Community Compass
Community Compass is a service of OITM. GLBT organizations from around the state are invited to provide brief — 200 words or less — descriptions of recent or upcoming activities and events. Send your submissions to us by email by the 15th of the month.
House
of Lemay Takes a Road Trip
It's that time of year again, and the House of LeMay is ready for their
37th annual Leaf Peepin'‚ Cider Sippin' Revue! And this year, they're
taking it on the road!
This drag/music/comedy extravaganza,
featuring the five-piece band The Decoys, kicks off Saturday, September
30 on the campus of Middlebury College. Proctor Hall is the site for the
two shows at 7:30 and 10pm. Tickets are available at the door and are
$3 for Middlebury students and staff and $5 for the general public. This
event is sponsored by the Middlebury Open Queer Alliance (MOQA). For more
information, contact moqa@middlebury.edu.
On Saturday, October 14, the House
of LeMay steers their bus to Barre and the Socialist Labor Party Hall
at 46 Granite Street. The show starts at 8 pm and tickets are $10. Check
out their Web page at www. houseoflemay.com.
And the tour winds down in Burlington
on Sunday, November 5 for two shows, at 2 and 6 pm at the St. John's Club,
9 Central Avenue. Tickets are $10 for the first show and $20 for the second
show, which includes a spaghetti dinner.
To make reservations, click on the
Web page or contact houseoflemay@hotmail.com.
Coming
Out Day is Wednesday, October 11
"Talk About It" will be the theme of this year's National Coming
Out Day on October 11, announced the Human Rights Campaign.
A 2005 poll showed startlingly low
numbers of people who are out to their neighbors, bosses and medical providers,
HRC reported.
"By being open with the people
around us, we begin to change minds and open the hearts of our family,
friends, coworkers, neighbors, or even the local mailman," said Human
Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. "When you 'Talk About It'
with the people in your life, you begin to change minds one at a time,
and that's the most lasting kind of change."
HRC is now offering its free Coming
Out Action Kits, posters, balloons and stickers. Contact www.hrc.org for
more information.
National Coming Out Day at Bennington Four Corners
Bennington Pride Coalition seeks GLBTIQQA friends, along with their non-GLBT
allies, to stand visibly on downtown Bennington Four Corners between 4
and 6pm on October 11 to celebrate National Coming Out Day.
Our goal is for visible unity with
our non-GLBT community as we try to raise awareness and diminish homophobia
on this very special day. Won't you join us? Even for just 30 minutes?
Please consider committing to 1 of the 4 half-hour blocks of time between
4pm and 6pm, then RSVP bennpride@gmail.com by October 4, so we can be
prepared with signs.
See about sign-making potluck on
October 6. See our Web site at www.benningtonpride.org.
Pride Vermont: Informational Meeting Oct 17
Come learn how to get involved in the planning of Vermont's 25th annual
Pride celebration! Good company, free pizza, and lots of opportunities
to get involved!
Tuesday, October 17 at 7 pm, at R.U.1.2?
Community Center at 34 Elmwood Avenue in Burlington.
For more information, contact Chelsea@pridevermont.org.
Ninth Annual Key4Women Forum
The forum on Thursday, October 12, will be held at the Sheraton in Burlington
and features Lynn Donohue, founder of Argus Construction and author of
"Brick by Brick: a Woman's Journey," winner of a best autobiography
award.
Fee of $25 includes breakfast. FMI
please see www.key.com/womensforum.
Healing Laughter
Please join us at the Coaching Center of Vermont, at the Champlain Mill
in Burlington, for the 4th Annual Healing Laughter benefit - a night of
queer comedy and music to benefit the R.U.1.2? Queer Community Center.
The event will take place on Saturday,
October 21 at 6pm. Tickets are a suggested donation of $15 and can be
reserved at R.U.1.2? Come and enjoy special performances by Josie Leavitt,
Martha Tormey and Marie Claire. The evening will also include a silent
auction, hors d'oeuvres, refreshments and mingling. Please join us and
help support your community center. For more information, please contact
Eliza Heppner at eliza@ru12.org or call 802.860.7812. We hope to see you
there!.
Queer Social Space to Meet
Queer Social Space will meet at 7:30 pm on Thursday, October 19, at Donny's
Pizza in Winooski. We will be drafting a formal mission statement with
the help of an outside mediator.
Anyone interested or needing directions
should contact qssvermont@gmail.com, or call 655 4749.
Sexual
Orientation and the Law
Vermont Law School is hosting a conference on International LGBT Rights
at the Chase Center in South Royalton on Friday, October 20 from 8:30
am to 4 pm.
The Keynote Speaker will be Paula
Ettelbrick, executive director of the International Gay and Lesbian Human
Rights Commission.
The conference is free and open to the public.
Breakfast and lunch will be served. FMI please contact Alison Share at
ashare@vermontlaw.edu.
Transcending Boundaries Conference
The Northeast Regional GLBTIQ Conference 2006, together with the Transcending
Boundaries Conference, will be held at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass.,
the weekend of October 27-29. The Transcending Boundaries Conference is
for bisexual/pansexual, trans/genderqueer, and intersex people and their
gay, lesbian and straight allies. Workshops, speakers, a youth panel and
Halloween party are included. Contact Colleen Harrington, TB Chair, at
transcendingboundaries@gmail.com; Bobbie, PFLAG NE Regional Director at
603-352-6854 or email bbarry29@ne.rr.com; or check out the Web site at
www.transcendingboundaries.org.
New CDC HIV/AIDS Hotline
The CDC HIV/AIDS Hotline (800-342-2437) is now part of CDC-INFO (800-CDC-INFO
or 800-232-4636), the new one source for public health information from
CDC.
This new service provides English,
Spanish and TTY services (1-888-232-6348 TTY), 24 hours a day, seven days
a week. The email address is cdcinfo@cdc.gov.
Second Annual Intersex Awareness Day
On Thursday, October 26, organizers of Intersex Awareness Day plan to
bring greater awareness about the struggles of intersex individuals.
The Web site at www.intersex-awareness-day.org
states: "Intersex Awareness Day is the (inter)national day of grassroots
action to end shame, secrecy and unwanted genital cosmetic surgeries on
intersex children. We intend to create a "day of action" similar
to Take Back the Night, National Coming Out Day, or International Women's
Day in that it will focus on grassroots activism organized by local activists."
FMI, please see Web sites at Bodies
Like Ours, Intersex Initiative, and Intersex Society of North America.
Rose
Street Gallery
Come check out the happenings at the gallery on Rose Street in Burlington:
October 6: Birth, immortality and
remembrance. Several pieces that blend form and texture by Leslie Baker
and Winnie Looby. Opening reception: October 6, from 5 to 8 pm. Gallery
hours: Fridays 5-8 pm, Saturdays 12-4 or by appointment (734-0772). Thru
October.
October 14: Black Widow Belly Dance
and Friends present "Nocturnal Rituals" - an evening of Gothic
Entertainment. The show starts at 7:30 and admission is $7. FMI call 863-3005.!
October 21: Rose Street Coffee House.
Check out the sounds of the Steph Pappas Experience, Steve Cheever, Sly
Dog, Nato, Joe Cannizzaro and more! Coffee, sweets and music - what more
do you need? The show starts at 6 pm. Donations accepted!
October 29. A night of comedy with
Jason Lorber. More details to follow!
Also this fall there is Sattva Yoga
with Lori Flammer. Universal flow, Resorative Yoga and Kirtan-Bhakti Yoga.
Call 802-324-7137 for more info or go to www.sattvayoga.net.
Facing the Media Crisis
Media Education for Reform, Justice and Democracy Summit, sponsored by
Acme Coalition for Media Education and Champlain College, will be held
the weekend of October 6-8, at the Wyndham Hotel in Burlington. FMI see
www.acmecoalition.org.
Renewable Energy Vermont Conference
The 9th Annual Renewable Energy conference, "Getting Past the Peak,"
will be held at Burlington's Wyndham Hotel on Thursday, October 19. Included
will be a debate between Gov. Jim Douglas and Democratic contender Scudder
Parker.
Registration is $95 for REV members
and $135 for nonmembers and is available at www.REVermont.org.
Kopkind's Height of Color Weekend
The 9th annual Harvest movie and late brunch is coming up!
On Saturday, October 7, at 4 pm,
at the Latchis Theater, 50 Main Street in Brattleboro, we'll see the cult
film classic Grey Gardens, followed by a discussion with one of the filmmakers,
Muffie Meyer. Prior to the film will be an art exhibit of Pacifico Palumbo's
recent oil paintings based on the movie. Tickets are $10 each.
On Sunday, October 8, at 2pm, in the
Organ Barn at Tree Frog Farm in Guilford, we'll have tapas and talk. Our
late brunch of luscious snacks will be followed by Boston Phoenix cultural
critic Michael Bronski, speaking on "The World Turned Upside Down:
The Politics of Joy." Tickets for the brunch are $25 per adult and
$10 per child. Contact john@afterstonewall.com or call 802-254-4859.
Register
to Vote! Then Vote!!
This election is an important election for our community, Robyn Maguire
of the Vermont Freedom to Marry Task Force reminds us. Two important bills
are in the Statehouse that specifically focus on the civil rights and
protections of GLBT Vermonters: the Gender ID and Marriage Equality bills.
Those who are elected to office on
November 7 will make decisions on whether or not to enact these bills
that would recognize GLBT Vermonters as fully equal. Now is an opportunity
for you to vote for candidates and incumbents who support issues that
are important to you, your family and our community. If you haven't registered
to vote, please do today. The deadline to register in Vermont for the
general election on November 7 is Monday, October 30.
It's easy. Here are the steps:
1. Fill out the "Application
for Addition to Checklist" form at www.vermont-elections.org.
2. If you HAVE NOT voted in Vermont
before, be sure to take the voter's oath in front of a notary, and have
the notary sign the form. Once it is completed, you must submit the form
to the town or city clerk in the town or city in which you reside..
3. If you have voted in Vermont before,
simply submit the form to the town or city clerk in the town or city in
which you reside. VOTE on Tuesday, November 7.
For more information about the Vermont
Freedom to Marry Task Force, go to www.vtfreetomarry.org.
New
Grant for Lesbian Media Artists Established
A new prize has been created to honor Tee A. Corinne, an artist with bold
vision and a fierce dedication to encouraging and preserving lesbian art.
The Tee A. Corinne Prize for Lesbian Media Artists, established by Moonforce
Media, will award unrestricted grants of up to $1,000 annually. JEB (Joan
E. Biren) will choose the inaugural prizewinner. Application guidelines
are online at www.jebmedia.com. Applications are due by November 1, 2006.
The prize is for artists working in
photography, film, video, digital media, new media, or any fusions of
these forms and in any genre, including documentary, narrative, experimental,
or any other styles or combination of genres. The work may be about any
subject.
Lesbian media artists are usually
excluded from funding opportunities because the form and/or content of
their work lie outside the bounds of traditional grants. This prize furthers
Tee's wish that individual lesbian artists be financially supported to
work independently and without censorship.
If you wish to add your financial
support to help ensure the ongoing success of this grant, you can send
a tax-exempt donation to: Moonforce Media, PO Box 13375, Silver Spring,
MD 20911. All checks earmarked for the Tee A. Corinne Prize will go entirely
toward funding the prize.