But what struck me even more about this article is how it shows how committed Edie is to continuing to learn and grow.  It ends with this exchange:

“Did you participate in the Dyke March the day before gay pride?”

“Well, I loved it, I thought it was great.  I sang with them.  Some went topless.  I used to wish they would put on clothes.  I was once saying something about disliking some of the extreme stuff to a straight friend, and she said, ‘Edie, somebody has to keep pushing the envelope.’  I said: ‘I think you’re right.  I apologize for everything I thought.”

You can read the whole interview at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/05/magazine/edith-windsor-takes-back-what-she-said-about-topless-gay-activists.html?ref=magazine&_r=0

The panel, presented at the March American Society on Aging conference in Chicago, featured Robin Dessel, director of memory and vision care services and sexual rights educator at The Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale; Mark Brennan-Ing, Ph.D., a senior researcher with AIDS Community Research Initiative of America; and Hilary Meyer, director of the National Resource Center on LGBT Aging.

Brennan-Ing reported on a Chicago study of older LGBT adults with HIV.  Two-thirds said they had sex two or three times monthly, but 41% indicated that they avoided sexual activity, “either because of lack of interest or physical problems (e.g., erectile dysfunction).” Dessel spoke to the issues of figuring out consensual sexuality in a population with Alzheimer’s Disease, and Meyer addressed more statistics about aging sexuality.  The full article is available at http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/Workshop-on-aging-covers-LGBT-sexual-expression-and-long-term-care/42434.html

Three years ago Kee Holt, center services manager at Resource Center Dallas, called all the nursing facilities in town to ask about LGBT residents.  “I was told, ‘We don’t have that here.’ I was hung up on a few times.  I was told, ‘They’ve grown out of that by now.’ I was really disheartened to find that people just didn’t think it existed in those places.”

On the other hand, Ann Walls and her partner Gienna Smith moved into an independent living facility together.  “They knew what the situation was, but nobody talked about it,” she said.  “We didn’t tell them.  We chose to be discreet.”  But after Smith died, Walls said, “I stayed there another year and those ladies really stepped up and were there for me.  It was like living with a built-in support group.”

The full article is available at http://www.dallasnews.com/business/health-care/20130215-lgbt-seniors-carry-additional-worries-when-seeking-care-facilities.ece

Established in 2011, the White House Champions of Change Program regularly spotlights ordinary citizens who are doing extraordinary things for their community, their coutnry, and their fellow citizens.  In that tradition, the White House says, “we will honor as Harvey Milk Champions of Change a small group of LGBT and local elected and appointed officials who have demontrated a strong commitment to both equality and public service.”  They are especially looking for “unsung heroes” — individuals whose contributions have gone unrecognized.

The nominations are due before Friday, April 19, 2013.  The nomination form is at http://www.whitehouse.gov/champions/nominate.  More information on this effort is available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/04/08/announcing-harvey-milk-champions-change.

Before You Know It

The American Prospect reviewed the film’s debut at the SXSW festival (see http://prospect.org/article/you-know-it-change-happens) and concluded:

“The film serves as a particular tribute to a generation of gay men who grew up in post-World War II America, when the traditional nuclear family was at its height — and who then, as the sexual revolution reached its peak, were confronted with HIV/AIDS.  At one point, Ty holds up a picture of his group 30 years prior.  He points to each one who’s since died.  Robert’s nephew, who’s also gay, describes his family’s horrified response to his uncle’s sexuality, while others at the bar [LaFitte's] talk about having had no one except their friends at LaFitte’s.  The stories, just a few decades old, lend a new profundity to the current moment for gay rights.  We see Ty celebrate marriage equality in New York.  Dennis participates in his first Pride parade, dressed as Dee.  Robert feels too ill to join in the Mardi Gras celebrations his performers put on.  But from his porch, he can see them in the parade — a notable move forward that he helped to create.”

Details on the film are available at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2473762/; reviews and commentary by the producer are available at https://www.facebook.com/beforeyouknowitfilm

“I actually see people’s faces change,” says a front desk staffer.  “They come in looking like they’re carrying the weight of the world, but are soon smiling when they see all of the people.”  “For many LGBT older adults,” the article at Chelsea Now continues, “a beautiful center specifically for them to gather, dine and learn in may have been hard to imagine.  The SAGE Center represents a movement to acknowledge and respect the lives of LGBT seniors.  For the guests, this is just as imporant as the nutritional content of their meals.”

You can read more at http://chelseanow.com/2013/03/beyond-the-balsamic-bbq-chicken-sage-center-dinners-offer-camaraderie/

Read this new manual:  “Inclusive Qustions for Older Adults: A Practical Guide to Collecting Data on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.”  This new publication from the National Resource on LGBT Aging is available at http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/resources/pdfs/InclusiveQuestionsOlder%20Adults_Guidebook.pdf

This comprehensive but readable and attractive guide covers:

• Unique needs of LGBT older people
• Why data collection is important
• Addressing common questions and misconceptions
• Suggested questions on sexual orientation and gender identity
• Confidentiality
• Helpful suggestions for staff
• Cultural competency training
• Glossary

Here are a couple of quotes about why asking these questions is important:

“[W]hile self-disclosing one’s sexual orientation and gender identity can be a risk, it has also been shown to lead to positive mental and physical health outcomes amongst other signs of resilience.”

“An important principle of person-centered care is that the more providers know about their individual clients, the better service they will be able to provide.”

Their life partnership ended on the same day the U.S. Supreme Court was debating gay marriage, when Thusius died in a Plainwell nursing home at the age of 85.  In between, they loved, taught in the same school district, lived together…and entered places separately.  “One of us would go in and the other would stand behind the door for a minute and then walk in,” Reichard recalled.

They also evolved.  For much of his life, Thusius struggled with his sexual orientation.  Yet on Reichard’s most recent birthday, Thusius gave him a very special gift: a wedding ring.

You can read more at http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/03/julie_mack_love_story_of_two_r.html

Those interviewed include a lesbian couple who has been together 63 years and at least four other people in their 80s.  The topics they cover include coming out to parents and family members, feeling like “I’m the only one,” Stonewall, caretaking for a dying ex-partner, and how hard it is to come out when you’ve lived “two lives” all your life, complete with different names for each.  It’s well worth a watch.

“Alice and many of her gay friends still live with reflexive fear in their bones,” the author notes.  Alice, who was a teacher, didn’t live with her partner for the first 30 of their 36 years together for fear that would “out” the teacher.  She and her partner have still not come out to their physicians.

They did recently try coming out to a young worker at a senior center, but in a true display of the generation gap, the worker responded, “So what?”  “It really struck me that this lady has no clue as to what might happen to us,” Alice said.

“While the young person may have intended the comment as a show of support, Alice is convinced that she and her partner would not fare well in a traditional support group full of straight couples dealing with Alzheimer’s.  She’s heard of discrimination in assisted living centers and nursing homes.  While many young people might be supportive of gay couples, seniors worry that their own peers might not welcome them.”

The long article also discuss a new service, GLBT SUSTAIN, which has been funded by The Colorado Trust to provide support to GLBT elders who are aging in place in Capitol Hill, an area that has one of Colorado’s largest LGBT populations.  It also mentions SAGE of the Rockies and several social groups for older LGBT Coloradoans.