May 3, 2022
Dear Community,
In April, we celebrated Earth Day with a panel titled Queer Voices: A Panel on Intersectionality and the Environment with our friends at the San Mateo County Libraries, and the San Mateo County Office of Sustainability & our special collaborators at Planting Justice. Thank you to Maya Salsedo (she/they) and Jiyeon Choi (they/them) for leading this incredible discussion! For Queer Ecology Resources compiled by the San Mateo County Library and San Mateo County Pride Center, please see this link.
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We also hosted a series of workshops with our friends at the Community Equity Collaborative in partnership with the Silicon Valley Community foundation called the "Rainbow Kids trainings". In these workshops, participants learned age-appropriate techniques for holding discussions about sexual orientation and gender. For resources shared during this workshop, please see this link.
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We are also excited to welcome Andrea Roth (she/her) to the team as our new
Mental Health Clinician! Scroll down to read more about Andrea.
We are also counting down the days to Pride Month where we will be celebrating two large milestones:
- The 10th Anniversary of San Mateo County Pride Celebration!
- The 5th Anniversary of the San Mateo County Pride Center!
Keep scrolling for more information about these important celebrations!
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month, Older Americans Month and Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
We extend gratitude to our friends at the City of San Carlos for compiling this amazing list of mental health resources throughout San Mateo County: cityofsancarlos.org/mentalhealth.
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Important information about PFS/ Pride Center Programming
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Unfortunately, several older adult services at the Pride Center have been paused. The Older Adult Coordinator is no longer with our partner agency Peninsula Family Service(PFS). They are now recruiting to fill this role. Both PFS and the Pride Center deeply apologize for the disruption in programs and services to our beloved LGBTQ Older Adult Community. We hope to resume these services as soon as possible.
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Weekly ongoing programs:
Fit Fusion - Mondays & Wednesdays- Paused
Chair Yoga - Tuesdays & Thursdays- Paused
Tai Chi – Fridays- Paused
Drop-in office hours - CANCELLED
Monthly programs: Will continue; For any questions or concerns, contact Devon Dye (he/him) at Devon.Dye@sanmateopride.org & for information about Get App-y, please contact analopez@peninsulafamilyservice.org
The following groups will continue:
Gay Men's Peer Support Group (18 )/ 4th Tuesday
LGBTQ Book Club (18 )/ 1st Wednesday
Polyamory Peer Power Group (18 )/ 1st Wednesday
Get App-y Hour/ Monthly on the 3rd Monday
Special Programs - CANCELLED
Park and Picnic outing for May Mental Health Awareness month
If you have questions about any of the programs or services, please contact Frankie (he/him) at Francisco.sapp@sanmateopride.org.
Please save the date for a celebration of Ellyn Bloomfield and her accomplishments on Friday, May 20 from 6-8 PM. More details to come!
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The Pride Center wants to honor the incredible contributions made by
former LGBTQ Older Adult Program Coordinator Ellyn Bloomfield.
Please SAVE THE DATE for Friday, May 20, from 6 pm - 8pm,
when we will gather with community to recognize the incredible legacy Ellyn leaves behind.
More details to be shared soon. Please contact Frankie (he/him) at
Francisco.Sapp@sanmateopride.org if you have questions.
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| Andrea Roth (she/her), AMFT, is our new associate mental health clinician who is excited to join the San Mateo County Pride Center! She has experience working with complex intersectional backgrounds and ethnic-, sexual-, and neuro-diversity. Andrea is passionate about inclusive care and is ready to assist and collaborate with new clients in tailoring therapy to suit their specific needs. She works from a variety of therapeutic approaches ranging from attachment-based and systemic to solution-focused and cognitive-behavioral.
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| San Mateo County Pride 2022- Ten Years of Queer in San Mateo County
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San Mateo County's 10th Annual Pride Celebration is a space to champion inclusion and wellness for LGBTQIA folks and allies in SMC.
This year's Pride Celebration (in-person) will be on Saturday, June 11th at San Mateo Central Park from 11am-5pm. We will have live entertainment, live DJ, resource and vendor booths, family friendly and more. This is a sober-space and attendance is FREE.
Come celebrate our community's effort to build a connected, supportive and well
San Mateo County for all!
For more information about the celebration, opportunities for sponsorship, donation and more, please see the button below.
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The Pride Center needs YOU!
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Are you interested in learning about event planning? Would you love an opportunity to be more involved in your community?
Then the Pride Center's Community Advisory Board (CAB) Planning Committee is for you! Join the CAB Planning Committee as we work on special projects, like the Pride Center's 5 Year Anniversary Celebration! CAB currently meets on the second Wednesday of every month from 6-8pm and works side by side with the Pride Center to support AND create community events Be the voice in your community and join us in making the Pride Center's events as unique as you!
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| | Performer call out for the Pride Center's 5-year celebration
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We will be hosting a digital celebration for the Pride Center's 5 year anniversary on Thursday, June 30th!
We are seeking performers to be present during this milestone celebration! If you are interested in participating, please see this link for more information: tinyurl.com/SMCPC-5yearperformercallout.
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For the latest updates follow us on social media:
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PENINSULA FAMILY SERVICE UPDATES
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Please see update about PFS programming at the beginning of the newsletter for more information.
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LGBTQIA Youth group (10-18)
Weekly on Mondays from 4:30-6:00 PM.
If you're interested in joining the group, please contact outletprogram@acs-teens.org or 650-424-0852 ext. 107 for more information.
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QTBIPOC Group (14-25)
A weekly group that takes place Tuesdays from
6-7:30PM
If you're interested in joining the group,please fill out intake form here:
https://tinyurl.com/outletintakeform or
call 650-424-0852 ext. 107 for more information.
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| | The Pride Center and Stanford LGBTQ Health Program co-host Trans Talks, a free, monthly workshop series that centers the health and wellness of our Transgender and Non-Binary community members. All are welcome to attend. Community members are invited to ask questions on their health and wellness. Every month, a different professional from Stanford's LGBTQ Health Program will share information, lead a discussion and answer your questions. This is a free workshop open to all community members.
Please stay tuned for information regarding a workshop in May.
To access recordings of previous Trans Talks, please use this link: tinyurl.com/transtalks-recordings
Please note: all recordings utilize closed captioning.
If you have questions, need support or would like to suggest a topic please contact neilwary@stanford.edu
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The Pride Center Clinical Team has CURRENT THERAPY AVAILABILITY.
We are ACCEPTING NEW CLIENTS via both PRIVATE PAY and MEDI-CAL*.
(Services are currently provided via telehealth)
Services are available to everyone and
priority is given to LGBTQ community members based in San Mateo County.
Our clinical team looks forward to hearing how we can support you on your journey!
You can:
Fill out our online Service Request Form at sanmateopride.org/mental-health-services
Email: clinical@sanmateopride.org
Call: (650) 591-0133 ext. 146
*San Mateo County Medi-Cal members:
Call ACCESS Call Center: (800) 686-0101: TDD: (800) 943-2833
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Upcoming dates for this workshop are May 25, June 29 & July 27.
This is a free workshop, registration is required! Please see button below to RSVP.
Please reach out to Alex (he/him) at Alex.Golding@sanmatepride.org or 650-465-6795 for support.
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Just a reminder: we offer some financial aide for the legal process and free gender affirming supplies. For more information about this, please see this link: bit.ly/ngc-aid-request
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All groups have moved to Zoom video. Please contact Devon (He/Him) at Devon.Dye@sanmateopride.org to access links for our peer support groups.
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Peer support group is for LGBTQ folks age 18 who are parents of kid(s) 0-5 years old to support each other, share parenting wisdom, and build community. This group is open to anyone who is a parent or caregiver of young children, with all family formations and ways of being or becoming a parent welcome!
This group will meet twice a month from 7-8:30PM PST on the first and third Tuesdays,
May's dates are: 5/3 & 5/17
This group is currently meeting via Zoom. Pre-registration is required; please register in advance at: tinyurl.com/smcpc-parentsgroup
If you’re interested in joining this group but the above times don’t work for you, please contact Devon Dye (He/Him) at Devon.Dye@sanmateopride.org
**THIS GROUP IS CURRENTLY LOOKING FOR A SECOND FACILITATOR! IF YOU THINK YOU ARE A GOOD FIT, PLEASE CONTACT DEVON.DYE@SANMATEOPRIDE.ORG**
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| | | May's topic: May the 4th be with you and you and you!
May 4 7-8:30 PM PST
Have you ever wanted to put some of your favorite science fiction characters together? What would make a relationship between Luke, Han and Leia work? Poe, Rey and Finn? What about Dr. Phlox and the entire Denobulan race? Who would you put together? Come join a discussion about how polyamory might or does work in cultures beyond earth and what we could learn from them.
Find out more on Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/Polyamory-Peer-Power/events/mptcqsydccbhb/
Register in advance for this meeting:
https://tinyurl.com/smcpc-polyampower
This group meets monthly on the first Wednesday from 7-8:30 PM PST.
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| Upcoming dates are: June 1 & July 6
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The Trans Peer Support Group (18 ) meets monthly on the first Monday from 6-7:30PM. This is a free group & registration is required: tinyurl.com/smcpc-transgroup1
Upcoming dates are: 6/6, 8/1
Please stay tuned for July's meeting date
* As a gentle reminder, we have clinical support available to community members who feel like they would benefit from more support than this social group has available. We will work with you to ensure that these services are accessible.
We also have free gender affirming supplies available. To access these supplies, please contact Alex.Golding@sanmateopride.org or Francisco.Sapp@sanmateopride.org.
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| | | Queer Women’s Group (18 )
Join the Queer Women’s Group’s next meeting on Friday, May 27th from 6-7:30pm! This group is a place where all women identifying folks 18 are welcome. Come to meet new people and build community together!
This group meets monthly on the 4th Friday. Upcoming meeting dates are 6/24, 7/22 & 8/26
Pre-registration is required. Register for your unique Zoom access link here: tinyurl.com/smcpc-queerwomxn
For questions or support, please contact Devon Dye (He/Him) at Devon.Dye@sanmateopride.org
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| LGBTQ Book Club (18 ) from 4:30-6:00 PM
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The book club is a partnership with the San Mateo County Public Library System, Peninsula Family Service and San Mateo County Pride Center. It’s open to all members of the community, including allies and friends.The book club is a partnership with the San Mateo County Public Library System and San Mateo County Pride Center. It’s open to all members of the community, including allies and friends.
Community members who are invited to attend even if they haven't read the book. Come participate in the discussion!
Please consider utilizing the SMCL to access an e-book, hard copy or audiobook of the books.
Registration is required: tinyurl.com/smcpc-bookclub (upcoming books listed here)
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| Wednesday, May 4 from 4:30- 6:00 PM
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters' storylines intersect?
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| Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family
story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing.
Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.
June's book is: Making My Pitch: A Woman's Baseball Odyssey by Ila Jane Borders
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As we continue to navigate around COVID-19
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- Just a reminder that the Pride Center is currently not open to the public & is available for clinical services and private events. For more information about scheduling to be onsite at the Pride Center, please contact Francisco.Sapp@sanmateopride.org.
- Just a reminder that you only have to register for each peer support group once! The meeting information you receive will remain the same.
- The Pride Center will be offline on Monday, May 30th in observance of Memorial Day.
- The Pride Center will be offline on Monday, July 4th in observance of the 4th of July.
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Stay safe and take care!
In community,
Marilyn (she/her)
Marketing and Community Engagement Lead
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Do you enjoy/benefit from our programs and services? Are you able to/Would you like to support our essential work? We welcome and appreciate donations of any amount, big or small.
It all matters. Yes, we really mean that.
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The San Mateo County Pride Center is a program of StarVista in collaboration with Outlet of Adolescent Counseling Services, and Peninsula Family Service.
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