Michael dithers

by Mike Mahler

Hoping that everyone had a great month!

The issue before this came out just before the holidays, and I decided to drop off the Jamestown NY copies in person. (I think it's always good to go to less familiar places now and again.) I had a nice visit with John Daly King, (who is doing well, recuperating from a mini-stroke), and then I headed off to Jamestown. When I stopped at Sneakers, they were having a Christmas Eve Party, which I stayed and enjoyed (there was also a rather cute straight guy there who chatted me up. Perk!) The last stop that I had was the Lion's Den, the adult book store in Ripley. I joked later that it was just like the first Christmas, when the Three Wise Men arrived bearing gold, frankincense and poppers. (Hmm, I might not have all the details right there,)

Things have been coming together for Drenched Fur 7. I am so glad that Erie's Bear run has been so well-supported over the years. This year, the event will run April 7-10 at the Bel Aire Hotel. Be sure to check it out at www.drenchedfur.com! (And also note the ad on the back page of this issue.)

Over holiday break, I also stopped in at a party that the Strong Vincent Gay Straight Alliance had. I hadn't met the faculty advisor in person, and I was pleasantly surprised that the turnout was larger than I expected. It sounds like the administration has not given the group any problems. It is so important when youth work together to network. I believe that Trigon, the Behrend group, might be considering a event for networking with area youth, More details soon!

I really felt connected when I went to Strong Vincent, since I only live a few blocks away, and I also graduated from high school there. In an odd bit of synchronicity, there was been discussion by class mates about our 30 year reunion this July. Now I feel like a fossil. ;)

It was pretty exciting when te vote to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell went through. I think that this also shows why we need to remain involved. Progress doesn't happen unless people make it happen. I think that one big factor is that as time has gone on, more and more LGBT people have become comfortable with being honest and authentic in how they live their lives. In turn, this makes it easier for people outside the community to take us seriously and grasp that we are human beings with the samerights and responsibilities as everyone else. Small changes by lots of different people add up to big changes later on.

Toward that end, one of the possible projects that we are considering is a candidate forum. This may not be a presidential election year, but the city and county legislators that we vote for this year could have a profound impact on our lives. Since those offices cover a smaller geographic area, that also means that our actions are more likely to have an effect.

Speaking of events for 2011, I am incredibly jazzed at how well the first Pride meeting of the year went! It really was a very hopeful sign that we had so many people turn out and that so many parts of the community were presented. It was a great start, and I think we need to work hard on including even more parts of the community and getting more folks involved. But we are definiteily starting out on the right foot.

We will be having the picnic on the second Saturday in June. This is our 19th year! We will also continue with having a GLBT contingent in the Millcreek 4th of July Parade, and also a table at the Erie Blues and Jazz Fest in August. Also, a coalition of groups and individuals will be bringing the Pride March and Rally back this year! We already have Perry Square reserved for August 27. We welcome anyone who wants to work to make this happen, so please join us for the next Pride Planning meeting on Sunday, February 6 at 2 Pm at Tim Horton's, 209 E 12th St, Erie PA. We are also hoping to have T-shirts with a schedule of all events for 2011 and names/lgos for sponsoring groups.