As the holiday season draws near, we find ourselves reflecting on themes of love, family, and togetherness. While this time can be a joyous celebration for many who gather with friends and loved ones, it can also shine a light on painful realities for those who may feel unsafe or unsupported. One significant issue affecting our LGBTQ+ community, often overlooked, is domestic violence.

The Erie Sisters and Brothers hosted another successful Lake Erie Gala at the Sheridan Bayfront Hotel from November 13th through the 17th, 2024. This year, we celebrated our 25th annual Lake Erie Gala with 90 beautiful ladies, their spouses, significant other/supporters! The Lake Erie Gala attracts crossdressers, transgender persons, and their loved ones from across North America and beyond our borders.

TransFamily of NWPA hosted a vigil for Transgender Day of Remembrance at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Erie on November 20th, 2024. This was a community event in which we commemorated the lives of transgender people whom we have lost over the past year. There was time, both before and after the vigil, in which people helped support each other during this day. Transgender Day of Remembrance was created in 1999 to honor the memory of transgender people who were taken by violence.

Many LGBTQA+ people live in Erie and Northwestern Pennsylvania.  We have our friends, our families, and our social groups. We also experience many of the same problems social isolation, physical and mental health issues, poverty, and housing. But we do lack one very important thing in our communitya record of our lives and our community over time, a community-based archive that brings us all together to celebrate our similarities and our differences and to ensure that our stories, our culture is not forgotten or overlooked in the history of Erie and Northwestern Pennsylvania.  There are LGBTQA+ Archives throughout the United States and here in Pennsylvania including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Harrisburg.

NW PA Pride Alliance held its monthly Meadville Happy Hour at Julian's Bar and Grill on October 23, 2024. The next Meadville Happy Hour will be Thursday, November 27. The December Meadville Happy Hour will be one week earlier than usual on December 18 because of the holidays. NW PA Pride Alliance is skipping Erie Happy Hour at Oasis Pub and Tiki Bar for January because of the holidays.

OddCity Entertainment is excited to announce the upcoming second annual Rainbow Fest, scheduled for April 5th, 2025, and we invite your support to help make this event a success! Rainbow Fest is Erie's premier day festival celebrating LGBTQIA+ talent, featuring a diverse lineup of queer bands, vendors, drag performers, and artists. Last year's event achieved remarkable results, raising $1,000 for Compton's Table, a local organization dedicated to supporting Erie's queer community, and welcoming over 150 attendees. This success demonstrates the vibrancy and resilience of our underground DIY music scene, characterized by acceptance and love. Rainbow Fest is seeking sponsorships, volunteers, performers, and vendors that represent Erie and surrounding areas' queer community for 2025. For more information on how to apply to be a part of Rainbow Fest, visit www.oddcityentertainment.org or OddCity Entertainment's Facebook page.

Erie, PA - November 21, 2024 - Demonstrating a continual commitment to equality, diversity, equity, and inclusion, the City of Erie has earned a perfect score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign's 2024 Municipal Equality Index (MEI) for the third year in a row. The MEI is a nationwide evaluation of 506 cities that examines how inclusive municipal laws, policies, and services are of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) people who live and work there.

Erie Gay News is on several social media platforms. In addition to our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ErieGayNews and our Facebook discussion group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/8425024033, we have a new handle (@ErieGayNews.com) on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/eriegaynews.com. You can also find us on Instagram (handle is ErieGayNews) at https://www.instagram.com/ErieGayNews/, Threads (handle is also ErieGayNews) at https://www.threads.net/@eriegaynews. Additionally, Erie Gay News has a profile on Tumblr at https://eriegaynews.tumblr.com/ and on Mastodon at https://mastodon.social/@ErieGayNews. Please follow and like our profile wherever you find it! Our main website is https://www.eriegaynews.com.

Who Wants To Be A Drag Star, Cherry Falwell's all-new drag competition show, kicked off the season with Round One on Saturday, November 16th. The sold out event was hosted by Meadville Council on the Arts in the theater above the Market House in downtown Meadville and featured a pop up bar by Cussewago Creek Distillery. Four newcomers to drag (Veronica Ville, Emerald Rose, Velvet Viper, and Hydroxyzine) were given five minutes of open stage time to impress the judges and the audience. "I encouraged the contestants to show us what makes them unique. They could lip sync, juggle, sing live, do stand up comedy, anything they wanted as long as it was entertaining," said Falwell. Additionally, contestants were given a surprise on-stage challenge where they had to construct a garment or accessories using five random household items in front of the audience and then model their drag on a dime.

This month marks the return of one of Compton's Table's signature programs, Chat & Chill, a twice-monthly, loosely structured gathering featuring themed activities and conversations. Adults 18 and older meet the first Thursday evening of every month; youth aged 13-17 meet the second Thursday evening of every month. For more information or to register to attend next month’s Chat & Chill, visit www.comptonstable.org.

About 35 to 40 people attended the Peace, Love and Warmth event at Perry Square on November 16. The event was organized by Char Newport Michalek. "I named the event Peace, Love and Warmth, because everything we do has to be from a place of peace and love," said Michalak. "Sometimes it might be necessary to mobilize and do what we need to do. Peace and love doesn't make us doormats."

On October 1, the Pennsylvania Equality Project is launching a new survey about education and workplace discrimination. The new survey will run while the current Housing Affordability and Sustainability survey progresses. The discrimination survey will focus on issues related to intimidation, harassment, bullying, and other related behaviors in the classroom and the work environment. All survey responses will remain confidential. The survey is open to all Pennsylvanians in the LGBTQ+ community and our allies who have faced discrimination based on perceived sexual orientation and gender identity issues. There are no age restrictions for this survey. Both the Housing survey and the Discrimination survey end on December 31, 2024. To take the survey, go to paequality.com and click on the Survey link at the top of the page. For more information, send an email to info@paequality.com.

Are YOU ready to slow down, reflect, and connect this winter? Winter is the perfect time to turn inward, nurture your well-being, and set intentions for the year ahead. This season, Journey To A Trauma Informed Life invites you to join us at 201 W 11th St, Erie, PA, for group therapy sessions designed to inspire creativity and self-discovery in a supportive environment. Registration closes on December 29, 2024. Sessions start on January 13, 2025. All groups are in person. Sessions are FREE for UPMC for You members. Ask Journey to a Traum Informed Life about other insurances.

On November 7, 2024, Bears Do Dinner held their monthly dinner and get-together at Torero's Authentic Mexican Restaurant, 1940 Douglas Parkway, Erie, PA. The next Bears Do Dinner will be Monday, December 9, at The Boardroom Dining & Spirits, 4353 West Ridge Rd, Erie, PA.

On October 26, 2024, NW PA Pride Alliance marched in Meadville's Halloween Parade. Meadville's Halloween Parade is the largest nighttime parade in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The contingent was well-received, and NW PA Pride Alliance members proudly carried their banner and threw glowsticks to the crowd.

What has been over a 5-year project for Full Spectrum Community Outreach in Youngstown, OH, has opened, offering the area's first LGBTQIA+ Adult 30-90-day Transitional Homeless Shelter. This shelter will be the first of its kind within a 40-mile radius of the Mahoning Valley. Currently, there is no 100% safe and accepting shelter in the valley, making those LGBTQIA+ individuals either living on the streets or in shelters that do not support them.

Pony Express, located at 1903 West 8th Street, is an independently owned and operated packing, shipping, printing, and business services center. Owners Dave and Terry Grab purchased the business in 2001. Dave worked alongside the previous owner for several months before the purchase, so they were ready to go on day 1. The professional staff is ready to assist you with all your shipping needs and provide a variety of other services. Harley (pictured) can often be found on the countertop waiting to greet customers.