Community THE OSIDER MARCH / APRIL 2022
NORTH COUNTY LGBTQ CENTER WORDS: ALONDRA FIGUEROA
Something we truly love about Oceanside is how diverse our community really is. We have so many established groups and ethnicities that help create a rich tapestry we all call home. This issue, we revisit the North County LGBTQ Center to commemorate the tenth anniversary of it’s opening. The team of amazing staff do so much for the Oceanside community that we wanted to highlight and share some of the new exciting things they’re doing! What began as the dream of a small grass roots group to create a supportive safe space for a burgeoning LGBTQ community has blossomed into a thriving hub for many patrons that flock from all over San Diego County. I was thrilled to sit down with the man, the myth, the legend, and the center’s Executive Director Max Disposti, who gave me the lowdown on all the awesome things happening right now. When asked about the changes in the center since it’s opening, Max was quick to say, “Opening the resource center forced us to do better and much more because the needs in the community were much greater than what we originally expected!” He shared that one thing that has changed is that they finally put LGBTQ visibility on the map in North County. They were a small volunteer staff, and have now grown into an organization with ten staff members that keeps growing and providing more services. “We became specialized in delivering LGBTQ services to North San Diego County,” said Max proudly.
At the last center, it was more about providing a safe space for support groups and creating visibility. Now, they’ve grown into advocates for those in the gay community seeking health and behavioral health care. They’ve forged relationships with school communities to support students suffering from bullying. They became the only local providers for LGBTQ awareness training. That includes law enforcement in Oceanside, as well as Escondido, Carlsbad, and private companies that are looking to provide much needed awareness training for their employees and stakeholders. The center also wanted to focus on the homelessness problem that often affects the gay community at an early age, as they may be rejected by their families due to their sexual orientation or gender issues. It’s estimated that 40-percent of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ. In response to this need, they created Unicorn Homes—a program that focuses on supporting youth and families that have had problems at home, and may have run away, or are dealing with insecure housing. The program works on reunification for these families—if it’s possible and safe to do so. They can offer short term support in the coming out process or youth can be placed in a safe home where they can be given the space and love they need to be themselves. Families often receive education on several levels and learn how to support their child within their family system. During this pandemic, they’ve helped almost 50 families with these tough issues. The coming out 32
ZACH CORDNER
Just some of the NC Resource Center's amazing staff from (L to R): Allan Acevedo, Ieea Provonost, Max Disposti, Lisa Nava, and Jeri Nicolas.
process can be really hard on both parents and kids, and it’s fantastic that the center is leading the way in keeping families together! Over the past ten years, the center’s staff has gained expertise, as they’ve served over 700 trans youth. They’ve learned how to create trauma informed services at the center, but also to become the voice of these trans youth in the system. For instance, LGBTQ youth are highly targeted for human trafficking and they wanted to find out why and how. The center has also become the only LGBTQ center in California that has been focusing their work on human trafficking prevention for this specific population. Center staff has trained the likes of the FBI
