By Jim Sabasoto
THE RUTLAND HERALD
Rutland County’s LGBTQ+ community is celebrating Pride and everyone’s invited.
June is Pride Month, when people in LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) communities celebrate their freedom, culture and history through events and increased visibility.
In Rutland County, the nonprofit group Social Tinkering — whose mission is to “build thriving communities by empowering connections and growing happiness” — has taken the lead in recent years in planning local Pride festivities.
“We focus on increasing the feeling of belonging in a community and inclusion,” said Jeanette Langston, founder and director. “We feel like when individuals thrive and feel belonging, they feel happier and are then sustainably healthier folks, and so that means their families then can thrive, and then whole communities will thrive.”
Langston said, it was only natural to connect with LGBTQ+ community.
Last year, the group helped to establish Rutland City’s first official Pride celebration, with a handful of small, COVID-friendly events, as well as its “All Are Welcome Here” visibility campaign, which distributed Pride-themed “I Heart Rutland” banners and lawn signs throughout the area.
The banners are back up in downtown Rutland this month, as well as at Killington Resort, said Langston.
She added lawn signs are available again this year at Phoenix Books, Awesome Graphics and the Chamber and Economic Development of the Rutland Region offices.
A new addition this year is the Rainbow Tree Project — a rainbow-colored LED tree on display in the window of Mountain Music on Center Street. Langston said people can write messages of love and support to hang on the tree. At the end of Pride, the messages will be incorporated into a permanent art installation.
“Visibility is really important to just show people that they’re seen, they’re valued, they’re welcomed, and that the community sees them and wants them here. And that can go a long way to help people feel like they are valued, and they belong in a place,” she said.
But it’s not just about visibility.
In January, Social Tinkering created the Rutland+ Collaborative for individuals, organizations or businesses to connect, network and share resources to help build community support for all LGBTQ+ people in the area.
Rutland+ took the reins of Pride this year, planning a free, all-ages event at the Chaffee Art Center from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday. The event will include activities, live music by the acoustic duo the BenAnna Band and a “queer open-mic” hosted by Bianca Zanella.
Organizations such as 4-H, Come Alive Outside, Outright Vermont and Planned Parenthood will also be on hand to provide information and resources.
“It’s going to be lots of fun. Popsicles, lots of bubbles, lots of running around just building community and creating space for people to gather and find each other and meet each other,” said Langston.
More information can be found at socialtinkering.org/pridemonth online.
In addition to Friday’s Pride event in Rutland, Cedar Meadow VT will host its second annual Pride Festival from 2 to 6 p.m. June 25 in Castleton.
The free, family friendly event will feature more than 40 vendors, food trucks and a variety of activities, according to organizer Jacob Patorti.
The festival will conclude with a drag/burlesque show from 8 to 10 p.m. for adults age 21 and over. Tickets are $20.
Visit www.cedarmeadowvt.com for tickets and more information.
Karly Haven, a volunteer organizer in the local LGBTQ+ community for several years, is pleased to see Pride events thriving in the area.
Haven, who is coordinator for Queer Connect Rutland, an offshoot of Queer Connect Bennington, helped organize Pride events last year, including a Pride Car Caravan meet-up in Manchester.
“I know there’s always been gay community and trans community in the Rutland area for many years, but there have never been any really formal events,” she said.
Haven, who grew up in Rutland and attended Rutland High School, said it wasn’t always easy being queer here.
“It hasn’t always been a real welcoming place for queer people,” she said. “I think now that we have the ability to be so visible and celebrated in the community, it’s just amazing.”
She pointed to the regular drag shows at venues in Rutland, West Rutland and Brandon as examples of queer culture being more prevalent and accepted locally.
“Even though Rutland County historically has been a conservative place, I feel that Rutland is a place where you can just be yourself,” she said.
Haven said she hopes Pride will keep growing in future years.
“We are definitely not going anywhere,” she said. “I think that Rutland needs to have these events continue to happen because if we don’t, then people will just be pushed back into the shadows, which they don’t need to be. Queer people need to be celebrated in Rutland County.”
Andrew Richardson, a member of the local LGBTQ+ community, agrees with Haven that the local LGBTQ+ community is building something to last.
Richardson, who serves as secretary on the Social Tinkering board of directors and a core leader of Rutland+, moved to Rutland County from Burlington in 2014 to attend Castleton University. After graduation, he decided to remain here, getting a job in the area.
He admitted that coming from Burlington was a bit of a culture shock, noting the lack of a cohesive, organized queer community here.
“There was no physical place to collectively come together. There weren’t a lot of people who I could visibly tell were a part of the community,” he said.
As part of his work at Rutland+, Richardson said he wants to hear the needs of the community and find ways to bring people together in more organic ways that don’t rely on structured events and activities.
He cited the need to create a physical hub, like Burlington’s Pride Center, where LGBTQ+ people can connect in a safe, welcoming space.
Richardson also produces a podcast, “Crystal Queer QA,” where he invites LGBTQ+ people to share their personal experiences in one-on-one conversations.
He said he has released several episodes this month, featuring conversations with members of the local LGBTQ+ community, including a pastor, a nonbinary person and a transgender teen. Visit socialtinkering.org/crystalqueerpodcast to hear episodes.
For all their efforts, Richardson noted that Rutland+ is still finding its footing and is only getting started.
“We have the energy and the motivation, and the vision to stay in Rutland and to be long-lasting,” he said.
jim.sabataso @rutlandherald.com
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