Village Within a Village

Back around 2020 or so, some of us saw the need for an LGBTQ+ group in Pasadena Village.  We searched for a name and came up with “Village People,” the group that made the song YMCA famous.  A few tweaks to the lyrics - old man, not young man, and you’ll have fun at Pasadena Village, not YMCA - and we were good to go.

That’s right, the great song of 1978 is the title of the thriving Pasadena Village LGBTQ+ group.  As Wayne April, one of the organizers said, “Having affinity groups within an organization means that it's a safe place to be yourself. The Village People feel safe and welcome in the Pasadena Village, which is no small thing.”

As we are all aware, the unique life journey of someone from the LGBTQ+ community is fraught with discrimination, misunderstanding, marginalization and worse.  Being an elder in that community has its own challenges layered on top of all the rest faced as we age.

In a joint email, Villagers Katherine Gabel and Eunice Shatz said, “As you know, we ‘Village People’ are a small group, and we decided that in the Village there must be others who share our experiences. Gay women and men have existed ‘forever’ but for some time have felt it necessary to be ‘hidden.’ This was common during most of the years we were growing up.  We are delighted that LGBT persons are now free to be recognized and fairly common in larger society, albeit not entirely.”

Eunice added, “Having felt it necessary to be hidden has been difficult for many of us, but our society has learned much and having met one another incidentally, we assumed that there are others in the Village who have had similar experiences and ‘come of age.’ It has always felt uncomfortable to ‘come out’ under these circumstances; however, we believe that since we have met one another and been comfortable among ‘allies,’ more of us may welcome the freedom to be who we are and share experiences we have had, some negative, and some hilarious. Some of us have been married…some have children and some don’t. Many of us feel comfortable to be who we are, to share our commonalities and our differences. The days of ‘hiding’ or being ashamed are over for the most part. Still, prejudices or feelings of discomfort die hard.”

Katherine and Eunice are charter members of Pasadena Village. They have the perspective of women who have seen the Village grow from an idea to a thriving community. It has always been the goal of Pasadena Village to be diverse and inclusive.  It is a testament to our efforts to know this group has formed with a strong sense of belonging and finding a deeper sense of community. Our Village has also had important visibility in various Pride Festivals and events. Diversity and inclusion is at the core of Pasadena Village and the Village Movement itself.

Two dear friends of mine, Lawrence Yu and Patrick Oliva, recently joined the Village. Lawrence expressed his thoughts, “We have enjoyed so much being members of the Pasadena Village with its huge variety of interests and projects. But more importantly, the members of the Village have been so warm and welcoming and made us feel a deeper connection and participation with our senior community! Patrick and I wanted to show our continued support of our local senior LGBTQ+ community by also joining the Village People.  We are grateful to the organizers and members of this group for supporting all of us who have been around a while! The Village People offers us comfort, support, joy, and a chance to share life experiences within the larger loving embrace of the Pasadena Village.”

Jeff Gutstadt, Wayne April’s partner, said, “I am glad that the Village has the LGBT group. It is a fun group of people. We enjoy getting together and supporting each other. I am glad that the Village has supported LGBT people. The group is important in terms of my personal morale and development.”

Bruce Christensen, who has hosted numerous Village People gatherings in his home, works with Wayne in keeping this group closely engaged, offering support and making sure gatherings are interesting and fun. Well-known for all his volunteer work with Villagers, especially with IT issues, Bruce stated, “I came to the Pasadena Village to find community.  I don’t have a lot of family that I am close with or live near Pasadena.  I find the Village somewhere I can have friends from a variety of ages, backgrounds, professions, and interests.  I also appreciate the Village as a place that I can volunteer helping people I actually know. I appreciate that the Village has an LGBT group that lets me socialize with other people with similar ‘sexual minority’ life experiences.”

From time to time, you will see that the Village People gatherings are open to all of us.  Having attended as many as I could, I can assure you, this is a fun and lively group.  Their generosity of spirit is quite apparent. 

Eunice’s words are spot-on, “We believe that the Village is a place where everyone, despite our  differences or even because of them, are welcome. We are delighted to be a part of growing older, wiser, amazed and continuing to be ever learning and delighted.”