|
|
Join us at the Rainbow Supper Club in September
We hope to see you
Wednesday October 4th at 4pm
The Rainbow Supper Club meets the first
Wednesday of each month at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, 90 Holden Street, Worcester, MA. Lunch is served at noon, followed by programs or social time.
October 4th Supper reservations
are due by
Friday September 29th
at 9am!
Reservations
If you wish to attend the Rainbow Lunch please call or email WLEN by 9am the Friday prior: 508-756-1545 ext. 404 or wlen@eswa.org. If no one is available please leave a message including your name and phone number and date you plan to attend.
Is there a cost to participate? We suggest a $2.50 donation from guests age 60 and older. The fee for all guests under age 60 is $5.50. Donations and fees help to defray the agency’s cost.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Rainbow Lunch Club is gathering in person!
Wednesdays
October 11th & 25th at noon
The Rainbow Lunch Club meets the 2nd & 4th Wednesdays of each month at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester, 90 Holden Street, Worcester, MA. Lunch is served at noon, followed by programs or social time.
Reservations
If you wish to attend the Rainbow Lunch please call or email WLEN by 9am the Friday prior: 508-756-1545 ext. 404 or wlen@eswa.org. If no one is available please leave a message including your name and phone number and date you plan to attend.
Is there a cost to participate? We suggest a $2.50 donation from guests age 60 and older. The fee for all guests under age 60 is $5.50. Donations and fees help to defray the agency’s cost.
|
|
Older Americans Act updates targets LGBTQ seniors living with HIV |
|
BALTIMORE – Ahead of Monday’s National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day, the Washington Blade spoke with Aaron Tax, director of federal government relations for SAGE, to discuss what proposed updates to the Older Americans Act might mean for LGBTQ elders and older adults living with HIV.
The conversation followed the conclusion of the public comment period for a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking filed by the Administration for Community Living, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agency that is responsible for administering the statute.
|
|
|
Hormone Therapy Lessened Depression, Lowered Suicide Risk Among Transgender Adults, Study Says |
|
|
|
Access to hormone therapy could result in less depression, lower suicide risk and decreased gender dysphoria for transgender adults, according to a study published Thursday, complementing other studies suggesting similar help for transgender youth, as the issue of “gender-affirming” care continues to be highly politicized.
|
|
Barbara Meehan offers support to LGBTQ+ dementia caregivers |
|
In January 2022, Barbara Meehan of Wareham logged onto Google Meet for the first time to meet with people from all over the country and offer an outlet of support.
Though these individuals were complete strangers at the time, they had more in common than most and would soon become close friends.
This Google Meet group aims to provide support to LGBTQ+ individuals who have found themselves in the role of “caregiver” for a spouse or other relative living with dementia, many with Alzheimer’s.
|
|
Barbara Meehan serves as the creator and facilitator for the LGBTQ+ dementia caregiver support group. Photo by Leighah Beausoleil |
|
Gay Man Living With Dementia Finds Community |
|
John-Richard Pagan was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia in 2016. “As a gay man with dementia, I wanted to find a place that I was accepted, and that’s what my faith community did for me,” he says.
AARP
|
|
John-Richard Pagan, 56, has accomplished a lot. He was in the Navy for two years, he opened a coffee shop and he received his master’s degree in marriage and family therapy in 2012. When he started working on his doctorate the next year, he began to have cognitive difficulties. He was studying, but he was missing processes, he said.
|
|
Targeted: Watch out for scams that target LGBTQ seniors |
|
It’s like something out of a dream: You open the Grindr app, and the first thing you see is a message from that handsome actor on your favorite show. “Hey there,” he writes, somehow still with his 1990s six-pack abs. “Wanna talk, sexy?” He asks to exchange phone numbers. Perhaps you talk on the phone or video chat.
Then he asks you for $4,000. You send it to him.
Some would have seen the warning signs and ended the conversation way before the ask. But sometimes, people are lonely and starved for attention. Perhaps, they think, the $4,000 is a way in.
|
|
|
Census Bureau wants to test asking about sexual orientation and gender identity on community survey |
|
|
|
The U.S. Census Bureau asked the Biden administration Tuesday for permission to test questions about sexual orientation and gender identity for people age 15 and above on its most comprehensive annual survey of life in the country.
The statistical agency wants to test the wording, response categories and placement of gender identity and sexual orientation questions on the questionnaires for the American Community Survey, which collects data from 3.5 million households each year. The ACS covers a wide range of topics, from family life, income, education levels and employment to commuting times, internet access, disabilities and military service.
|
|
They live in the US, but these LGBTQ couples can’t get married. That could soon change |
|
Alray Nelson and his partner Brennen Yonnie are married in all but name.
They’ve been together for 12 years. They’ve raised a child together. They wear wedding rings and refer to each other as husbands. Unlike straight married couples, however, they can’t benefit from each other’s insurance, file taxes jointly or build a house together on tribal land.
Same-sex marriage is banned on the Navajo Nation, the sprawling reservation that spans Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. The two could have married in another jurisdiction and moved somewhere that recognizes the rights of LGBTQ couples. But the reservation is home, and they feel there’s no other place for them to go. So despite a lifelong commitment to each other, they don’t plan to marry until the ban is lifted.
|
|
Courtesy Alray Nelson
Alray Nelson, left, and Brennan Yonnie are in a lifelong partnership but lack the benefits afforded to straight married couples under the Navajo Nation's same-sex marriage ban. A bill under consideration by the tribal legislature could change that.
|
|
A Virtual Community of LGBTQ+ Older Adults
|
|
OutstandingLife's mission is to improve the quality of life of LGBTQ+ older adults by creating opportunities for connectedness through free online programming. We currently serve hundreds of LGBTQ+ seniors through our virtual senior center.
|
|
|
|
Talk and be heard at the SAGE LGBTQ+ Elder Hotline. We connect LGBTQ+ older people who want to talk with friendly responders who are ready to listen. If you are an LGBTQ+ elder or care for one, call the free SAGE Hotline, toll-free, at 877-360-LGBT(5428).
Hotline responders:
- Are certified in crisis response
- Offer support without judgment
- Answer questions factually and confidentially
- Provide information about community support resources such as healthcare, transportation, counseling, legal services, and emotional support programs
The SAGE LGBTQ+ Elder Hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in English and Spanish, with translation in 180 languages.
|
|
This group will meet in person on July 12, 2023 from 6:00pm-7:30pm
at Mt. Wachusett Community College
|
|
Our friends the Rainbow Elders in the Amherst area invite you to visit them
virtually or in person Thursday afternoons on Zoom at 1:00pm
Save the date, RES Summer Picnic is Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (Rain date 7/12)
|
|
and their online and in-person gatherings!
|
|
|
|
RISE is a research study being conducted by Emory University, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. RISE stands for Research Inclusion Supports Equity.
The RISE study includes a research registry created to help ensure the LGBTQIA+ community is represented in Alzheimer’s research.
The registry is for LGBTQIA+ people 18 and older who:
- Have memory concerns or a memory loss diagnosis such as Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia
- Are helping care for someone with memory loss or a memory loss diagnosis
|
|
ESWA-WLEN LGBT+ Resource Guide is now available for download! |
|
Please reach out to us if you would like a hard copy of the guide at WLEN@eswa.org or call 508-756-1545 ext. 404
|
|
Updated 2023 Schedule of Massachusetts LGBTQ+ Lunch, Supper, and Social Clubs for Older Adults! |
|
Calendar brought to you by The LGBTQIA+ Aging Project at The Fenway Institute.
The LGBTQIA+ Aging Project at The Fenway Instituteprovides support and technical assistance to elder service organizations who are interested in developing community programs for older LGBTQ+ adults in their area. To learn more about starting virtual or in person programs in your area please contact us at (857) 313-6578. We also provide technical support for LGBTQ+older adults who need help joining these programs or are interested in starting one in their town.
|
|
|
Our Friends at Springwell (formerly BayPath) have excellent LGBTQ+ resources for you |
|
|
|
If you are in need of resources or socialization during this challenging time, please reach out to our WLEN Peer Workers, Joan and Dot. They are available to chat and break up your day, or assist you in getting the resources you need to stay home and stay safe during the COVID crisis.
To reach us, just email WLEN@eswa.org, or call 508-756-1545; we check our messages regularly, someone will reach out to you soon.
|
|
WLEN– Worcester LGBT Elder Network, is a joint effort of Elder Services of Worcester Area Inc.,
Central Massachusetts Agency on Aging and the Worcester Senior Center.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
