right to enforce its own standards regarding the suitability of advertising copy, illustrations and photographs. Copyright © 2017 South Florida Gay News.com, Inc.

NEWS miami-dade

Photo credit: Carina Mask.

Miami Herald Reported World OutGames Investigation Closed. They’re Wrong. Jason Parsley

FGN confirmed this week that the criminal investigation surrounding World OutGames is still ongoing despite media outlets reporting otherwise. “It’s still ongoing. We never said it was closed,” said Ed Griffith, public information officer for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office. “We’re still interviewing potential witnesses. So we have not come to a conclusion. We have not interviewed everyone who might have information.” The mix up may have occurred when the Miami Herald reported last week that a memo from Miami Police Chief Daniel Oates was sent to Miami Beach City Manager Jimmy Morales, which read “there was no evidence found to proceed with a criminal prosecution.” The memo also states “per the audit review, the financial records did not show the malicious intent to deprive funds from donors for personal gain.” The scope of the Miami Beach Police Department’s investigation though was

centered around the city’s audit. Ernesto Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the Miami Beach Police Department, further stated that he would not call their investigation “closed” either. Instead he referred to it as “inactive.” “I encourage anyone with new information to come forward,” Rodriguez said. While the Miami Beach Police Department’s investigation and the MiamiDade State Attorney’s office investigation overlap they are separate from each other.

NEWS local

Dentist Gives Tips To Eliminate Bad Breath This week’s ‘Coffee and Conversation’ at Pride Center John McDonald

octor Charmaine Johnson offered suggestions on how to eliminate bad breath at Tuesday’s Coffee & Conversation program at Pride Center. Johnson owns Premier Smile Center, 2717 E. Oakland Park Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. “Know that there are some foods that are more odor producing – onions, garlic,” Johnson told the morning senior group. The tongue, Johnson said, also harbors odor producing bacteria. She recommended buying a tongue scraper and scraping the back of the tongue 10 to 13 times daily to eliminate bacteria that produces foul smells. Another way to eliminate bad breath, Johnson said, is flossing regularly. Dental flossing stops the buildup of plaque along the gums and teeth. Johnson also informed the group that on Oct. 12 her office would be providing dental care to veterans at no cost in observance of “Freedom Day.” Veterans are encouraged to contact Premier Smile Center (954-566-7479) to schedule an appointment. Elsewhere, Pride Center CEO Robert Boo said generosity is needed as the LGBT

Robert Boo (left), next to Dr. Johnson and Bruce Williams during a 2016 Coffee and Cnversation meeting. Courtesy The Pride Center.

community in Houston deals with the disaster from Hurricane Harvey. “What they really need is cold hard cash,” Boo said. To make a donation, visit www. MontroseCenter.org Pride Center Development Director Roger Roa said the events season is near and reminded the group to sign-up for the center’s e-blast. Around 170 people signed up for this week’s program. Next week’s sponsor is Emerald Elite Home Health. For more information, contact Bruce Williams, Senior Services Coordinator at 954-463-9005, ext. 109.

8.30.2017 •

LGBTQIa bites lesbian

tHis lesBian Couple launCHed a Million dollar Haunted House eMpire (SFGN) Melissa Carbone and her now exwife Alyson Richards left their careers at Clear Channel to turn their love of Halloween decorating into a money-making business. Carbone left her job as general sales manager for the media company (now IHeartMedia) in 2009 to launch her haunted house business Ten Thirty One Productions. The company started with a haunted hayride through LA park, now one of the most popular attractions in Los Angeles. The idea came after Carbone and Richards had married and moved to suburban LA, where their fall yard decorations would draw all the neighbors. After finding hundreds of visitors to their “yard-haunt” Carbone thought there might be something there. After some research, she found that the $6.5 billion Halloween industry was one of the few still growing despite the recession, according to Broadly. Scraping together their investments and investments from friends, Carbone and Richards invested $365,000 into the company in 2009.

By 2012, the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride was selling out the Halloween season and bringing in $1.8 million in revenue for October. And Ten Thirty One Productions received a $2 million bump from investor Mark Cuban for a 20 percent stake in the company in 2013, Business Insider reported. Today, Melissa reports that as the Halloween industry continues to grow to a now $ 8 billion industry, Ten Thirty One Productions in opening sister haunts across California and in New York.

truMp siGns direCtive BanninG transGender Military reCruits (CNN) -- President Donald Trump on Friday directed the military not to move forward with an Obama-era plan that would have allowed transgender individuals to be recruited into the armed forces, following through on his intentions announced a month earlier to ban transgender people from serving. The presidential memorandum also bans the Department of Defense from using its resources to provide medical treatment regimens for transgender individuals currently serving in the military. The White House official who briefed reporters on the memo on Friday evening declined to say whether current transgender troops would be allowed to remain in the military under those policy guidelines. The official signaled that the administration was returning to the military's pre-2016 policy under which no transgender individuals were allowed to serve openly in the armed forces, but said

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8 . 30.2017

Bisexual

soMe Close to WHitney Houston say sinGer Was Bisexual, not Gay

Melissa Carbone (right).

transgender

Trump was giving the secretaries of defense and homeland security leeway to determine the policy on currently serving transgender troops. The White House offered no guidance at the time as to how the ban would be implemented, leaving transgender service members wondering about their future in the military.

(SFGN) Friends of Whitney Houston are addressing claims about the late singer’s alleged lesbian relationship with close friend Robyn Crawford. The new documentary “Whitney: Can I Be Me” examines Houston’s relationship with Crawford, 56 as well as the highs and lows in the life of the superstar who passed away in 2012 at the age of 48. But Houston’s former bodyguard Kevin Ammons, and Ellin Lavar, who dressed the celebrity, claim she was bisexual and in love with Crawford, her assistant, the Daily Mail reports. "I don't think she was gay, I think she was bisexual. Robyn provided a safe place for her... in that Whitney found safety and solace," Lavar said. Friends, including former bodyguard David Roberts said that the relationship between Houston and Crawford caused chaos between Crawford and Houston’s ex-husband Bobby Brown.

Whitney Houston.

"Bobby Brown and Robyn Crawford together were the equivalent of fire and water, petrol and a short fuse - they hated each other. Simple. They would battle for her affections and they would battle for her attention, mainly to identify with the hate they had for each other," Lavar said. Houston and Crawford met when Houston was 19, and documentary maker Nick Broomfield told the Daily Mail that the relationship was the closest Houston had. “They shared a house together; they often shared the same bed. I think the most important thing is that it was the most productive, supportive and creative relationship that she had for probably 15 years,” Broomfield said.

Queer

Queer and undoCuMented, dreaMers aWait truMp daCa deCision (SFGN) A report from the Williams Institute at UCLA estimates that there are at least 267,000 LGBT adult undocumented immigrants currently living in the US. Moises Serrano is one of them. Serrano came out as gay and undocumented in “Que Pasa” the largest Latino newspaper in North Carolina, where Serrano grew up after coming to the U.S. from Mexico. Serrano and his work is now the subject of “Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America”. For those who are undocumented, a path to citizenship would include uniting their families, finding gainful employment, gaining greater access to social services, and an opportunity to earn livable and higher wages. Much of Serrano’s work focuses on Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals(DACA) the 2012 policy that allowed for children who arrived without documentation to receive social security numbers, attend college, and find work.

Moises Serrano. Credit: Kathi Barnhill.

The Trump administration continues weighing whether to phase out the program. CNN reports that President Trump is considering two options that would continue current protections but prevent future applicants and possibly prevent two-year permit renewals according to sources close to the White House. "It's a decision that I make and it's a decision that's very, very hard to make. I really understand the situation now," Trump said to reporters on Air Force One last month. "I understand the situation very well. What I'd like to do is a comprehensive immigration plan. But our country and political forces are not ready yet." “Forbidden: Undocumented And Queer in Rural America” premieres Friday, September 1, at 8/7c on Logo.

NEWS local

florida aGenda Creditors on verGe of losinG all One local businessman out nearly a half million

Norm Kent

norm.kent@sfgn.com

he Florida Agenda used to publish they had less than $50,000 cash on hand news. Now it just makes news. and were nearly $6 million dollars in debt. The now defunct local weekly Still, Multimedia fought the case, saying newspaper has been out of business for they were forced into bankruptcy because nearly a year but their woes continue in a creditor wrongfully foreclosed on a loan. bankruptcy court as its parent company At the end of 2016, a preliminary court Multimedia Platforms Worldwide seeks approved settlement was reached. relief under chapter 11, which provides a A potential dismissal of the reorganization company with an opportunity to reorganize is devastating to investors, including Alan in order to get their act together. Beck, listed as one of Multimedia’s largest, to But their problems are going from bad to the tune of $458,000. The former publisher worse. of the popular Columbia Fun Maps, told The U.S. Trustee assigned to the case is SFGN, “This bankruptcy has been a serious now asking that their case for reorganization blow to many individuals and to our LGBT be dismissed. The trustee complained that community and it is obvious now that gross Bobby Blair’s company has failed to keep its mismanagement and greed were two of the promises and recommended major factors in play.” a straight bankruptcy, which Beck noted that the would eliminate any chance publications Multimedia “thIs bankRuptcY of court approved paybacks. had acquired represented has been a Bobby Blair, the company’s a cumulative total of “105 seRIous blow to chief corporate officer, years of publishing from had sought bankruptcy respected publications manY IndIvIduals protection last October. across the country.” and to ouR lgbt This would have allowed the The petition by the U.S. communItY and company to provide their trustee lends authenticity creditors, totaling hundreds to Beck’s charges. It It Is obvIous of businessman and millions accuses Bobby Blair, the now that gRoss of dollars, an opportunity to sole remaining player in mIsmanagement recoup their losses. Multimedia of continuing Besides the Florida Agenda negligence, charging and gReed weRe the company also published that “ten months have two oF the maJoR LA’s Frontiers, New York’s passed since the date of FactoRs In plaY.” Next Magazine, and also its bankruptcy filing and acquired Columbia Fun Maps. the Debtor has not field a - alan Beck The listing of creditors plan or single disclosure INvESToR posted by Multimedia last statement.” fall was 36 pages long, noting Additionally, said unpaid obligations in each of the geographic Damaris Rosich-Schwartz, the court areas where the publications were appointed trustee from the U.S. Department distributed. Aside from scores of investors, of Justice, “the debtor is delinquent in the Multimedia also admitted owing employees filing of ALL monthly reports since the filing back payroll, as well as income and payroll of the case last October.” taxes to the government totaling more than Under the provisions of bankruptcy law, $500,000. unexcused failures of a debtor to submit a The initial filing by Blair’s company said plan or its monthly reports are grounds for

dismissing the case for cause. The trustee alleges that in this case the failures are unexcused and at “the record supports a finding of cause, at a minimum.” The trustee also has alleged Blair has not remained current on payments to the U.S. for trustee fees, which are required for a reorganization plan to stay in place. If it is still operational, the plan prevents creditors from seeking judgments, further relief, or making additional claims individually against Blair or Multimedia in other courts. Judge Ray of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court has set the matter for hearing on Sept. 13. If the court elects not to dismiss the case in its entirety, the U.S. Trustee is instead asking for the appointment of a separate trustee solely to protect the remaining and “best interests of the creditors.” In an unrelated motion connected to the Multimedia debacle, Blair is asking the court to release an insurance policy so he can pay costs and defend himself against an employment discrimination complaint brought by longtime lesbian journalist Karen

Ocamb, a former staffer at LA’s Frontiers Magazine. “Absent advancement of costs under Multimedia’s Directors and Omissions Policy,” they say, “the Defendants will be without means to defend itself in the suit.” The same company, Multimedia did a press release a year ago on Market Wire, after it went public and listed its stocks and shares on the New York Stock Exchange. It listed its company as “the industryleading multimedia, technology and publishing company that delivers content and advertising to one of the most soughtafter demographics in the world -- the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) population, representing approximately 7.5 million readers and more than 4 million unique online visitors annually.” Not so much anymore. Its stock has been de-listed and its shares are now worthless. “So were their promises,” added Alan Beck, perhaps the creditor who lost the most.

8.30.2017 •

What is TRUVADA for PrEP?

Who should not take TRUVADA for PrEP?

TRUVADA for PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) is a prescription medicine that is used together with safer sex practices to help reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 through sex. This use is only for HIV-negative adults who are at high risk of getting HIV-1. To help determine your risk of getting HIV-1, talk openly with your healthcare provider about your sexual health. Ask your healthcare provider if you have questions about how to prevent getting HIV. Always practice safer sex and use condoms to lower the chance of sexual contact with body fluids. Never reuse or share needles or other items that have body fluids on them.

Do not take TRUVADA for PrEP if you: ® Already have HIV-1 infection or if you do not know your HIV-1 status. If you are HIV-1 positive, you need to take other medicines with TRUVADA to treat HIV-1. TRUVADA by itself is not a complete treatment for HIV-1. If you have HIV-1 and take only TRUVADA, your HIV-1 may become harder to treat over time. ® Also take certain medicines to treat hepatitis B infection.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION What is the most important information I should know about TRUVADA for PrEP? Before taking TRUVADA for PrEP: ® You must be HIV-negative before you start taking TRUVADA for PrEP. You must get tested to make sure that you do not already have HIV-1. Do not take TRUVADA to reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 unless you are confirmed to be HIV-negative. ® Many HIV-1 tests can miss HIV-1 infection in a person who has recently become infected. If you have flu-like symptoms, you could have recently become infected with HIV-1. Tell your healthcare provider if you had a flu-like illness within the last month before starting or at any time while taking TRUVADA for PrEP. Symptoms of new HIV-1 infection include tiredness, fever, joint or muscle aches, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, night sweats, and/or enlarged lymph nodes in the neck or groin. While taking TRUVADA for PrEP: ® You must continue to use safer sex practices. Just taking TRUVADA for PrEP may not keep you from getting HIV-1. ® You must stay HIV-negative to keep taking TRUVADA for PrEP: ® Get tested for HIV-1 at least every 3 months. ® If you think you were exposed to HIV-1, tell your healthcare provider right away. ® To further help reduce your risk of getting HIV-1: ® Know your HIV status and the HIV status of your partners. ® Get tested for other sexually transmitted infections. Other infections make it easier for HIV to infect you. ® Get information and support to help reduce risky sexual behavior, such as having fewer sex partners. ® Do not miss any doses of TRUVADA. Missing doses may increase your risk of getting HIV-1 infection. ® If you do become HIV-1 positive, you need more medicine than TRUVADA alone to treat HIV-1. TRUVADA by itself is not a complete treatment for HIV-1. If you have HIV-1 and take only TRUVADA, your HIV-1 may become harder to treat over time. TRUVADA can cause serious side effects: ® Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. TRUVADA is not approved to treat HBV. If you have HBV and stop taking TRUVADA, your HBV may suddenly get worse. Do not stop taking TRUVADA without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to monitor your health.

What are the other possible side effects of TRUVADA for PrEP? Serious side effects of TRUVADA may also include: ® Kidney problems, including kidney failure. Your healthcare provider may do blood tests to check your kidneys before and during treatment with TRUVADA. If you develop kidney problems, your healthcare provider may tell you to stop taking TRUVADA. ® Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat. ® Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain. ® Bone problems, including bone pain, softening, or thinning, which may lead to fractures. Your healthcare provider may do tests to check your bones. Common side effects in people taking TRUVADA for PrEP are stomach-area (abdomen) pain, headache, and decreased weight. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effects that bother you or do not go away.

What should I tell my healthcare provider before taking TRUVADA for PrEP? ® All your health problems. Be sure to tell your healthcare provider if you have or have had any kidney, bone, or liver problems, including hepatitis. ® If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if TRUVADA can harm your unborn baby. If you become pregnant while taking TRUVADA for PrEP, talk to your healthcare provider to decide if you should keep taking TRUVADA. ® If you are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed. If you become HIV-positive, HIV can be passed to the baby in breast milk. ® All the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. TRUVADA may interact with other medicines. Keep a list of all your medicines and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist when you get a new medicine. ® If you take certain other medicines with TRUVADA, your healthcare provider may need to check you more often or change your dose. These medicines include certain medicines to treat hepatitis C (HCV) infection. You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

Please see Important Facts about TRUVADA for PrEP including important warnings on the following page.

•

TVDC0159_PrEP_B_10x10-75_SFloridaGayNews_Cafe_p1.indd 1-2 8 . 30.2017

I’m courageous, not careless. I know who I am. And I make choices that fit my life. TRUVADA for PrEP™ is a once-daily prescription medicine that can help reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 when taken every day and used together with safer sex practices. ® TRUVADA for PrEP is only for adults who are at high risk of getting HIV through sex. ® You must be HIV-negative before you start taking TRUVADA for PrEP.

Ask your doctor about your risk of getting HIV-1 infection and if TRUVADA for PrEP may be right for you. Learn more at truvada.com

8/15/17 10:27 AM 8.30.2017

•

IMPORTANT FACTS

This is only a brief summary of important information about taking TRUVADA for PrEPTM (pre-exposure prophylaxis) to help reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 infection. This does not replace talking to your healthcare provider about your medicine.

(tru-VAH-dah) MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT TRUVADA FOR PrEP Before starting TRUVADA for PrEP: • You must be HIV-1 negative. You must get tested to make sure that you do not already have HIV-1. Do not take TRUVADA for PrEP to reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 unless you are confirmed to be HIV-1 negative. • Many HIV-1 tests can miss HIV-1 infection in a person who has recently become infected. Symptoms of new HIV-1 infection include flu-like symptoms, tiredness, fever, joint or muscle aches, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, night sweats, and/or enlarged lymph nodes in the neck or groin. Tell your healthcare provider if you have had a flu-like illness within the last month before starting TRUVADA for PrEP. While taking TRUVADA for PrEP: • You must continue to use safer sex practices. Just taking TRUVADA for PrEP may not keep you from getting HIV-1. • You must stay HIV-negative to keep taking TRUVADA for PrEP. Get tested for HIV-1 at least every 3 months while taking TRUVADA for PrEP. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you think you were exposed to HIV-1 or have a flu-like illness while taking TRUVADA for PrEP. • If you do become HIV-1 positive, you need more medicine than TRUVADA alone to treat HIV-1. If you have HIV-1 and take only TRUVADA, your HIV-1 may become harder to treat over time. • See the “How To Further Reduce Your Risk” section for more information. TRUVADA may cause serious side effects, including: • Worsening of hepatitis B (HBV) infection. TRUVADA is not approved to treat HBV. If you have HBV, your HBV may suddenly get worse if you stop taking TRUVADA. Do not stop taking TRUVADA without first talking to your healthcare provider, as they will need to check your health regularly for several months.

ABOUT TRUVADA FOR PrEP TRUVADA for PrEP is a prescription medicine used together with safer sex practices to help reduce the risk of getting HIV-1 through sex. This use is only for HIV-negative adults who are at high risk of getting HIV-1. • To help determine your risk of getting HIV-1, talk openly with your healthcare provider about your sexual health. Do NOT take TRUVADA for PrEP if you: • Already have HIV-1 infection or if you do not know your HIV-1 status. • Take certain medicines to treat hepatitis B infection.

HOW TO TAKE TRUVADA FOR PrEP • Take 1 tablet once a day, every day, not just when you think you have been exposed to HIV-1. • Do not miss any doses. Missing doses may increase your risk of getting HIV-1 infection. • Use TRUVADA for PrEP together with condoms and safer sex practices. • Get tested for HIV-1 at least every 3 months. You must stay HIV-negative to keep taking TRUVADA for PrEP.

POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF TRUVADA FOR PrEP TRUVADA can cause serious side effects, including: • Those in the “Most Important Information About TRUVADA for PrEP” section. • New or worse kidney problems, including kidney failure. • Too much lactic acid in your blood (lactic acidosis), which is a serious but rare medical emergency that can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: weakness or being more tired than usual, unusual muscle pain, being short of breath or fast breathing, stomach pain with nausea and vomiting, cold or blue hands and feet, feel dizzy or lightheaded, or a fast or abnormal heartbeat. • Severe liver problems, which in rare cases can lead to death. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you get these symptoms: skin or the white part of your eyes turns yellow, dark “tea-colored” urine, light-colored stools, loss of appetite for several days or longer, nausea, or stomach-area pain. • Bone problems. Common side effects in people taking TRUVADA for PrEP include stomach-area (abdomen) pain, headache, and decreased weight. These are not all the possible side effects of TRUVADA. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any new symptoms while taking TRUVADA for PrEP. Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health before and during treatment with TRUVADA for PrEP.

BEFORE TAKING TRUVADA FOR PrEP Tell your healthcare provider if you: • Have or have had any kidney, bone, or liver problems, including hepatitis. • Have any other medical conditions. • Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. • Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed. Do not breastfeed. If you become HIV-positive, HIV can pass to the baby in breast milk. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take: • Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist. • Ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist about medicines that should not be taken with TRUVADA for PrEP.

HOW TO FURTHER REDUCE YOUR RISK • Know your HIV status and the HIV status of your partners. • Get tested for other sexually transmitted infections. Other infections make it easier for HIV to infect you. • Get information and support to help reduce risky sexual behavior, such as having fewer sex partners. • Do not share needles or personal items that can have blood or body fluids on them.

GET MORE INFORMATION • This is only a brief summary of important information about TRUVADA for PrEP. Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more, including how to prevent HIV infection. • Go to start.truvada.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5 • If you need help paying for your medicine, visit start.truvada.com for program information.

TRUVADA FOR PREP, the TRUVADA FOR PREP Logo, the TRUVADA Blue Pill Design, TRUVADA, GILEAD, and the GILEAD Logo are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. All other marks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners. Version date: April 2017 © 2017 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. TVDC0159 07/17

8 TVDC0159_PrEP_B_10x10-75_SFloridaGayNews_Cafe_p1.indd • 8 . 30.2017

8/15/17 10:27 AM

NEWS national

Photo courtesy Jeremy Crawford.

‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Developer Promises Queer Characters Brittany Ferrendi

his fantasy tabletop role-playing your character does or does not conform to game has been around since the 70s. the broader culture’s expectations of sex, Decades later, it’s still going strong — gender, and sexual behavior.” and growing more inclusive. “You don’t want a party where everyone’s ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ Lead Rules the same,” Crawford said. “It’s a game where Developer Jeremy Crawford has confirmed you’re always better off working together, that their upcoming playable adventure working through your differences and books will feature LGBT characters — achieving victory together, even when you mentioning a storyline parallel to his life sometimes disagree. So in so many ways a lot with his own husband. of what we’re doing are lessons “Ever since we brought our from D&D itself.” adventure design fully back inD&D's fifth edition already “I wasn’t house, all of our new adventures has adventures with LGBT about to contain LGBT characters,” he characters. Spoilers ahead. told Kotaku at Indianapolis’s “Storm King’s Thunder,” have this Gen Con this year. “This is true published last year with book go of our next adventure, ‘Tomb of Crawford’s help, includes a Annihilation,’ and it will be true out and not family with gay parents and an of our stories after that.” adopted nephew. acknowledge Crawford wanted LGBT “That was a nod specifically inclusion from the start, that people to our household,” Crawford referencing the first (and one said. He is married and lived of the most essential) book of like me exist.” with his husband and nephew D&D’s fifth edition, the ‘Player’s at the time of the adventure’s - Jeremy Crawford publication. “Although the two Handbook.’ “I wasn’t about to have Lead Rules Developer men are older than my husband this book go out and not and I are,” he joked. acknowledge that people like me exist.” The adventure book “Curse of Strahd” is The handbook references the player’s free also riddled with LGBT characters within choice in their character creation, pointing each sub-adventure. Published in 2016, out that they have the free reign to go beyond players can encounter a spellcaster and, later typical choices of gender and sexuality. on, his former lover. If the two reunite, they The handbook states: “Think about how may have a special moment together.

8.30.2017 •

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LGBT Relief Funds Launched to Help Texas Hurricane Victims Lou Chibbaro Jr. Washington Blade

ouston’s LGBT community center on Monday launched a special relief fund to help LGBT people who are among the thousands of people in Houston and surrounding jurisdictions who have lost their homes over the past few days to catastrophic flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey. “The catastrophic and historic impact of Hurricane Harvey will be felt by the LGBTQ community of Houston, Texas, for days, months, and potentially years to come,” the Montrose Center said in a statement. “Help our LGBTQ community members displaced by the storm today by giving to the LGBTQ Disaster Relief Fund, managed by the Montrose Center — Houston’s LGBTQ counseling and community center serving Houston for 39 years,” the statement stays. According to the statement released on Aug. 28, money raised through the relief fund would be used to help individuals and families “begin to rebuild their lives through counseling, case management, direct assistance with shelf stable food, furniture, housing and more.” In a related development, the Transgender Foundation of America, a Houstonbased transgender services and advocacy organization founded in 1998, announced it had organized a separate disaster relief fund to “assist Gulf Coast trans, intersex, and genderqueer survivors recover” from Harvey and its related flooding. “The Transgender Foundation of America created this disaster relief fund because trans, intersex, and genderqueer individuals have historically experienced significant difficulties in natural disaster situations,” a statement released by the group says. “This fund will be used to help our historically underserved community recover from this catastrophic event,” it says. The creation of the two disaster relief funds came at a time when officials in Houston and many other areas of southeast Texas reported that a never-before-seen volume of rainfall rather than the usual high winds associated with a hurricane caused massive damage from flooding in high population centers, especially those in Houston. The nation’s fourth largest city, Houston has been accustomed to flooding of its numerous waterways, including bayous, but officials said the “historic” flooding over the

past several days resulted in serious damage and total destruction of thousands of homes and businesses unlike any previous flooding incidents. “Houston is really bad off right now,” said Houston LGBT rights advocate Lou Weaver, who said he was stranded this week in Dallas after learning, during a visit there, that all main roads leading to Houston were impassible. “Many of my friends have lost everything they own,” he told the Washington Blade. “Some are stranded in their homes.” He said that in addition to the creation of the LGBT disaster funds many from Houston’s LGBT community were volunteering their help at the George R. Brown Convention Center, the city’s largest convention hall that has been converted into an emergency shelter. A Houston city spokesperson told the Washington Post more than 1,500 people had been taken to the convention center Sunday night. Many of them had been rescued by boat from the roofs of their homes as flood waters rose to the height of their first floor ceilings, disaster relief officials said. Officials said the convention center has the capacity to take in a total of 4,000 people displaced from their homes by the flooding. One of the buildings hit hard by the flooding was Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church, a mostly LGBT congregation located in Houston’s Inner Loop near White Oak Bayou. The bayou surged over its banks during the heavy rainfall on Saturday night, putting one to one-and-a-half feet of water into the church. Rev. Troy Treash, the church’s senior pastor, said church members were ripping up carpeting and shoveling out mud from the church as he spoke to the Blade on Monday. “We’re just part of a city where everything is crazy at the moment,” he said. “We’re a bit awash in feelings at the moment.”

Information about the Hurricane Harvey LGBTQ Disaster Relief Fund, the Transgender Disaster Relief Fund and the Resurrection Metropolitan Community Church can be accessed here: My.reason2race.com/DNicol/HurricaneHarveyLGBTQDisasterReliefFund2017/Donate Paypal.com/donate/?token=IWjUPnJCamFYl0MVvOQYIW0a6JktodXLNkt4hAvP-fk0X Yns7w8wIP82iuNXxAoeZlIUMm&country.x=US&locale.x=US Transadvocate.com/help-the-trans-community-overcome-hurricanetropical-stormharvey_n_20619.htm ResurrectionMCC.org

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David-Elijah Nahmod

san fran MarCHes aGainst Hate

undreds gathered at Harvey Milk peaceful march—people were dancing Plaza in the heart of San Francisco's joyfully as they marched. primarily gay Castro District to call Classic tunes such as Lionel Richie's for unity and to say no to hate on Saturday "All Night Long," Nancy Sinatras's "These August 26. Boots Are Made For The rally took place Walking" and Twisted just as a small contingent Sister's "We're Not of white nationalists Gonna Take It" blared were holding a "Patriot over loudspeakers as Prayer" at the city's Alamo many sang along. Square Park about a mile As the Castro away. Patriot Prayer was marchers made their organized by Joey Gibson, way towards Civic who had organized the Center Plaza in the Midrecent ill-fated white Market District, another nationalist march in group of marchers Charlottesville, VA. merged in from Dolores Originally scheduled Street. Across the street for Crissy Field, a park from the San Francisco which lies in the shadow LGBT Center, the of the Golden Gate It's Tops coffee shop Bridge, "Patriot Prayer" displayed two Rainbow was abruptly switched Flags, one with the flag's - Manny Sanchez to Alamo Square Park traditional colors, the pRoTESTER on Friday with little other with black and publicity—some have brown added—this was opined that the change was made due meant to represent people of color. to high levels of recent backlash against The Castro rally was organized by white nationalist groups. San Francisco drag icon Juanita MORE! The Castro rally was followed by a The rally's speaker's included MORE!,

"as a gaY latIno man I know that sIlence eQuals death and consent. the loudeR aRe voIces the moRe poweRFul we aRe."

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8 .30.2017

▼ Photo credit David Nahmod.

drag artist Honey Mahogany, Roberto Ordenana of the SF LGBT Center, and Rabbi Katie Mizrahi, among many others, all of whom called for unity, for an end to the Trump presidency, and for community members to support the trans community—President Trump issued a directive banning from transgenders from military service the day before the rally. There were also calls to support undocumented immigrants, for an end to Islamaphobia, and to never back down in the fight for full LGBT equality. "It was an immensely horrible experience to see the President defend Nazis and white supremacists," 53-yearold Elizabeth Houseman told SFGN as the Castro march was beginning. "I can't be silent while he does that. I'm happy to see so many people here—it's wonderful. I hope we're sending a message." George Woyames, 73, a gay man, was marching with the San Francisco Labor Council. "Because it's our lives, our rights," he said. "If we let the hate and the Nazi flag fly again, then there goes our rights. When I saw what happened in Charlotteville, that's when I said no." Woyames noted all those who died in

the World War II concentration camps. "Now we have a president who openly encourages every kind of racism and prejudice," he said. "We are all at risk." Kristian Martinez, 42, who is also gay, said he was "disappointed" with the Trump presidency. "It's one thing after another," he said. "We're unified against him—it makes me feel good to see this." For her part, Honey Mahogany was thrilled by the turn out. "There are many ways to protest and show solidarity," she told SFGN. "We need all of them. I'm really excited to be hosting this event with Juanita which allows people the option of actively participating in a demonstration that does not engage the white supremacists and further their agenda." "More than ever people need to stand up and speak out," said Manny Sanchez, who works with Juanita MORE! "As a gay Latino man I know that silence equals death and consent. The louder are voices the more powerful we are." The marchers reached Civic Center Plaza around 2:30 p.m., where they joined an already-in-progress rally which remained peaceful.

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CONVICTIONS

Jesse’s Journal

HoW aBout We CeleBrate lGBt aMeriCans WitH MonuMents? Rather than honor confederate traitors let’s laud these patriots

Jesse Monteagudo

Marsha P. Johnson.

he current campaign to take down Confederate monuments has led many people to wonder who would take their place. Dan Avery, writing for NewNowNext.com, suggested 7 LGBT Americans who are more deserving of honor than Nathan Bedford Forrest or Jefferson Davis. Avery listed among his heroes such notables as Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Von Steuben, Sylvia Rivera, Edie Windsor, Frank Kameny, Bayard Rustin, Harvey Milk, and Kathy Kozachenko. Here are a few LGBT American heroes who, in my opinion, also deserve a monument:

1. Walt Whitman (1819-1892).

Though people don’t dedicate monuments to writers, there is much to be said in favor of erecting one to honor “The Good Gray Poet.” Without Whitman’s love of men, he would never have written Leaves of Grass; and without Whitman’s poetry, American literature as we know it would not exist.

2. Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906).

This feminist icon never married and never showed interest in men. On the other hand, Anthony’s life and letters prove that her greatest passion (other than for the cause of women’s suffrage) was for other women.

3. Katharine Lee Bates (1859-1929)

is best-known to us as the author of “America the Beautiful,” one of our country’s two unofficial national anthems. (The other one being Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America.”) Not so well known is Bates’s love for women, which may have informed her work.

4. George Washington Carver (1861-1943).

The great AfricanAmerican botanist, educator and inventor is famous for his work with the lowly peanut. A former slave, Carver served for a time on the faculty of Booker T. Washington’s Tuskegee Institute. While at Tuskegee, Dr. Carver was accused of giving “therapeutic” oil massages – with peanut oil, of course – to some of his handsome young male students. Later in life, Carver took a partner, Austin Wingate Curtis, who shared Carver’s love of science.

5. Jane Addams (1860-1935).

The famous social worker, activist and founder of Hull House in Chicago never married. Though there is no proof that Addams was a lesbian in the modern sense of the word, her closest relationships were with other women.

6. Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962).

The greatest First Lady who ever lived was married for much of her life to her distant cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This did not keep her from forming passionate friendships with other women, most notably journalist Lorena Hickok. Mrs. R’s female friendships were instrumental in getting her out of Hyde Park and making her a great political and social activist, the “First Lady of the World.”

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7. Bessie Smith (1894-1937).

The “Empress of the Blues” was married, as were most people during her lifetime. This did not keep this bisexual, African-American blues singer from enjoying sexual and emotional relationships with other people, women as well as men.

8. Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992).

Marsha “Pay It No Mind” Johnson, like Sylvia Rivera, was one of several trans women of color who changed the lives of all LGBT Americans. Unlike Rivera, Johnson’s involvement in the Stonewall Riots was never in doubt. After Stonewall, Johnson and Rivera formed STAR, Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries, one of the first groups that fought for the rights of trans people.

Jesse Monteagudo is a freelance writer and journalist. He has been an active member of South Florida's LGBT community for more than four decades and has served in various community organizations.

CONVICTIONS

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WOMEN activists

LGBT Women Activists Who Break Through

Glass Ceilings in South Florida Lynare Robbins

n 2015, a United Nations working treaty that was adopted by the U.N. group, consisting of three General Assembly. Established on Sept. delegates, investigated the status 3, 1981, it is an international bill of of women’s equality in the United rights for women and has been ratified by 189 countries, which by doing so, States. Their findings revealed that have confirmed their commitment to leadership and economic opportunities women’s equality. In failing to ratify for women in the U.S. lag behind CEDAW, the U.S. joins the ranks of six opportunities for women from many other countries: Iran, Somalia, Sudan, industrialized countries on the global South Sudan, Tonga, and Palua who spectrum. They found the low numbers have not ratified CEDAW. Despite marginalization and of women who hold political, judicial, inequality, women throughout the and executive positions. nation and all over the world At the time of their take up the role of being report, the gender pay gap The U.S. is activists just by living as was at 21 percent. More the only women. Very few women can recent studies show that country in the say that they have never, in the economic status of industrialized some form, hit the proverbial women hasn’t improved world that has “glass ceiling.” much since then. not ratiﬁed the For some women, there Safety, access Convention are layers to that glass to healthcare, and on the ceiling when they belong reproductive health and Elimination of to additional marginalized rights were three other all Forms of groups. Cases in point are areas that presented Discrimination the extra layers that women a concerning portrait Against of color, disabled women, of women’s equality in women with marginalized America. The researchers Women religious affiliations, senior also pointed out that (CEDAW). women, transgender the U.S. is the only country in the industrialized world women, lesbian and bisexual women, that has not ratified the Convention economically marginalized women, or on the Elimination of all Forms of women whose bodies do not meet the Discrimination Against Women standards assigned to them by society experience every day. In these cases, (CEDAW). According to the U.N, this is a crucial women have to fight even harder for factor since CEDAW is an international visibility and inclusivity.

The following is an intersectional proﬁle of three South Florida women’s equality activists who are each breaking the glass ceiling. Aryah Lester. Photo credit: Carina Mask.

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WOMEN activists

Lori Lynch Executive Director, The Hub at the LGBT Visitors Center lori lynch at the 2016 pink Flamingo awards, the premier fund raiser for the hub at the lgbt visitor center. Credit: Carina Mask.

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- Lori Lynch

A New York City native, Lori Lynch serves as the executive director for the Hub at the LGBT Visitors Center in Miami Beach. She has a background in performance art and is also passionate about activism and sees the two as a coexisting force. “Art is a sanctuary to escape pain and teach you about discipline, work ethic and business,” said Lynch. According to Lynch, to sustain a career in performance art, one must engage in “head to toe maintenance.” She said that this not only includes a disciplined health regiment and hard work, but also keeping an impeccable reputation and being true to your word so that people want you back. Lynch said that she learned about the world and culture through performance art, saying, “I learned more about American history through music than I did history books.” Lynch mixes her passion for performance art and social activism by programing a yearly dinner and performance extravaganza, the Pink Flamingo Awards, which serves as a key fundraiser for the Hub. In 2016, Lynch rebranded the Hub from an LGBT Visitors Center to the Hub at the LGBT Visitor Center to better reflect its new mission to build a strong community by fostering social engagement and community wellness. In addition to the continued essential resources for LGBTQ tourists and the promotion of socioeconomic development and tourism, the Hub now also provides programming such as educational workshops, panel discussions, recovery groups, and support groups for transgender people, cancer, grief and loss, smoking cessation, and pet bereavement. In addition, HIV testing

and various social activities are provided at the Hub. Its women’s programming includes family planning, women’s health issues, financial planning for women, and many other relevant topics. An advocate for for gender equality, Lynch stated, “I believe gender equality is important in creating a healthy society. We need to change the conversation from women needing equal pay, which is just one of the many important factors, to how we can create institutional, economic, cultural and other conditions so that women can equally contribute a better society.” She said that she has experienced hitting the glass ceiling as there is a problem with women’s visibility and inclusivity in the nonprofit sector, and every sector and industry for that matter. “Women are still not being treated as equals. As a woman in a top role, I’ve managed to beat the odds. However, I dream of a world where it isn’t such a big feat. Women should have an equal opportunity to lead,” stated Lynch. In terms of the long standing fight for gender equality, Lynch added, “I believe the issue here in the United States is that there is very little overall commitment to gender equality. Imagine the impact if our government were to establish a clear commitment to gender equality and backed it up. What would the impact be on our schools? On our children and families? What if there were more women at the top of organizations or in positions of influence in the government?” She continued, “What matters most is that we all question inequality and set out to do something about it in our own ways, in our own communities and industries.” 8.30.2017 •

WOMEN activists

Aryah Lester. Photo credit: Carina Mask.

Aryah Lester Founder and Director of Trans-Miami

Aryah Lester, also originally from New York, is the founder and director of Trans-Miami, National Alliance of Transgender Advocates and Leaders (NATAL). Lester said that upon her arrival to Miami in 2005, she was surprised to find a scarcity of services for the transgender community, especially among women of color. She devoted much of her time and energy towards education, advocacy, and implementation of programming for a disenfranchised population. In the midst of her work, she developed business relationships with universities, local nonprofit organizations, and federal agencies such as the Department of Justice, Florida Health Department, Homeland Security, and the Department of State. On gender equality, Lester stated, “Gender equality is important because it is not existent during our current times. Income disparities and standard of living inequality permeates our modern society in a bewildering matter. No matter who you are, how you identify, or what your background is, we should all be allowed to maintain an equal status with those equal to us as human beings.” When discussing the glass ceiling that women often speak of having to break through to achieve income equality or other states of equality in society, race presents an additional layer, as does being a transgender woman. Said Lester, “As a transgender woman of color, I experience a three-layered glass ceiling in many situations. A racial pane of glass prevents me from ‘taking a seat’ in many environments led by mostly white cisgender individuals. I

then encounter barriers with gender equality by being both a woman and more specifically a transgender woman. I have utilized both my presentation and intellect to navigate these spaces, and break through the glass ceilings to some extent, although I realize there is much work to still accomplish.” Lester said that she lets her work speak for her. “The core of everything I do is to address equality for my community in the aspects of health, housing, employment, and with figures of authority. I worked to instate the first transgender organization for Miami-Dade County, and worked as a consultant for most of the programs and organizations we have today that address issues in the transgender community.” When asked her opinion on what steps would be needed for communities across the nation to foster gender equality, Lester said, “We as a people need to take a deep look at the influence of femininity in our world, the power and respect we have for our mothers, daughters, sisters, and female friends. We need to personalize our struggles and fight, and take our struggles straight to the face of our oppressors. We have to realize empathy towards the individual, and their self-identities. We must not be silent, and call-out stigma and discrimination at every turn.” She elaborated that a good indicator of accomplishment in gender equality will come with the numbers. “Equal pay in income, approximate 50/50 split in gender for leadership positions (both locally and nationally), and lesser numbers of women being assaulted, raped, or lacking access to resources.”

“No matter who you are, how you identify, or what your background is, we should all be allowed to maintain an equal status with those equal to us as human beings.” - Aryah Lester

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8 .30.2017

WOMEN activists Photo: Amy Bloom. Credit: Kat Fitzgerald.

Amy Bloom Director of Outreach and Engagement, National Council of Jewish Women’s Miami Section Chair, MDGLCC Women’s Council

“I am a connector. I love planning and organizing, as well as supporting causes and informing people about them.” - Amy Bloom

Hailing from the Highland Park suburb of Chicago, Amy Bloom grew up in a Jewish family and community. Her alma matter is Emory University, where her concentrations were political science and French. Bloom stated, “I love learning about languages, cultures, people, politics, and equal rights. “I am a connector. I love planning and organizing, as well as supporting causes and informing people about them.” In Chicago, she worked with organizations in the LGBTQ community to engage and educate women about philanthropy. Upon moving to Miami several years ago, Bloom began to collaborate with organizations and causes. As the chair of a newly formed Women’s Council at the Miami Dade Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (MDGLCC), she helps facilitate networking and educational opportunities for women and allies who are members of the MDGLCC. Bloom said that through constantly meeting new people, traveling, and learning about companies and organizations, she connects with others who she thinks could benefit from collaboration. Bloom recently began a new role as the director of Outreach and Engagement at the National Council of Jewish Women’s Miami Section. Bloom stated, “My role and goal is to reengage its 1,000 members and introduce the organization to new people. We are a grassroots organization supporting women, children, and families through advocacy and social justice, based on the Jewish value of ‘Tikkun Olam,’ which means to repair the world.” When asked if she has ever hit the glass ceiling, Bloom explained that she has had two

additional barriers involved with the glass ceiling that women encounter. “Yes, I have. I am a woman, I am a lesbian and I am Jewish. I grew up noticing and therefore feeling that men were superior. I also felt ‘less than’ while growing up for loving women. I felt that I would never be accepted. I grew up thinking that neither a woman, nor a Jew, could ever be the president. As a Jew, compared to other religions, people and cultures, I was lucky to grow up in a time and place in which I was accepted and could fit in. I grew up in a community with a lot of people who were like me regarding religion. I learned about the Holocaust, and the years of persecution of Jews, but never witnessed it up close. Now I read almost daily about temples being desecrated and destroyed, and people being the target of hate crimes for being Jewish.” Bloom said she tends to gravitate to causes that involve gender equality, LGBTQ equality, Jewish social programs, and religious pluralism. On the steps needed to eliminate sexism, homophobia, and anti-Semitism, Bloom said that learning about each other’s struggles, collaboration, and supporting one another is key. “I found strength when I became more sure of myself as an honest, loving person, and learned that there was a community of people and activists who stood up and spoke out for themselves and others. I knew I wanted to help and be a part of it. Getting involved, learning about differences, and finding ways to collaborate, is what is going to help women from all walks of life overcome those glass ceilings.” 8.30.2017 •

WOMEN in memoriam

Power and Peace Late Activist Diana Hemingway

Diana Hemingway (left) with LJ Woolston at the inaugural LadyFest in 2014. © Photos by LJ

Landon (LJ) Woolston

ruly, how does one capture the life of your love, the love of your life, a trailblazer, a devout friend, a rescuer, an advocate, an activist, an artist, in mere words? When my partner, Diana Hemingway, first died by suicide on December 20th, 2016, I wrote fervently about her in the days that followed. The words flowed easily, as it felt like she was still here. I could still see her sitting across the couch from me. I could still see her eyes, as I stared into them from where my head had time and again rested in her lap. Most of all, I could still hear Diana's voice in my head, her words so often filled with frustration and angst over some form of oppression or act of injustice. Losing Diana has felt like a colossal injustice to me. I lost my love and our community lost a hugely powerful and influential activist. In fact, Diana's first love in life was activism, so much so that she dropped out of school

"I may not always share your optimism for the future or your views, but I do share our love for each other." - Diana Hemingway

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8 .30.2017

at just 16 years old to work for Greenpeace. For Diana, her activism was one of the ways in which she loved the many communities that she belonged to. Furthermore, her love for others was also a form of activism, for Diana so deeply loved and affirmed individuals that others often did not, could not, or would not. On March 2nd, 2016, Diana wrote on Facebook: "Thank you to all my friends. I'm grateful to have you in my life. I may not always share your optimism for the future or your views, but I do share our love for each other. If anything can give us a chance at a bright future, it's genuinely loving others." At just 46 years old, Diana loved with the heart of someone who had lived four or five lifetimes. No single article, no few paragraphs on a page, could adequately capture Diana's love for others, her activism, her intensity, her depth. Diana was an absolutely brilliant, queer, nonbinary transgender woman who was also on the autism spectrum. She was a well-known, multi-issue activist who tackled trans and queer rights, racism, disability rights, neurodivergence, economic justice, mental illness, issues impacting the kink community, and end-of-life decisions. Diana's activism was made more powerful by the fact that she faced so many systemic struggles (many of the same struggles that other trans people with intersecting identities face) – difficulty accessing quality health care, societal rejection, family rejection, community

rejection, job rejection, ongoing economic challenges, and multiple episodes of homelessness. Although Diana felt empowered by her ability to choose when and how to end her life, there is no doubt that many systems of oppression, "-ism's," and traumas loaded Diana's gun – transphobia, whorephobia, respectability politics, ableism, misogyny, sexism, body shaming, ageism, capitalism, rape culture, the criminalization of sex workers, non-profit industrial complex politics, and dilapidated mental and physical health care systems. I could go on. As Diana's love for me was part of her activism, and her activism a part of her loving me for the three years that we were together, I owe it to her to be her activist in return. Even though it is still raw and painful, I will continue to tell her story, all of her story, not only because I believe that the love we shared is so very worthy of being shared with others, but also because I believe that Diana's story speaks to the many systemic failures that she so fearlessly rallied against. However, for the past couple of weeks, as I have tried to write more about Diana's activism, I have found my words falling gravely short of capturing her essence as an activist. Instead, I thought it more powerful to share some of her own writings. I can only hope that through Diana's words, a little bit of her activism – and a whole lot more of her love – lives on.

WOMEN in memoriam

olston, 2014. Photo credit LJ Wo

and shutting Diana, on racism ck Friday, it down during Bla 11/26/2014: n skip one do you think you ca Fellow white folks nd with sta commercialism to year of disgusting ! wn tItDo people of color? #Shu

On SWOP and bein

g in action in acti vism, 1/24/2015:

Regardless of who yo u are, or what your history is, you can be this movement. As a part of of today, I've officia lly opened a chapter Workers Outreach Pr of the Sex oject, an internationa l organization run by and former sex wo sex workers rkers, dedicated to reducing the individu and systemic violen al violence ce that sex workers are subject to in vary according to their int ing degrees ersections of oppressio n. Aqua Affair 2015

ate crimes, sex On transphobia, h ity in the trans al id ic su d an k, or w 015: community, 2/17/2

tomorrow go to bed, hoping that Tonight I'm going to : will be the day when

will be respected • trans people's lives and valued unthinkable • we don't have make ive sacriﬁces just to surv e a long full life • we can expect to liv

trans sex up knowing that as a Tomorrow I will wake d, and ere rd mu chance of being worker, I have a 25% world e th d An my own life. 60% chance of taking . bit one won't have changed

On sex worker rights , trans rights, their intersections, and TD OR, 2/17/2015: Sex worker rights without

trans rights, or trans rights without sex worker rights, IS A JOKE.

Read the names and descriptions on the No v 20th International Transgender Day of Reme mbrance list. Read the names and de scriptions on the Dec 17t h International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers list. Both lists are overwhelm ingly trans sex workers. Trans rights and sex worker rights MUST be tackled together.

uilibrium, On ﬁnding one's eq 2/20/15: mmunity a sex worker with co Balancing exposure as scortLife #E d. de y - no pun inten activism can be trick

On racism and the

BLM movement, 4/30/2015:

Black Lives Matter M ORE than other lives , because once we have fixed anti-black racism, we will have fixed ALL racism!

age, and On sex work, langu /2015: whorephobia, 7/2 lves" is rkers "sell themse Saying that sex wo y more not sell ourselves an whorephobia. We do emselves. er in any field sells th than any other work

On police brutalit

y and the murder of POC, 10/16/15:

Every day of the year, I’ve read an article wh ere another person of color has been mu rdered by police, thou gh only POC+Allies ever dare call it that. The trauma is real. Th e pause is real. But we can never afford to remain speechless for any longer than it takes to get ready for war.

8.30.2017 •

WOMEN in memoriam On shame and kin k, 10/17/2015:

Original photography by artist Diana Hemingway.

Shame is unhealthy . Stop shaming peop le for having fetishes - even when people of one kin d or another are the objec ts of that fetish.

of the ting outside is x e , k r o w ment, On sex nd empower a r e w o p , s in marg 10/29/2015: stitutions et, and their in /h is /c te hi w y ostl ble at the Fragile men, m pression trem op d an y, ac egals, em of power, supr , fags, freaks, ill es ni an tr , ks ac , bl bodies. idea of “bitches over their own er w Po . er w po ving ic power. and queers” ha ality. Econom or m n ow r ei wer to Power over th educate. The po to er w po he .T a token. Political power hing other than yt an as e bl ta e the Man take a seat at th ation for what ns pe m co d an m . The power to de ully his for free thinks is rightf x, ld is about se ng in the wor hi t yt er ou ev ab is at x th If se They say about power. is x . er Se . w lf po se t it ou so ab except sex to sex work is al on ti of si e pl po op am ex power, then to make an ght for the Man sage that having It is a proxy fi s. To send a mes et r rg ta sy ea ly d take back ou supposed and to thrive an e iv rv su to ty the audaci be tolerated. power will not rever. We will the margin fo on pt ke be and take our We will not hat we need, w r fo n gi ar m resistance. skirmish the resilience and ne fi de ill w e W but we sex power back. us an example, e ak m to ts volution for a The Man wan vanguard of re e th e m co be stice. Power workers will fairness, and ju y, lit ua eq of rselves. We new society ssess inside ou po e w t ha w is true power en. cannot be brok

n #sexwork gin #whoretesa ar m he ht is m ir transphobia #Sk #homophobia # sm ci ra # m is #power #femin ia #oppression ob ph nk ki # ia #xenophob #resistance

On the Non-Proﬁt Industrial Complex and eati ng each other alive, 1/29/2016: ...Like when I was inv olved in environment al activism, we'd have five groups working on the same problem, sp ending all their energ y fighting each other.

•

8 .30.2017

On hate crim es, just two months aft er the Pulse Nightclub s hooting, 8/1 6/16:

The Long Slow Pulse My Pulse beat s slow. Almost every day of my life for the last m long years, I've any seen the face of another pe like me - murd rson ered because of who they ar Murdered beca e. use they were gay. Murdered beca use they were tr Murdered beca ans. use they were disabled. Murdered beca use they were mentally ill. Murdered beca use they were a woman. Murdered beca use they were a sex worker. Murdered beca use they were antiestablishmen t. Murdered beca use they were gypsy. And many frie nds murdered because they people of colo were r. Or many of the above, faci threats on mu ng ltiple fronts. My heart rem ains broken. E very day. It's pounding scre aming beat, sl ower, longer, night edges to as wards the daw n . #MyPulse

BeatsSlow #L

ongSlowPulse

starting On activism, loss, /28/2011: over, and peace, 12 s, the last three decade For the better part of e on life to making some I have dedicated my s, 80 r place. In the else's world a bette I eace. In the 90s, I worked for Greenp e th In s and addicts. served the homeles m bit of everything fro 00s, I helped with a me cri ntal causes to politics to environme lly good care of the rea prevention. I've taken d we were together, an people in my life while d. rte when we've pa held no hard feelings al and risked a great de I have taken chances e th of me so t los I have to be true to myself. I le I've ever known. most important peop es m nothing more tim have started over fro r. be em than I care to rem k enough forward to as I feel like I've paid e ac pe me so let me find just one small favor this time...

As Diana faced the possibility of becoming homeless again at the end of 2016 (just as she did when she made the above Facebook post in 2011), I now know why she was so scared to lose everything and to have to start over again from nothing; loss guts you, traumatizes you, levels you. As I start my life over again without Diana (who was also my home and the most important person I've ever known), I send out every last bit of energy that I have into the Universe each day on her behalf. I know that many of us do the same for other fallen activists, begging that the Universe hears us, hoping that our comrades, our friends, our loves 'Rest in Power.' My hope, however, is not that Diana rests in power. For her many, many years of service and activism, so very many years of being powerful, years of fighting for herself, fighting for you, fighting for me, fighting for us all, years of extending undying love to others, my ask of the Universe will forever be that Diana rests in peace – not only because peace is what she sought, but because peace is what she deserves. On December 14th, 2015, just about a year before her suicide, Diana wrote,"My existence is an act of revolution. My visibility and authenticity provide me with a platform to create change."

It is up to us now.

8.30.2017 â&#x20AC;¢

WOMEN art & film Photos courtesy Facebook.

Equality in the Arts

Three South Florida Women On Representation in Art and Film

Gender gap in art and ﬁlm means beyond pay, women’s stories don’t get told Leslie Fr

a ye-Thom

Lori Pratico

Olivia Sheets

ong before Wonder Woman’s sword was used to stir the pot, women have been fighting off screen for representation and career opportunities — so much so that in 2015, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission following a University of Southern California study of women directors in Hollywood. The report examined variations between female and male directors in the independent versus the mainstream market. Results showed that in 2014, independent women directors are equally employed alongside male directors at 26.9 percent but drop to 1.9 percent for the top 100 films. This not only inhibits women holding directorial positions but women’s opportunities to share their stories. “When I look across the boardroom or the meeting room it’s dominated by men so the conversation tends to lean toward what they want to see,” said Leslie Frye-Thomas, longtime industry producer and CEO of the Hollywood, Florida-based Reel Stories Creative. Before starting Reel Stories in 2012, Frye-Thomas spent her years working for other people, including four years for an unnamed North Miami employer in a “boys’ town” environment.

“Films by and for lesbian women was a huge process of me coming into myself.” - Ebony Rhodes, Board Member for OUTshine Film Festival

She began her post-college career as a production assistant for Warner Bros. through an outreach program for people of color. She worked her way up, winning an Emmy for her work on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” before her department was outsourced from Los Angeles to Miami in 2009. “Films by and for lesbian women was a huge process of me coming into myself,” said Ebony Rhodes, a board member for OUTshine Film Festival, organizers of MiFo, the Miami Fort Lauderdale LGBT film festival. “To see that narrative that speaks to something so innate in you is so important.” Rhodes has worked for OUTshine for the last eight years, first attending the festival with a former girlfriend before volunteering. Since then, she’s worked up to a board position and makes it her mission to ensure OUTshine’s success and continuance so LGBT filmmakers can tell their stories. To do that, she promotes outreach and networking, organizing events like the upcoming art and film collaboration at the non-traditional Space Mountain gallery in late September. She hopes that it will provide a networking and sharing opportunity for artists and women of all backgrounds to come together and work on projects they might not have found otherwise. Lori Pratico is a faculty member of Coral Springs Museum of Art, and she’s one of the artists behind Girl Noticed, a nationwide charcoal mural project focusing on the role “the female” plays in society. Pratico says it’s important for women to not only take advantage of opportunities, but to value their work accurately in an effort to close the gender pay gap. “Stop giving yourself away for free as an artist,” she said. “If you don’t put a value on yourself, on your art, nobody else is going to.”

Leslie

Frye-T

homas

Pratico says women’s underpayment extends from the devaluation of women and girls, period. She showcases the varying roles women occupy in society by selecting community-nominated girls and women for the murals she paints. So far she’s been able to create installations in 10 states and says her biggest fulfillment from creating the portraits comes from the resonance the pieces have within a community, especially with women. “At some point they’ve played small and undervalued themselves,” Pratico said. She plans on continuing the project indefinitely past its initial three-year timeframe because of the support she’s received, but still places significance on

local involvement through her art director position at Florida Youth Pride Coalition. Here, Lori is able to “give safe space to kids who are struggling with identity and expression and can be themselves in a positive way.” Despite the imbalance on and off screen, women and LGBT representation isn’t a lost cause. Frye-Thomas, Pratico, and Rhodes all agree that success comes from hard work and networking, which they believe are make-or-break denominators. In today’s climate, it’s more vital than ever to be making connections. The key, Rhodes says, is to “remind women that they have to come out and share their own stories otherwise no one is going to continue to make them.”

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WOMEN religion

Local Women of Faith LBT women who take the lead in religion

Ryan Lynch

Joan Schaeﬀer Finds Strength in her Faith The former president of Temple Israel of Greater Miami could have been Catholic.

Joan Schaffer’s bloodline connection with her faith goes back to a time where its members were heavily persecuted. The past president of Temple Israel of Greater Miami’s family lived in Europe during the second World War, hiding away because they were being pursued. Schaffer recently visited family in France whose upbringing was much different than her own. “It’s emotional for me because they are not Jewish due to the fact that the mother one of my cousins was hidden during the war by a Catholic family so she could live,” she said. “So there’s a whole side of my family that is Catholic, but I’m very happy because my grandfather got out and went to Brooklyn.” Being raised in New York by her parents, Schaffer’s upbringing differed from that of her Catholic relatives. “Judaism was a very important part of my life but it wasn’t always that way. My parents aren't that religious, they are what I would call secular Jews. They ate Jewish things and lived in a Jewish neighborhood but they didn't pray a lot.”

Despite her parent’s less traditional approach, Schaeffer practiced her faith. Her mindset at the time played a huge role in how she approached life. “For me, although I didn’t acknowledge it until I was in my 20s, I knew I was different and it turned out that difference was I was gay. But when I was young I didn’t identify it in that way, I just didn’t really fit in with the other girls.” With those feelings of isolation, Schaffer found strength in Judaism. That boost helped connect her further with god and create a tight bond within her life. “My parents didn’t force me to do it, unlike most kids,” she said. “I felt drawn to it naturally.” Initially when Schaffer moved down to the area in the ‘80s, she said her gay identity took over her faith because she went to the Metropolitan Community Church. But not wanting to be baptized in a different religion led her to the rabbi at Temple Israel. “Ironically he was looking to the gay community to help fill the temple,” she said. “I found a home at Temple Israel.”

As she spent more time there, including the start of a gay group at the temple, Schaffer got more involved. She became a member of the board, an officer, and then finally became president of the temple. “Somebody told me I was going to be president and I was like, ‘Me?’ So that happened and while it was a very difficult experience, it was very valuable during that time.” “It was so hard because I always felt like I was being watched and eventually I just did my best and that was that,” she continued. Schaeffer thinks more women are getting chances at leadership positions because they’ve started to gain respect for showing they can do the job like anyone else. For those looking to break in, she says the people around her have helped her best. “It’s important to have support systems in place so that when it gets lonely, and it does, that there are people that can hold you up,” she said. “I think it’s very important for women, especially young women, to assume leadership positions.”

Photo credit: Carina Mask

“For me, although I didn’t acknowledge it until I was in my 20s, I knew I was different and it turned out that difference was I was gay. But when I was young I didn’t identify it in that way, I just didn’t really fit in with the other girls.” - Joan Schaeffer

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8 .30.2017

WOMEN religion Photo courtesy: Metropolitan Community Church.

Lea Brown Creates A New Path After being stopped from becoming a military chaplain because of her sexuality and nearly losing her faith, the Metropolitan Community Church pastor has fought through to lead her own congregation.

For Lea Brown, her desire to serve wasn’t just for her faith, but for her country as well. Brought up in a Baptist home in Oklahoma, Brown said she was initially unsure of the path she wanted to take. But going to Oklahoma Baptist College helped her clarify what she desired out of her religion. “So when I got there I was taught it was really OK to question,” she said. “By the time I was a junior I started feeling called to religious leadership. I did some Bible studies on my own and read a few other books that taught me to see things in a different light. I first realized it was OK if I was in ministry.” Initially she thought her only two options as a single woman were to be a missionary or to serve as a religious education teacher. But after looking into those options, Brown looked at her roommate's father and saw a different option: becoming a United States Army Chaplain. “One day I woke up and thought, ‘Wow, I really want to be an Army Chaplain. But that was very tricky because the Baptists were still not very keen on ordaining women in the ministry.” There were only two churches at the time that would ordain women as Baptist ministers, one in San Francisco and one in Louisville, Kentucky. So she headed west to go to seminary in the late 1980s to help accomplish her goal. After college, Brown became a chaplain candidate in the

Anne Atwell Makes Her Place

U.S. Army. Training from 1988-89, she later had to resign and be honorably discharged due to her coming out. “It just shattered my heart, I love the ministry,” Brown said. “Military chaplaincy is a very vibrant, important industry. Chaplains are not there to convert, they are there to provide support and be a shoulder to lean on.” Brown later also left the Baptist church because of her coming out, subsequently joining Metropolitan Community Church and trying to be ordained there. But with the loss of her chance at chaplaincy, she struggled with her feelings and later left faith for a while. “For quite a while I was really hurt, bitter and disillusioned with it,” she said. “I went into therapy, did really hard work in that for four or five years. When I came back, whatever magic happened to me, MCC suddenly felt like home.” Serving at both MCC San Francisco and MCC Wichita Falls in Texas, Brown eventually became senior pastor at MCC of the Palm Beaches in 2011. While Brown says her path was challenging, she encourages people to think about what they want to do. “The best advice anyone’s ever given me is to follow your calling,” she said. "They said that when I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go to Wichita Falls and they told me, ‘If you feel called to that church, go. On the hard days, the only thing that will keep you there is if you feel called.’”

Photo courtesy: Youtube.

In a male dominated position, the reverend from Sunshine Cathedral is part of a trend of more female leaders in faith.

Anne Atwell initially never considered that she would be able to be ordained as a minister in her lifetime. “If you had asked me 20 years ago, would I have been a pastor, I would have thought you were nuts,” she said. “I would have said, ‘No way, that could never happen.’” Growing up in the 1970s in Brockway, Pennsylvania in a Presbyterian family where her mother was an ordained elder and her father helped as church accountant, faith was a huge part of the minister of connections’ life. The thoughts of leadership came not from her mother or family though, but from an outside source. “When I was 14 or 15, I had a Sunday school teacher who, he kind of really challenged me,” Atwell said. “He gave us permission to read the Bible and ask questions. Meeting him and having him as a teacher made me realize that I had a call to ministry, but quite honestly as a woman I didn’t think that was possible.” Atwell took courses at Penn State and a few Pennsylvania community colleges, but eventually ended up at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton to try and save money. Working toward a psychology degree, Atwell graduated and later got her Master’s in divinity from St. Thomas College in Miami. At the same time in the ‘80s as she was getting her degrees, Atwell became more active with Sunshine Cathedral, a local LGBT-friendly church in Fort Lauderdale. Starting as a greeter, she later worked as an usher with the chancel ministry

and helped with the consecration of communion. “Coming out as a lesbian, I felt like I didn’t connect with a faith community until I found Sunshine Cathedral,” she said. “Once I found that, I was like, ‘This is it. This is my path, this is where I’m being led. Going into seminary with the encouragement of the staff here at Sunshine Cathedral, it turned my life around 180 degrees.” After getting out of seminary, Atwell did notice more women were getting into schooling related to faith. Whether it was for her master’s or the doctorate she is currently working on at Boston University, she said that there has been a change in mindset for those females. “Women are finally giving themselves permission, they are not waiting for people to say, ‘Ok, you can do this.’ We’re giving ourselves permission to say, ‘This is something that is part of us. This is part of our journey and we’re not going to let anybody say we can’t do it.’” Despite this trend, Atwell says some sects of the church are advancing slower than others. She believes that the best way to challenge what has been a male dominated field is to step up to the challenge and follow where your faith is guiding you. “I mean in churches, people still look at me like I’m the church secretary and I have as much education as my colleagues,” she said. “Just being open to where you’re being led and having the courage to do it, those are some of the biggest steps you can take.” 8.30.2017 •

WOMEN religion

Noah Kitty Clears Way in Judaism for LGBT Women The former Congregation Etz Chaim president worked through a personal tragedy to eventually lead her congregation.

Photo credit: Carina Mask

Rabbi Noah Kitty’s path to leadership was something she thought was “quite a journey.” Starting out in an average middle class family in New York, one might not think that the congregation Etz Chaim board member and former president was in for a ride. Raised by Jewish reconstructionist parents, faith was part of their lives but was not the biggest influence for Kitty until later on. The fact that her family was not pushing her into the field and instead allowed her to make the choice to go into rabbinical school on her own separated her from many of her peers. “The process begins as seeing yourself as a member of the people, then you grow in your desire to serve and then you go to rabbinical school,” Kitty said. “As a lesbian, it became clear what community I was meant to serve.” Finishing up school in 1994, Kitty worked in Brattleboro, Vermont at congregation Shir until her father’s death. In the wake of his passing, she moved to South Florida in the late 1990s to take care of her mother and eventually became a member of Etz Chaim. She first started attending the church in 2006, working as a volunteer in leading services and holiday programs as a volunteer. She was hired as executive director for the Wilton Manors-based congregation in 2011.

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8 .30.2017

Kitty said she has noticed more women are starting to look into rabbinical school and consider the career. A lot of it has to do with “more schools being available to ordain women Rabbis than when I first was going.” Even with that progress, Kitty said that there are some obstacles for women entering the field, especially the patriarchal structure, which has mostly been the same over time. That traditional field can react negatively when someone follows in Kitty’s path. “As soon as women enter the field, it loses authority,” she said. “Women get lower pay and it’s not their fault, it’s a traditional field.” Even with those challenges facing women entering the rabbinical field, the rabbi encourages them to consider the role if it feels right for them. Even if they do not try to take the same faith path as her, she thinks it’s good for people to take on leadership roles. “Regardless of if you are a man or woman, I encourage anyone to take on any issue in a community they are passionate about,” she said. “Go for it, I’m always pleased when someone takes the initiative to lead and I would do everything I could to help them.”

WOMEN profile

Arianna Lint The “T” in LGBT is Tenacious and Powerful

Women in Activism

Carina Mask

Photo credit: Carina Mask.

rianna is a trailblazing activist, educator, and advocate who works tirelessly to bring visibility to the transgender community, not only in South Florida but on a national level. She arrived in the United States approximately 20 years ago, and her journey has not been an easy one. Arianna has had a tumultuous few years. She is a refugee from Peru, she is transgender, and she is also HIV positive. She chose to change her life experiences into a positive to bring about action and change. In 2006, Arianna worked with the Florida Department of Health to bring awareness to the HIV/AIDS Epidemic that is disproportionately affecting the transgender community. Arianna is working with Human Rights Watch in order to create an extensive bilingual questionnaire that would cover the entire spectrum of the transgender

experience such as, immigration status, finding gainful employment, current housing situation, accessibility to health care, if they have been previously incarcerated, HIV status, and even general safety. Arianna voices, “There is not enough Transgender in leadership, mostly as support but not leadership.” An overarching theme in her career is mentoring and outreach. She has spent innumerable hours educating and advocating for the voiceless in her community. She wants to arm the younger generation with the tools to combat prejudice and transphobia by building framework and partnering up with larger organizations that are willing to train young trans people. Her ultimate goal is to get them involved in local government, incite them to join local planning councils, form partnerships, and be resolute because this is the time when it truly matters.

8.30.2017 •

WOMEN in leadership Photo courtesy Lora Tucker.

Lora Tucker, New CenterLink CEO has

Long History of Leadership Denise Royal

ora Tucker is the new CEO of CenterLink, the national association of LGBT community centers. Tucker is new to South Florida, but not to leadership. She’s a retired United States Army colonel who led troops in Operation Desert Storm, jumped out of airplanes as part of the Airborne Corps, directed public affairs officers in the U.S. Army Reserve, and commanded a joint press camp at Guantanamo Bay. “As a military officer, I changed roles every two or three years,” says Tucker. “I was dealing with a different team or a different mission. As part of my job, sometimes I was taking young Americans into dangerous places; I learned to lead a diverse population, with different cultures in extreme circumstances.” Tucker earned the Bronze Star Medal and served 25 years as a soldier and officer for the U.S. Army. Those experiences helped prepare Tucker for the top roles that followed, including CEO for the Girl Scouts in Kentucky and southern Indiana. From there, Tucker attended the leadership program at Georgetown University and became a leadership coach. She is currently earning a doctorate degree in leadership from Spalding University. That’s in addition to her B.A. in social science from Boston College, a master’s in administration from Central Michigan University, and a master’s in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College. “My passion is leadership and I enjoy helping organizations learn and become adaptive in today’s volatile, ambiguous and uncertain world in which we live, so that they don’t go the way of the dinosaur. Organizations today have to continue learning in order to thrive. The thing that I do really well is build and grow teams because I really enjoy the professional development aspect of being a CEO.” Tucker has been in her new role since April and says it’s going very well. “I have fallen in love with this team and the area,” she tells SFGN. “I have had the opportunity to get out and travel and meet with some of our centers. All I can say is that my heart is full.”

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8 .30.2017

“As part of my job, sometimes I was taking young Americans into dangerous places; I learned to lead a diverse population, with diﬀerent cultures in extreme circumstances.” - Lora Tucker CEO of CenterLink

CenterLink is home to nearly 200 national LGBT organizations, and every center has different needs. “Kalamazoo is different than Los Angeles,” says Tucker. “And Los Angeles is different than Dallas, which is different than New York City. Our challenge is to create a space where the leadership from within those organizations has the opportunity to network and learn from each other. As well as us really learning how to meet the needs of our centers whether small, medium or large.” In the country’s current Trump era, Tucker describes the feeling among many of CenterLink’s member groups as “anxious.” “I think some of our constituents are still in a state of shock because we made such wonderful headway under the Obama administration,” Tucker explains. “So now, we have to circle the wagons. CenterLink is starting a new initiative called Center Action Network. Our role will be to help centers learn and advocate how to protect funding, especially government funding, because if we lose government funding our most vulnerable members are at risk due to the number of services provided at the grassroots level. We have to circle the wagons to make sure we are doing what we can do to mobilize and advocate to make sure we continue to progress rather than going backwards, which is a real possibility.”

8.30.2017 â&#x20AC;¢

WOMEN in the legal field

Elizabeth Schwartz

The Heavy Hitter

Photo credit: Carina Mask.

Carina Mask

Attorney, advocate, lecturer, philanthropist, and author If you Google, Elizabeth Schwartz you will find information on her career in family and adoption law, her numerous leadership and legal awards, and her involvement in Miami’s Jewish and LGBT community. Until you have met Liz, and experienced her wit, her humor, her uncanny ability to read everyone, you have not experienced the powerhouse of a woman that is Liz Schwartz. She has been fighting to protect same sex couples since she became an attorney in 1997- everything from estate planning, adoption, navigating surrogacy programs, and creating contracts that would protect both partners long before LGBT couples could marry in Florida. In her book, “Before I do: A Legal guide to Marriage, Gay and Otherwise," she wrote, “We fought hard for

marriage equality. We deserve the fundamental right to wed the partner of our choice. Still, as we have known for decades, LGBT people build stable, loving, committed relationships without marriage. Several studies show that today fewer heterosexual couples are choosing to marry, deeming marriage an outmoded, musty institution. The irony is not lost on us, that as many straight folks have been bailing from the marital shop, gay couples have clamored to jump abroad. Maybe after the thrill of marriage equality wanes, more same-sex couples will regard marriage the same way some younger heterosexual couples do: as not much more than a “piece of paper.” The Miami based attorney travels frequently to lecture on the importance of estate planning, second parent adoptions, and family law.

Patricia Hernandez and Nora Rotella

Family & n o i rat s Immig torney Law At

Carina Mask Rotella & Hernandez Law is a boutique law firm where the couple strive to be hands on with every aspect of the case. Patricia Hernandez specializes in immigration and Nationality Law, Criminal Law, and Family Law. She has dedicated her career to represent clients whom need asylum, applications for residency, work visas, and DACA. Ms. Hernandez has personal experience navigating the complexities of becoming a citizen in the United States; she became a US citizen in 1995- using her knowledge and her past experiences, she assists her clients with gaining citizenship and flourishing in the US. Nora primarily works with Family Law; everything from prenuptial agreements, child support or custody, second parent adoptions, alimony. Studies from the Williams Institute at UCLA approximate 267,000 undocumented people identify as LGBT. With the current administration spewing hateful rhetoric about immigrants and the uncertain future on DACA (Dreamers), both Patricia and Nora are working

tirelessly to advocate for the disenfranchised and vulnerable. Some undocumented LGBT people were able to marry their partners who are US citizens and were able to apply for citizenship. However, there is a large number of undocumented LGBT people who are single or also in a relationship with another undocumented person. Two major issues arise there, visibility and access to competent resources. Both Patricia and Nora have been providing free legal services for at risk individuals. They are both heavily involved with outreach and education in Miami Dade and Palm Beach. Patricia says, “We are trying to do a homeless youth project, which basically is going out there to places like Pridelines, and letting them know that we’re here and willing to provide pro bono services. This project arose because a lot of immigrant children were being thrown out of their homes because they came out as LGBT, and then the organizations weren’t able to provide assistance because they do not have a Social Security number- most of the grants need SSN’s for funding purposes.” Photo credit: Carina Mask.

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WOMEN profile

Celebrity D

DJ Citizen Jane The Silent Observer

Carina Mask

Photo credit: Carina Mask.

onned in her black leather jacket and shades, her signature look, she surveys the crowd the moment she walks onto the stage. Every song she mixes is calculated. She reads the party — it’s almost as if she feels the ebb and flow of the room’s energy. Being at a party where DJ Citizen Jane is spinning is transcendent. She wants you to leave all your worries at the door, be present, and let the music wash over you and through you. She is immensely talented and gaining international prestige. She recently headlined Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. Approximately 40,000 screaming fans turned out for her Australian debut. Jeffrey Sanker, one of the most illustrious gay party promoters, booked Citizen Jane for his highly successful Fresh Friday parties in L.A.

She wants to be judged by her skill, not her gender. “I am just asking for an opportunity, an equal opportunity, it shouldn’t be about your gender, solely based on talent.” Citizen Jane is breaking down barriers in a predominately male dominated field. Currently, women make up 11 percent of artists at electronic music festivals. “I want to hit the European Market, the Asian Market. That’s my dream, that’s my goal, I just want to go out there and to take my music out there and share it globally, and reach out to as many people as I can with my music.” No matter where in the world you find DJ Citizen Jane, she will always find a way to incorporate her Cuban American roots into a set. She’s extremely proud to be from Miami beach and she wants to give a little bit of herself to everyone she comes into contact with.

8.30.2017 •

WOMEN in activism Photo credit: Carina Mask.

For the sak second cha e of nces

Jules McCarty Carina Mask

What the transgender community in South Florida needs is more leadership, trans people need to be in roles where they feel empowered to make change and to be visible to their peers. Jules McCarty speaks very candidly about her life, “I was a client at Inspire Recovery, and I was having problems finding employment in Palm Beach County, so I went to Trans Con this year at Barry University and ran up to meet Arianna (Lint).” Jules is now part of the team at Arianna’s Center/ TransLatina Florida. “I was in a halfway house for one year, so 12 months, but I couldn’t get ahead there. I would get hired and immediately fired, they had good intentions, but at the end of the day they are a business.” Jules added, “They were allowing me to stay there and not be up to date on rent however I was constantly pitching their business and recruiting.” Finding gainful employment still seems like a myth

Photo credit: Carina Mask.

Elder Care Advocate

for the transgender community. Studies show that anywhere from 15 to 43 percent of LGBT people face discrimination and harassment at the workplace. Transgender workers report an astonishing 90 percent of some form of harassment or mistreatment at the workplace. “My goal is to stay in South Florida, and I want to enroll in school and eventually get my master’s in Social Work. Compared to my experiences in Chicago and Philadelphia, there’s a lot of work to be done down here, I want to stay to be a part of that change. There are more programs, funding, and the community closer knit.” It’s a crucial time in our history; the transgender community needs leaders. There are not enough trans women or trans men in management positions and leadership in South Florida. “I want to open my own LGBT halfway house, that’s my main focus, specifically people fighting addiction.”

Cindy Brown Carina Mask Cindy Brown has served on the boards of SAVE, The Dade Human Rights Foundation, the Gay & Lesbian Foundation of South Florida, and the Advisory Committee for the Women’s Community Fund (now known as the Aqua Foundation for Women.) And as of April, the Jewish Community Centers of Miami named Cindy President of their Lambda Living program for LGBT seniors in Miami Dade. “There are challenges (in the LGBT Community which) include lack of support and caregiving; greater likelihood of living alone; higher rates of poverty; and cultural and social isolation,” Brown said. The LGBT community has lower rates of health insurance coverage, higher risks of cancers due to delayed testing, higher risk for depression and suicide. Cindy spearheads programs for case

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8 .30.2017

management services, counseling, and providing SAGE certified training for cultural sensitivity to different organizations who care for LGBT elders. “Cindy is uniquely qualified and well respected in both the LGBT community and human service agencies to bridge the gap between traditional services and the cultural needs and social isolation within the LGBT senior community, said Fred Stock, President and CEO of Jewish Community Services. There are 39 million people in the United States that are 65 years or older; approximately 1.5 million of these people identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. With a growing community in need of these programs, Cindy recognizes the fact that there is an urgent need for LGBT seniors to make friendships, become each other’s support structure and most importantly, communicate.

WOMEN photos

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8.30.2017 •

IN MEMoRIaM

In memoRY oF

Bradford M. Goff M.D. the lIFe oF

radford M. Goff MD, age 66 of New York City and Wilton Manors, Florida, succumbed to a bravely fought battle with brain cancer on July 30th, 2017. Born June 19, 1951 in Springfield MA, Dr. Goff graduated with honors from the University of Massachusetts. He earned his doctorate from SUNY Downstate Medical School, completed his residency at Timberlawn Psychiatric Hospital and was honored to serve patients in hospitals in Dallas and New York, including North General Hospital in Harlem. Dr. Goff was most proud of his 20012015 tenure at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, where he rose to become the Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry. Among his many accolades are citations from the Borough President's Office in Brooklyn and The State Assembly of New York for his outstanding commitment to providing services and support to local residents and those in need. In 2014 he received the Board of the American Psychiatric Association's honor, that of "Distinguished Life Fellow." Dr. Goff was preceded in death by his mother Florence Goff, nee Gillett, his father Maurice Goff and recently by a lifetime family friend, Lee Waterman. Bradford leaves behind his husband Bradley Meade, with whom he spent the last 26 years of his life; his brother and sister-in-law, Kenneth and Cristel Goff; sister and brother-in-law, Barbara and George Pallotta; mother and father-in-law, George and Mary Meade; as well as a large extended family. Dr. Goff will be remembered for his dedicated professionalism, elegant style and wry humor by admiring colleagues, grateful patients and an adoring cadre of friends.

Ellwood Autuori

Life is too important to be taken seriously. - oscar Wilde

At his request, there will be a party to celebrate Dr. Goff's remarkably meaningful life on September 23, 2017 at the PRIDE Center, 2040 North Dixie Highway, Wilton Manors, Florida 33305. Guests will be welcomed from Noon until 4:00pm where there will be celebratory music, laughter, hors d'oeuvres and more. At 2:00pm all will be invited to take part in his eulogy and to reflect on the words of Rev. Leslie A. Rutland-Tipton. In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to the National Greyhound Adoption Program at 10901 Dutton Road Philadelphia, PA 19154, or online at NGAP.org. Donations in Dr. Goff's memory can also be made to the PRIDE Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway, Wilton Manors, Florida 33305.

llwood Autuori was a proud gay sober man. Born on January 6, 1941 in Bridgeport Connecticut where he grew up, and worked in Greenwich as a specialist for children with learning disabilities. He received many awards throughout his career and his picture still hangs in the main lobby of the board of education building. He retired early went on to sell real estate, then antiques in Maine, becoming a snow bird in Florida. He enjoyed Florida and eventually there moved full time, remaining very active. Ellwood was a compassionate man, who would reach out his hand to everyone he met. He was a teacher, an inspiration, a therapist, a counselor, a shoulder to cry on. He had the innate ability of making someone laugh when they no longer thought that was possible. He belonged to and participated in many groups that meet at the lambda clubhouse and the pride center. He is survived by his husband Dan Mehler, he has an extensive family through the country consisting of, cousins, nephews, nieces and in laws of many generations, here in Florida he leaves behind Tom Gifford, Ken Baublitz, Tim Krajewski, Ryan Hanson, Brian Greenwood and TJ Fells, as well as a number of other friends. Family and friends are invited to a social gathering at the Church of the Holy SPIRITSONG (located behind the PRIDE Center) at 2038 North Dixie Highway,

Suite 102 Wilton Manors, Florida 33305 on Saturday, September 16, 2017 from 122:00pm. A formal service will begin at 2:00pm with Rev. Leslie A. Rutland-Tipton, presiding. Friends are invited to come and share stories, fellowship and enjoy refreshments, allowing Dan and the other relatives to know how Ellwood touched each and every one of his many friends. online condolences may be sent to the family at www.KalisMcIntee.com

online condolences may be sent to the family at www.KalisMcIntee.com

Kalis-McIntee Funeral & Cremation Center 2505 N. Dixie Highway Wilton Manors, Florida 33305 954-566-7621

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8 .30.2017

LIFESTYLE books

'transitioninG toGetHer: one Couple’s Journey of Gender and identity disCovery'

by Wenn & Beatrice Lawson Terri Schlichenmeyer

our hair is grayer than it was back then.

You’ve both packed on pounds here and there, too. A few wrinkles surround your smiles, but that’s okay – you’re not fresh-faced kids anymore. You’ve aged, you’ve softened and, in the new book “Transitioning Together” by Wenn & Beatrice Lawson, you’ve changed quite a bit. Long before they met, Wendy and Beatrice had a lot in common: both came from families of similar sizes. Both had fathers that “didn’t have a head for figures” and mothers who ran the family businesses. Wendy and Beatrice are both on the autism spectrum. The main difference: Wendy was a married woman. They met one afternoon when Wendy, her husband, and their four children were living in the home of a “well-to-do” family that had just hired an au pair. The shy young woman didn’t speak English and Wendy didn’t speak Swiss German, but when Wendy was asked to help the girl to settle in, Beatrice proved to be a quick study. She easily learned a new language and she and Wendy forged a close friendship. Both seemed only a little surprised when that friendship turned into love. Wendy, who’d had health issues most of her life, never considered falling in love with another woman, but it felt right. Beatrice had an inkling that she was a lesbian but she shunned the word, afraid that it would “be an embarrassment” to her family. Even so, she settled into a relationship which was tender, and fragile from the start. Wendy and her family moved from England to Australia as her abusive marriage was crumbling. Beatrice was unable to make the move with her beloved, due to Australia’s

c.2017, Jessica Kingsley Publishers $19.95 / $24.95 Canada 214 pages immigration laws. They ultimately figured out a way to be together physically; once Wendy’s divorce was final, they knew they’d be together legally as well. But even after their wedding, Wendy wasn’t happy. Never comfortable in her body, she felt sure that something was missing, so she sought her “tribe” before understanding that she needed to transition to become the man he’d always known he was. And that was something Beatrice wasn’t sure she could handle… From its very beginning, “Transitioning Together” is a tough read. There’s a lot of preliminary to wade through to get to the start of the actual story here, and then there’s a lot of confusing setup that identifies authors Wenn and Beatrice Lawson by their relative ages, rather than by name. While it’s helpful, later, to have a change in font to delineate who is weighing in, you might continue to be baﬄed by the semi-linear nature of what is mostly Mr. Lawson’s version. Yes, tenacious readers who can bear with this dual memoir will get a doubleedged peek at the emotional process of transitioning for both partners, through the added, unique perspectives of autism and age. That’s worth the patience - if you have it. Indeed, this book could be more for professionals than for anyone else; general audiences may enjoy “Transitioning Together,” but only by a hair. 8.30.2017 •

LIFESTYLE food

eating Well and

doinG Good

Octopus strips. Photos courtesy Rick Karlin.

Rick Karlin

ne of the best things about covering the food industry is that there are always so many places giving back to the community. Here’s just a short listing of some upcoming and recent events.

STAGE DOOR DELI On Tuesday, Sept. 12, have dinner and drinks with friends at Wilton Manors’ favorite deli, EAT! and support Island City Stage, South Florida's award-winning, professional LGBT theatre. The theater company will receive 10 percent of the proceeds from your dinner receipt if you present the coupon found on the Island City Stage’s Facebook (you can even show it on your phone). Tuesdays are a great time to visit EAT!, it hosts happy hour from 4-7 p.m. and its "Fiesta Cantina Tuesday" features Latin entrees for only $14.95. EAT! is at 2150 Wilton Dr., Wilton Manors. Call 954-626-0722 or go to EatInWiltonManors.com.

TASTE OF EQUALITY Now in its third year, Taste of Equality, hosted by Gulfstream Park, will be held on Oct. 11, from 6 to 9 p.m. with all proceeds benefitting Equality Florida. This year, attendees can embrace their inner foodies with a tasting in the park from participating venues. The event also includes entertainment, shopping specials, raﬄes and more.

SWEET COMPETITION Hoffman’s Chocolates held its ice cream sundae competition, “Making Sweet Creations for Sweet Donations” at its corporate office on Aug. 11. Seven non-profit organizations partnered with a Hoffman’s store manager to create a special ice cream sundae for the competition. A panel of five judges determined that the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s (CFF) Crunchy Monkey Peanut Butter Bang sundae was the winning combination. CFF will receive a donation of $1,500 from Hoffman’s Chocolates and the opportunity to have its winning flavor featured in all Hoffman’s Chocolates stores. Served in a freshly-made waﬄe bowl half-dipped in chocolate, the overthe-top Crunchy Monkey Peanut Butter Bang sundae features three fourounce scoops of Hoffman’s ice cream; Banana Cream Pie, a creamy banana ice cream with marshmallow ribbons and baked pie crust; Chocolate Fudge Brownie, a velvety chocolate ice cream filled with moist fudge brownie pieces and chocolate fudge; and Elephant Ears, vanilla ice cream swirled with peanut butter and large chocolate chips. The three scoops were topped with peanut butter cups and fresh banana brulee slices. The sundae was coated with a smooth caramel sauce and finished off with whipped cream and a cherry on top. The Crunchy Monkey Peanut Butter Bang sundae will be featured in all stores from through September. Hoffman’s Chocolates donated $250 to the other nonprofit organizations participating; ARC Palm Beach, Crockett Foundation, 2-1-1 Broward, HANDY, and the Melanoma Foundation. On Tuesday, Sept. 19 at Tsukuro, 225 S. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd., executive chef, Michael White, recreates the five-course menu he presented at the 7th Annual Chefs Up Front Dinner and Auction as a benefit for the non-profit Flipany, an organization devoted to improving life through nutrition. Cost for the event is $100 per person, $150 with wine pairings. The event kicks off at 7 p.m. and reservations are required, call 954-523-1407.

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IN OTHER NEWS Octopus Bar and Restaurant at the Plunge Beach Hotel in LauderdaleBy-The-Sea will debut mid-September. The gastropub will serve an eclectic menu from 4 to 10 p.m. Octopus’ tasting-sized menu options include: salmon rillette topped with fried capers, mussels in a kaffir-lime coconut broth and fried clam strips. Larger sized portions include shrimp tagliatelle, grilled tri-tip or octopus. Libation selections include a vast selection of custom cocktails, an array of chic wines and locally brewed craft or domestic beers. For additional information call 754-312-5775 or go to plungebeachhotel. com. Taste the Wave takes place Thursday, Sept. 21 from 6:30-10 p.m. Restaurants along Fort Lauderdale Beach's famed Wave Wall will host the tasting tour featuring bites and sips from a dozen restaurants. As part of the $75 all-inclusive package, guests will traverse the coastal dining destination aboard an air-conditioned Sun Trolley, stopping along the three-mile route to sample signature bites, and meet the chefs. Tickets include valet and self-parking, a keepsake beach bag, all taxes and online ticketing service charges. Go to tastethewaveflb.com. Taste the Wave is part of the Crave Fort Lauderdale restaurant week. In addition to participating restaurants offering prix fixe meals for lunch and/or dinner, there are a number of special events scheduled as well. On September 13, from 6-8 p.m., Bistro at the Sonesta Fort Lauderdale Beach will feature a create-your-own culinary adventure. Under the direction of chef Thomas Russo guests will connect the elements of art and cuisine at a special interactive dinner party. Kick off the night with a reception featuring a variety of wines and small plates, followed by the preparation of a dinner feast. The dinner courses will be paired with fine wines provided by Southern Wine & Spirits.The Sonesta is at 999 N. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd. Call 954-315-1460 for more information.

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theater “Muscle Bears the Musical” receives its world premiere production through Sept. 24 at Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Drive in Fort Lauderdale. The show, featuring a book by Michael Aman and score by Matthew Doers, spins the tale of a young cub who is ready to give up on love (and shave) when his “Furry God Daddy” drops in to save the day. Get your tickets early. This show is a hit. Tickets $20 – 35 at EmpireStage.com

FRI

9/1

art Artist/activist Rolando Chang Barrero and Chris Bivins host Unity Bash tonight at 6 p.m. at the Box Gallery, 811 Belvedere Road in West Palm Beach. The “full spectrum gathering” includes “me.exhibit,” a juried show of uplifting works by local artists; an artist talk by Charles Hashim; music by DJ Muzik Jones Drew; poetry readings by Nick Murray, Dajeen Junior and Grace Noriega; and more. Tickets are $5 at TheBoxGallery.info.

Thursday

8/24

television

Tune in to Bravo tonight for the Season 4 debut of “Below Deck.” Silver fox Captain Lee is back along with his hot yachties for more drama on the high seas. Chef Ben is back in the galley and Kelley will certainly be showing off his abs at every opportunity, too. Most of the cast call Fort Lauderdale home when they’re not serving the rich and famous on luxury yachts. Check local listings for channels and show times. Photo courtesy Bravo.

SAT

9/2 SUN

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theater

nightlife

holiday

television

This may make you feel old: Celebrate the 40th anniversary of “Saturday Night Live” at Broward Stage Door. The hit Broadway adaptation tells the quintessential story of a streetwise kid from Brooklyn who dreams of escaping his dead-end life through dancing. All your favorite Bee Gees songs are there, along with plenty of slick disco dance moves and those infamous polyester leisure suits. Tickets are $48 at StageDoorFL.org.

We love Daisy Deadpetals and VJ Barry Browder and they have a hot new Sunday event, Crazy Daisy’s P-town Tea Dance, at Georgie’s Alibi/ Monkey Bar in the Shoppes of Wilton Manors. Lots of retro hits, special guest drag performances, giveaways and hot go-go boys. At 11 p.m., Kitty Meow and Carmen Adore take the stage for a Labor Day divalicious extravaganza. More information at AlibiWiltonManors.com.

Traditionally, Labor Day signals the end of the summer season. If you’ve lived in South Florida long, you know we have many more weeks of hot humid days before a much-anticipated winter respite. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t spend the day by the pool or fire up the barbecue. Better yet, hit the beach and then cool off later with a refreshing cocktail from one of the many bars and restaurants on Wilton Drive or South Beach.

Catch up on all your favorite television shows before the 69th annual Emmy Awards show on Sept. 17. There’s still time to binge on “The Handmaid’s Tale” on Hulu, “The Crown,” “House of Cards” and “Stranger Things” on Netflix, and “Westworld” on HBO. We’ll be rooting for the modern camp classic from FX, “Feud: Bette and Joan,” in the limited series category and Billy Eichner’s truTV series, “Billy on the Street,” in variety sketch series.

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S ’ N G F S G N I C U D INTRO

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8 1 0 2 2017

e t i s b e w y r o t c e r i d e v i t c a r e t n i ide + NEW

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SFGN

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18 2017-20

Visit our NEW interactive directory website at www.SFGN.Guide

r o s s e n i s u b r u o y d t i d s i a v To E E R F r o f n o i t a z i e organ d i u g . N G F S . w ww k c i l c u n e m e h t n i d ” n S a S E N I

S U B A “ADD

◀ New On Ra Issue cks No w! 8.30.2017 •

a&E theater “Hook Ups Vol. 1” explores the search for sex on gay sex apps. Photo courtesy Andrews Living Arts.

sexy sHort plays foCus on online HooK ups and searCH for love J.W. Arnold

here was a time not long ago when gay men resorted to cruising parks or spending hours in dark bars to search for sex and, perhaps, more. The advent of the smartphone and apps like Grindr, Scruff, Growlr and Craig’s List made the process quicker and easier. “Hook Ups Vol. 1,” a collection of short, two-man plays opening this weekend at Andrews Living Arts in Fort Lauderdale’s FAT Village, explores that primal search for physical release and emotional connection made possible by technology. Playwright and producer Ronnie Larsen came up with the idea to stage short plays this summer and put out a national call for submissions. He selected the eight best plays for the production, which runs through Sept. 23. “I was so impressed with all the plays,” he said. “Some are funny and others are edgy, but they’re all about sex and what happens when you look for love on a dating app.” Many of the scenarios will be familiar to audiences who have tried the online apps: Brett Evan Solomon’s "Grindr Play #1" introduces a lonely, horny man who opens a Grindr account, only to be hit with a flood of dick pics. In "Hotter Than Thoreau" by Julie Zaffarano, one has second thoughts as the clothes start to come off during an encounter and a rash decision is made. When two men hook up via dating app on the phone, one then refuses to put

the phone down long enough to actually focus on the date in Greg Charleston’s “BTWITILY.” And, a man tests the limits of another before the sex even starts in "The Quickie" by Donna Hoke. Other plays explore the kinds of kinks that can be explored more freely in an anonymous sexual encounter: Two worlds collide when a “furry” meets a non-furry and one of them undergoes a major transformation in "Every Inch Counts" by Irene L. Pynn. (Furries are people who are sexually aroused wearing animal costumes.) In "A Different Client" by Josh Hartwell, a hustler gets a request to do something he's never done before and it's so different, he's not sure he can actually go through with it. “Hook Ups Vol. 1” marks Larsen’s first foray into the short play genre. He has written many full-length plays, including the Off Broadway hit “Making Porn,” and recently began producing full length plays by other playwrights since relocating to Pompano Beach this spring. “The plays are provocative and funny and thought-provoking and the biggest challenge was weaving them together into a cohesive evening of theater,” he explained. Armed with more new plays and strong advance ticket sales, Larsen already plans a second “volume” for later this year or early 2018.

Ronnie Larsen presents “Hook ups vol. 1” from Sept. 1 – 23 at andrews Living arts Studio, 23 NW 5th St. in Fort Lauderdale. Warning: The play contains male nudity and explicit sexual material. Tickets are $35 – 50 at RonnieLarsen.com.

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a&E ﬁlm Moises Serrano. Credit: Kathi Barnhill.

Get Your Tickets Today At LiveNation.com

forBidden

New doc focuses on a queer Latino undocumented immigrant David-Elijah Nahmod

n Friday Sept. 1 LOGO, in partnership with the American Civil Liberties Union, will present the new documentary "Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America." The film focuses on the battles being waged by Moises Serrano, an undocumented immigrant in rural North Carolina, to obtain his share of the American dream. Serrano came to the U.S. with his parents when he was 18 months old. They crossed the border illegally, looking to escape the extreme poverty which plagued them in Mexico – all Serrano's parents wanted was to work so they could provide a decent home, clothing and food for their children. They worked hard for many years and appear to be happy with the comfortable and safe trailer park abode which has become their family homestead. Serrano, in his early twenties when the film was shot, has his own set of issues to deal with. In addition to looking over his shoulder wondering if immigration agents will come knocking at his door, Serrano is gay, which is a major taboo in the small, primarily white and conservative community they live in. As filmmaker Tiffany Rhynard's camera rolls, Serrano steps out of the shadows and fearlessly announces his status not only as undocumented, but as a Queer Latino man. He speaks eloquently on campuses, in churches and to community groups about the challenges faced by illegal immigrants-some of whom fled their native countries out of fear of violence. How do they obtain social security numbers, driver's licenses or find work in a country which does not recognize them? Why are they stigmatized and penalized for wanting the kind of decent life which others take for granted?

Several times throughout the film we see Serrano with his family. We meet his mom, a woman who's obviously graduated from the school of hard knocks. And yet she appears to be happy. Happy with her modest home. Happy for her children, who have easier lives than she did. Happy to still be in the USA. Auteur Rhynard also introduces viewers to Serrano'a boyfriend Brandon. They're an adorably sweet couple. As they sit in their apartment they playfully argue about who's the better cook. When the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down DOMA--the Defense of Marriage Act--the couple discusses the possibility of marriage. Serrano is overwhelmed by the court's decision and can barely speak. For him the fall of DOMA represents the first time the U.S. government has acknowledged his existence. Much of Serrano's activism centers around his fight to protect DACA--the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, a federal program which helps young people obtain work permits, driver's licenses and protections from deportations--obviously it's a program from which Serrano has personally benefited. DACA enables him to think about attending college. When all is said and done "Forbidden: Undocumented and Queer in Rural America" paints an eloquent portrait of what it means to be an illegal immigrant in the U.S. It's a film which needs to be shown on a network like CBS, where more people can see it, so that more minds can be changed. "Forbidden" tells us what we should already know--that the undocumented should not be judged but embraced and recognized as the human beings they are.

All dates, acts, and ticket prices subject to change without notice. Ticket prices subject to applicable fees

"Forbidden: undocumented and Queer in Rural america" will air on Logo several times throughout September and will be available at Logo on demand for about a month. For more information on how you can get involved with this cause, please visit: forbidden.logotv.com 8.30.2017 •

auGust 30 - septeMBer 6

Datebook

Theater Christiana Lilly

Calendar@SFGN.com

top

picks

Hook Ups Vol. 1

Sept. 1 to 23 at Andrews Living Arts Studio, 23 NW Fifth St. in Fort Lauderdale. Two characters look at what happens when hooking up with dating apps. Tickets $35. Call 954-826-8790 or visit RonnieLarsen.com.

Kendrick Lamar

Sept. 2 at 7:30 p.m. at the AmericanAirlines Arena, 601 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. The Compton rapper has taken the hip hop scene by force, and will be joined by YG and D.R.A.M. Tickets $45. Call 786-777-1000 or visit AAArena.com.

Glory Days

Sept. 8 to 10 at the Kelsey Theater, 700 Park Ave. in Lake Park. A man gathers the courage to come out to his three best friends. Tickets $30 to $40. Call 561-657-6400 or visit MaplewoodPlayhouse.org.

* Denotes New Listing

broward county * Tony Bennett

Sept. 6 at 8 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. The 19time Grammy Award winner returns to South Florida for an unforgettable performance. Tickets $40 to $150. Call 954-462-0222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

* It Happened One Night

Sept. 8 and 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Broward Center, 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. In a performance in the style of classic old radio, an heiress falls in love with a newspaper reporter who tries to reunite her with her husband. Tickets $25. Call 954-4620222 or visit BrowardCenter.org.

Muscle Bears: The Musical

Through Sept. 24 at Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Drive in Fort Lauderdale. A young cub is about to shave his chest when his Furry God Daddy comes to him and shows him the life of a bear. Tickets $35. Call 954-678-1496 or visit EmpireStage.com

Friday Night Sound Waves Music Series

Fridays from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at The Hub, Las Olas Boulevard and A1A in Fort Lauderdale. Enjoy live, outdoor music spanning genres and tributes every Friday evening through November. Free. Visit FridayNightSoundWaves.com

palm beach county * Green Day

Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. Perfect Vodka Amphitheatre, 601-7 Sansburys Way in West Palm Beach.

The iconic alternative rockers are joined by British band Catfish and the Bottlemen. Tickets $46 and up. Call 561-795-8883 or visit WestPalmBeachAmphitheatre.com.

Isaac Brock, one of Modest Mouse's founders. Photo courtesy Facebook.

Free Friday Concerts

Fridays at 7:30 p.m. at the Delray Beach Center for the Arts, 51 N. Swinton Ave. in Delray Beach. Enjoy live music from the comfort of your picnic blanket or lawn chair every week, for free! Returns in October. Call 561-243-7922 or visit DelrayArts.org.

miami-dade county * Dita Von Teese’s “The Art of the Teese” Burlesque Revue

Sept. 1 at 7:30 p.m. at the Fillmore Miami Beach, 1700 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. The burlesque dancer returns to the United States after her residency at Paris’s Crazy Horse with a restaged performance of “Lazy.” Tickets $44.50 and up. Call 305-6737300 or visit FillmoreMB.com.

* Siempre Flameno’s 12th Annual Festival de Cante Flamenco 2017

Sept. 1 to 9 at the Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. A celebration of the Spanish artform of flamenco, with singers Morenito de Illora, Joselito Montoya, Robio Bazan and more. Tickets $48. Call 305-949-6722 or visit ArshtCenter.org.

* Modest Mouse

Sept. 6 at 8 p.m. at the Fillmore Miami Beach, 1700 Washington Ave. in Miami Beach. Their hit single “Float On” made waves in 2004. Tickets $44.50 and up. Call 305-673-7300 or visit FillmoreMB.com.

Outdoor Music Series

Third Thursdays at the Perez Art Museum Miami, 101 W. Flagler St. in Miami. Come out for live music from DJs and musicians by the bay. Drink specials available. Free with museum admission. Call 305-375-3000 or visit PAMM.org.

The Big Show

Fridays and Saturdays at 9 p.m. at Just the Funny Theater, 3119 Coral Way in Miami. A collection of comedy mixing the likes of improvisation and sketches. Tickets $12. Call 305-693-8669 or visit JustTheFunny.com.

KEEP YOUR EYES ON

South Florida Gay News

SFGN.com @SoFlaGayNews

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Classic style... high tech platform. No room for a newspaper in your back pocket? Keep SFGN’s weekly paper on your phone. “South Florida Gay News”

FEaTuRE pets

Pretty Kitties in the City Calling all cat lovers, Honey (ID 581125) is waiting to meet you. Sadly after having a home for 10 years Honey’s owner became ill and can no longer care for this sweet fellow. At 20 pounds there is a lot to love and pet. Honey is just one of several mature felines looking for a home this week. When you adopt an older kitty, they tend to be calmer, will let you sleep through the night and might even snuggle on the couch with you.

Quality Medical Services Value Priced Pet Care Low Cost Vaccine Prices Same Day Appointments Available We See Exotic and Pocket Pets

H o ne y

When you adopt from the Humane Society of Broward County all pets are spayed or neutered before going home. In addition, they receive preliminary vaccinations, heartworm test for dogs over seven months, feline leukemia test for cats, a limited 10-day health care plan courtesy of VCA Animal Hospital, a bag of Purina ONE food and more. The adoption fee for dogs over six months is $100 and felines over six months are $30. For more information call the shelter today at 954-989-3977 ext. 6. The Humane Society of Broward County is located at 2070 Grifﬁn Road, just a block west of I-95 and opens daily at 10:30 a.m. To see who else needs a home visit www.humanebroward.com WRABEL

SUSANNE BARTSCH

SHAWN PALACIOUS

SEPTEMBER 23, 2017 GALLERIA AT FORT LAUDERDALE

CELEBRITY MUSIC PERFORMERS I INCREDIBLE FASHION DISPLAY CUTTING EDGE VISUAL ARTS I SURPRISING PERFORMANCES GOURMET FOOD & SPECIALTY DRINKS For more information on Artopia IV & where to buy tickets, please go to www.glbx.org.

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Community Christiana Lilly Calendar@SFGN.com

top pIcks

Prayers For World Peace

Sundays from 10 a.m. to noon at the Drolma Kadampa Buddhist Center, 1273 Coral Way in Miami. Buddhist teacher, Todd Ellenberg will lead prayers and meditation. Cost $10. Call 786-529-7137.

Unity Bash

Sept. 1 from 6 to 11 p.m. at the Box Gallery, 811 Belvedere Road in West Palm Beach. Spend your long weekend at the gallery, with music by DJ Muzik Jones Drew, three photo stations for portraits, and art from artists from all walks of life. Tickets $5. Visit TheBoxGallery.info.

LAST CHANCE: OutWrite: LGBTQ Authors From the Special Collection

Through Sept. 3 at the Stonewall National Museum - Wilton Manors Gallery, 2157 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. With more than 27,000 items in its collection, the museum has acquired rare and historic books from authors Oscar Wilde, Walt Whitman, Gertrude Stein, and more. Call 954-763-8565 or visit Stonewall-Museum.org.

bRowaRd suppoRt seRvIces

GENDER BENDER YOUTH GROUP

Mondays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at SunServe Campus, 1480 SW Ninth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. A group for LGBT youth 13 to 21 to discuss gender, gender expression, binary systems, friendship, family and whatever else comes up! Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com

PFLAG

Tuesdays in Fort Lauderdale, Coral Springs and Southwest Ranches. A support group for parents of LGBT youth 13 to 21. Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com for dates and locations.

SUNSERVE YOUTH GROUP

Tuesdays and Thursdays in Fort Lauderdale, Southwest Ranches, Coral Springs and Hollywood. A support group and night of fun for LGBT youth 13 to 21. Free. Visit SunServeYouth.com for dates and times.

SURVIVOR SUPPORT

First and third Wednesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Broward Health Imperial Point Hospital cafeteria, 6401 N. Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale. Find support from counselors and peers who have lost loved ones to suicide. Call the Florida Initiative for Suicide Prevention at 954-384-0344 or visit FISPOnline.org.

broward county Pride Center Fundraiser

Sept. 1 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Flip Flops, 3051 NE 32nd Ave. in Fort Lauderdale. Donate $10 to the Pride Center and eat a free cocktail or appetizer. Visit PrideCenterFlorida.org.

* GLLN Luncheon

Sept. 7 from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at Timpano Chophouse, 450 E. Las Olas Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Join the Gay and Lesbian Lawyers Network for a luncheon and CLE session on medical marijuana in Florida. Cost $25 members, $30 nonmembers. Visit GLLN.net.

* True Colors: In Our Own Words, Video Stories in Queer America

Sept. 8 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Stonewall National Museum - Wilton Manors Gallery, 2157 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. View how LGBT activism has blossomed online, from the “It Gets Better” campaign, coming out, and online personalities. Free, suggested donation $5. Call 954-763-8565 or visit Stonewall-Museum.org.

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* Newly Diagnosed to HIV?

Sept. 13 from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Poverello Center, 2056 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. Donna Sabatino leads an informational session for those recently diagnosed with HIV. Free. Call 954-561-3663, ext. 109 or visit poverello.org.

Life Coaching

Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Latinos Salud Clubhouse, 2300 Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Get one-on-one life coaching from certified CRCS coaches. For guys living with HIV, their partners, and anyone who identifies as transgender. Free. Call 954-765-6239 or visit LatinosSalud.org.

Rest Your Mind

Mondays at 6:30 p.m. at Kadampa Meditation Center, 241 W Prospect Road Ste. B in Fort Lauderdale. Start your week with relaxing meditation to center yourself. Free. Visit MeditateinFortLauderdale.org.

auGust 30 - septeMBer 6 Man2Man Discussion

Mondays 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Pride Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. A weekly informal discussion group among gay men of all backgrounds. Contact John Beuscher at 954-319-4292 or email johnnybushwick@aol.com.

Pride Center Flea Market

First Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Pride Center, 2040 N. Dixie Highway in Wilton Manors. Scour through arts and crafts from area vendors every month. Call 954-463-9005 or visit PrideCenterFlorida. org.

palm beach county Sushi & Stroll

Sept. 8 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, 4000 Morikami Park Road in Delray Beach. The summertime fete returns with sushi rolls, drumming by Fushu Daiko, tours, and more. Admission $15. Call 561-495-0233 or visit Morikami.org.

Transcendence

Meets at Compass GLCC, 201 N. Dixie Highway in Lake Worth. A closed transgender youth support group for teens ages 12 to 19. For more information, email youth@compassglcc.com.

New Patients

$69

Arsht Center Farmers Market

Mondays at 6:15 p.m. at Lambda North, 18 S. J St. in Lake Worth. A support and discussion group for female recovering alcoholics. Visit LambdaNorth.net.

Mondays from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Parker and Vann Thomson Plaza for the Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd. in Miami. Purchase fresh food from local farmers, including fruits, vegetables, meats, prepared foods, as well as chefs, live music, and cooking demonstrations. Tickets $45 to $75. Free. Visit ArshtCenter.org/en/ Visit/Dining.

Out of the Closet, Into the Light

Yoga

Sober Sisters

Mondays from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at MCC of the Palm Beaches, 4857 Northlake Blvd. in Palm Beach Gardens. AA for the LGBT community. Free. Call 561-775-5900 or visit MCCPalmBeach.org.

Voices of Pride

Mondays at 7 p.m. at Compass GLCC, 201 N. Dixie Highway in Lake Worth. Join the Gay Men’s Chorus as they practice every week. Free. Call 561-533-9699 or visit CompassGLCC.com

* Denotes New Listing Celebrating our 8th Year on Wilton Drive!

miami-dade county

Tuesdays from 6 to 7:15 p.m. at Jose Marti Park, 362 SW Fourth Ave. in Miami. Yogis 18 and older of all levels are invited to a practice lead by a certified instructor. Bring your own yoga mat, water, and towel. Free. Call 305358-7550 or visit BayfrontParkMiami.com/ Yoga.html.

Book Study

Wednesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Drolma Kadampa Buddhist Center, 1273 Coral Way in Miami. Buddhist monk, Gen Kelsang Norbu, will lead classes on learning the foundations of Buddhism. Call 786-529-7137.

Yoga in the Garden

Wednesdays at 12:15 p.m. and Saturdays at 11:30 a.m. at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden, 2000 Convention Center Drive in Miami Beach. Hit the mat for an indoor yoga practice overlooking the garden. Tickets $10 Wednesdays, $15 Saturdays. Call 305-6737256 or visit MBGarden.org.

HIV Support Group

Wednesdays from 7 to 9 p.m. at South Beach AIDS Project, 1234 Washington Ave. Ste. 200 in Miami Beach. A support group for those who are HIV positive. Free. Call 305-5354733, ext. 301 or email support@sobeaids. org.

key west Hot Naked Hump Days

Wednesdays from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Island House, 1129 Fleming St. in Key West. Relax in the middle of the week with two-forone drinks, free shots, videos and music, giveaways, and naked boys at the pool. Call 305-294-6284 or visit IslandHouseKeyWest. com

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General & Cosmetic Dentistry New, State of the Art Facilities•Most Insurances Accepted Always Plenty of Free Parking•Located Conveniently on Wilton

954-565-7666 Dr. David K. Warner, DDS, FAGD Fellow, Academy of General Dentistry

1946 Wilton Drive •Wilton Manors • FL 33305 www.IslandCitySmiles.com *In the absense of gum disease. Not applicable to insurance benefits.

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BUSINESS DIRECTORY

attorney LAW OFFICE OF GEORGE CASTRATARO 707 NE 3rd Ave #300, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304 954.573.1444 Lawgc.com LAW OFFICE OF ROBIN BODIFORD 2550 N Federal Hwy #20, Fort Lauderdale, FL 954.630.2707 Lawrobin.com

attorney SELZER LAW 1515 NE 25th St, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.567.4444 SelzerLaw.com LAW OFFICE OF SHAWN NEWMAN 710 NE 26th St, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954.563.9160 Shawnnewman.com

To place an ad in the Business Directory, call our sales team at 954.530.4970 cleaning

attorney LAW OFFICE OF GREGORY KABEL 1 East Broward Blvd #700, Fort Lauderdale, 33301 954.761.7770 gwkesq@bellsouth.net

a&e

FT LAUDERDALE GAY MEN'S CHORUS PO Box 9772, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33310-9772 954-832-0060 www.theftlgmc.org GAY MEN’S CHORUS OF SOUTH FLORIDA 2040 North Dixie Hwy, #218, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-763-2266 Gaymenschorusofsouthﬂorida.org

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bookkeeping

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Fort Lauderdale Oﬃce - (954) 204-3633 110 SE 6th Street, Suite 1700, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 Miami Oﬃce - (305) 967-6311 1395 Brickell Avenue, Suite 800, Miami, FL 33131 48

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dental

financial services

pest control

health

OAKLAND PARK DENTAL 3047 N Federal Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33306 954.566.9812 Oaklandparkdental.com

Taylor & Turner

ANDREWS DENTAL CARE 2654 N Andrews Ave, Wilton Manors, FL 33311 954.567.3311 Andrewsdentalcare.com

Pest and Termite Control, Inc

ISLAND CITY DENTAL 1700 NE 26th Street, Ste. 2, Fort Lauderdale, FL 954-564-7121 Islandcitydental.com

taylorandturner@yahoo.com 2520 North Dixie Hwy Wilton Manors, FL 33305

William D. Turner

954.630.2627

final arrangements KALIS-MCINTEE FUNERAL & CREMATION CENTER

2505 N. Dixie Hwy, Wilton Manors, FL 33305 954-566-7621 Kalismcintee.com

furniture

DR. TORY SULLIVAN 2500 N Federal Hwy #301, Fort Lauderdale, FL 954.533.1520 Torysullivanmd.com

CaLL uS To RESERvE SpaCE!

AMERICAN PAIN EXPERTS 6333 N. Federal Hwy, Ste. 250, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 954-678-1074 Americanpainexperts.com

financial services

professional services

CaLL uS To RESERvE SpaCE! professional services

handyman MIAMI/BROWARD/PALM BEACH Paint/Caulk/Remove Grout/Yard Work Fix Drips & Switches/Debris removal Assembles Furniture & Appliances Repair or Fix Call "Avrom" Keith 786-227-9981

florist WE’RE HERE FOR ALL YOUR

FINANCIAL NEEDS Taxes IRS Issues Accounting

Bookkeeping Small Business Advising

TWO GUYS PAWN FREE PHONE QUOTES!

(954) 565-0727 3345A N. FEDERAL HWY. (US 1) OAKLAND PARK, FL 33306

954-667-9829 ACCOUNTING@STERLINGACCOUNTING.COM

2435 North Dixie Highway • Wilton Manors, FL 33305

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BUSINESS DIRECTORY

To place an ad in the Business Directory, call our sales team at 954.530.4970 8.30.2017 •

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BUSINESS DIRECTORY

To place an ad in the Business Directory, call our sales team at 954.530.4970

real estate Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors & Oakland Park REMODELED homes:

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spirituality

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sports TENNIS LESSONS AT HAGEN PARK in Wilton Manors. Individual or group lessons. Call Robert 732-604-0362 for more information.

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SFGN Classified$ To place a Classified Ad, call Tim Higgins at 954.530.4970 or email at Tim.Higgins@sfgn.com

electrician

opportunity

HARRY’S ELECTRIC RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL - Additions, renovations, service upgrades, breaker panels,FPL undergrounds, code violations, A/C wiring, ceiling fans, recessed, security & landscaping, lighting, pools, pumps, Jacuzzis, water heaters, FREE PHONE ESTIMATES 954-522-3357 Lic & Ins. www.harryelectrician.com

employment wanted SPECIAL HIRE NEEDED - Looking for strong males (must be able to hold up fall risk gentlemen, dementia, Parkinson's, stage 4 cancer, etc.) for LGBT seniors, must be gay-friendly, many have live-in senior partners (must enjoy the company of gay people and comfortable in gay settings, restaurants, etc.) Call 954-629-1377 and leave a message ONLY, include your contact info, name, and level of experience in senior care or your willingness to devote your time to senior care. Faxes welcome at 754-301-5802

handyman

HUSBAND FOR RENT - Is he procrastinating home repairs? He says he will do it tomorrow?? After the football game?? We ﬁt right in - in the house or the yard, small or big jobs: tile, dry wall, paint, plumbing, roof leaks, broken furniture, irrigation, fences, and more! It doesn't cost to hassle us to see the work - so why wait? Neat, clean work for a reasonable price. Call Haim at 954-398-3676, sidnalll@yahoo.com

music lessons VOICE LESSONS & MUSIC THEATRE COACHING - Over 30 years experience. Students have performed on (and off) Broadway, in National & International tours, recorded solo albums & placed in prestigious competitions. www.kreutzmusic.com 617-967-0575

painting

GREGG'S PAINTING - I paint both interior and exterior. Great rates, free estimates. I am detailed-oriented, friendly, reliable, punctual, and neat. No job too small. Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Call Gregg at 617-306-5694 or 954-870-5972 Email: gmanbenn44@gmail.com

piano WANT TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY THE PIANO? Learn from an experienced teacher. All levels and ages welcome. Learn to play classical, popular, jazz, or show tunes. Visit www.edwinchad.com or call 954-826-9555 for more information.

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real estate broward county LARGE MIDDLE RIVER DUPLEX - Located in residential area near downtown Wilton Manors $305,900.00 Call Gary for details 954-736-7583.

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real estate new construction UNITED REALTY GROUP - Building in Wilton Manors, Fort Lauderdale Beach, Coconut Creek, Lauderdale Lakes and Hollywood. Starting in the 200's, 2 & 3 Bedrooms, 1 & 2 Garages available with building incentives. Call for details Michael 561-703-5533 or email mkltub@aol.com for more info.

pool service

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COOL POOLS- RELIABLE POOL SERVICE Professional pool service.Covering Wilton Manors, Lighthouse Point, and eastside of Pompano Beach. 15 years experience. Licensed and insured.Free estimates. Call 954-235-0775.

rentals wilton manors

MIKE THE RENTAL GUY - NE Lauderdale/Wilton Manors/Oakland Park-1/1 from $1090, 2/1 from $1140. Victoria Park-2/1=$1290.00 cable included. Credit & Income Requirements-Pets okay with restrictions Call for Details Mike 561- 703-5533 or miketherentalguy@ aol.com

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ONE MINUTE TO THE DRIVE - Fully renovated 2 bed 2 bath Granite counters, maple cabinetry, central a/c, Ceiling Fans All Rooms, and Window Treatments. www. YourPerfectApartment.com or call 954-253-1929 MANOR GROVE-VILLAGE FOUR - 1 bed 1.5 bath $1200.00 Screened in patio with garden view. Assigned parking with pool and clubhouse. full kitchen with disposal, ice maker, dishwasher, and lots of cabinet space. Call 954-242-3486 for more details.

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954.763.2900 8.30.2017 •