EVERYBODY HAS TO FIND THEIR OWN ADVOCACY, AND JUST LIVING AS YOUR AUTHENTIC SELF CAN BE YOUR ADVOCACY. JO IVESTER, BOARD MEMBER
NONPROFIT
From left: PFLAG Georgetown board members Marty Cormier and Jo Ivester along with Jon Ivester were part of the group that founded the local chapter of the nonprot in June 2022. The organization now holds monthly support group meetings and other events.
CLAIRE SHOOP COMMUNITY IMPACT
PFLAG Georgetown Group fosters support for LGBTQ community T o kick o Pride Month in June 2022, a group of residents gath- ered at Lark & Owl Booksellers you need to be helped?’ And some- times it’s more formal where we will have a speaker,” Jo said. BY CLAIRE SHOOP
WORKING TOWARD A ‘WELCOMING WILLIAMSON’ PFLAG Georgetown has several initiatives that aid its mission of supporting and celebrating the LGBTQ community and their loved ones, including:
ONGOING MEETINGS
PFLAG Georgetown also holds an open-to-members board meeting and an LGBTQ book club at Lark & Owl monthly, hosts a booth at Market Days on the Square, and participates in community events such as the Red Poppy Parade. “Showing up is a large part of what we are about,” PFLAG Georgetown Treasurer Marty Cormier said. “I would say a solid 98% of everyone who asks us who we are and what we are doing then responds with a£rma- tion and appreciation and acceptance.” Moving forward, PFLAG George- town’s members want to create a list of local LGBTQ resources and establish scholarships for students. Addition- ally, the organization aims to create a coalition of LGBTQ groups in George- town to form a Georgetown Pride organization and work toward trans- forming the county into what Cormier called “welcoming Williamson.” Jo said the group’s goal is to continue to increase visibility and acceptance through celebrating the LGBTQ community and those who love them. “Georgetown’s image is not as welcoming even though the people are,” Jo said.
to discuss how they could better support the LGBTQ community. What participants, including Jo and Jon Ivester, expected to be a small gathering ended up being a standing room-only meeting from which PFLAG Georgetown was created. The group worked to obtain membership to the national PFLAG organization—which is celebrating its 50-year anniversary in 2023—and status as a nonprot. The chapter began holding a monthly support group at the George- town Public Library in alignment with the organization’s mission, Jon said. “Everybody’s kind of used to the fact that gay people exist, and it’s OK to have one in your family, to be celebrated even,” Jon said. “But it’s still something where a lot of people do need support and need to know that they’re not alone.” Jo, who is PFLAG Georgetown’s board president, said the monthly support meeting is family friendly and has anywhere from a dozen to 40 attendees during a given month. “The meetings range from totally unstructured where it’s just, ‘How did your week go? … Do you need to be heard? Do you need to be hugged? Do
Monthly support group
LGBTQ book club Presence at Market Days on the Square
Pop-up events, such as coming-out parties
UPCOMING GOALS
• Create a coalition of LGBTQ groups that form a Georgetown Pride organization • Establish scholarships for local students
BECOMING PART OF PFLAG GEORGETOWN
W.8THST.
Support group Third Thursday of the month 7:30 p.m. Georgetown Public Library, 402 W. Eighth St., Georgetown Book club Last Thursday of the month 6 p.m. Lark & Owl Booksellers, 205 W. Sixth St., Ste. 101, Georgetown
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR ST.
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W.9THST.
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PFLAG Georgetown p aggtx@gmail.com www.p aggtx.org
The organization has a booth at Market Days on the Square.
COURTESY PFLAG GEORGETOWN
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GEORGETOWN EDITION • JUNE 2023
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