Executive Summary

What a great turnout we had for a public discussion forum with Mayor Debra McCartt tonight. I'm not completely certain what all the Mayor and City Commissioners can or will do to help the GLBT community, but we are certainly lucky to have someone in office who at least recognizes that we are a vital and respectable part of the city. The Mayor sets the tone for the city and I think Mayor McCartt has done a great job to include everyone into the fabric of Amarillo.

As it was discussed tonight, the very fact that we have a Mayor with enough courage to attend our events, kickoff our PRIDEfest, join us in activities sets the tone for others in the city to begin to recognize that we are here and we're worth paying attention to. I know that policy is very important, but reality is that no amount of equality legislation or policy will matter if your neighbor, co-worker, or peer beats you up in the ally.

Thank you Debra McCartt for demonstrating how a real Christian and politician should behave. We are so proud of you!!! And we want to make you proud of us.

It was a special treat for our group at OUTstanding to be host to several parents and special guests on the evening of April 8th for a Parent Appreciation Reception. I'd like to extend special thanks to:

-David & Kathryn who set up such a nice spread of snacks and drinks, that helped to make everyone comfortable among their new friends.
-Shannon Kuster and Karla from the Amarillo Police Department spoke to the youth and parents about proper procedures for harassment on school property and other concerns.
-Elaine Vivens from Campfire USA sat in on the discussion, recognizing that many of the youth in their programs suffer from the isolation and depression imposed by questioning their orientation or gender identity and having no one to turn to.
-Barbara Whitton from St. Andrews Episcopal Church spoke briefly in hopes to encourage parents to find the place in their heart to love and support their children while struggling with their religious beliefs about homosexuality.
-Paul Brown, life coach was also listening in and has decided to offer his services to parents for free on behalf of OUTstanding.

It was an especially great experience for me because it was my mother's birthday. She drove all the way in from Shamrock Texas to attend the event and had lots of nice things to say. I'm glad everyone got to meet my mom, she's the greatest.

Parents of lgbt children young and old shared their stories of fear, faith, coming out for their kids and for themselves. There were parents of kids from schools all over Amarillo, Canyon, and Bushland (yes there are queers there too). Many of the parents seemed concerned about similar issues. Most of them asked what they could do to help make a difference. I hope some of them will consider attending PFLAG on the first Tuesdays of each month and together they can decide how they can make a difference.