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Sherry Tripepi, executive director of Equality Toledo, said preparations for the opening have been in the works for about six months. “We in the community have been talking about it for years, but as far as actually doing something probably the past six months or so,” Tripepi said. “It’s great. We have the space. It’s a step in the right direction. Hopefully we can have some events on a regular basis to get the community connected with it and using it. There’s so much potential.”
Young, Gay & Proud
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One group that plans to use the space is Young, Gay & Proud, a newly formed peer support group for African-American males ages 1324. The group will hold its first official meeting 6-7:30 p.m. Aug. 26. Christopher Coleman, who founded the group with Kennyetta White, started hosting the group informally in his home a few months ago. “We’ve had four or five kids come already,” Coleman said. “I’m looking forward to moving into this facility and having a safe place for them. It’s very unique. There’s nothing like this in Toledo. It’s something totally new and we’re excited about it. “A lot of it really has to do with that key word support,” Coleman said. “They don’t get a lot of that at home. There are economic issues, school issues, employment issues. Basically [they just need] love. Because lots of times if they come out in the African-
American community and family, they are rejected. Some are kicked out of the house and don’t have a place to go. “Hopefully, with this first meeting we can target how to help some of these individuals get the things they need.”
TAP Center
The idea has been tried at least once before in Toledo. Recollections on dates differ, but in the late 1990s or early 2000s, a group of local activists, including Ed Hoffman and his late partner Dick Flock, launched the Toledo Area Pride (TAP) Community Center, in an Old West End building owned by Hoffman. The organization lasted for about five years, he said. “The idea was to unite the LGBT community and all the various facets of it,” Hoffman said. “It never really got off the ground. It was frustrating and disappointing. There was a need there and a group of people who put a lot of time and effort into it, but it wasn’t enough.” However, Hoffman — one of the founders of the Collingwood Arts Center — said he thinks the current effort has potential. “Organizations seem to be working together more than they were in the past and that’s a very important step in the right direction,” Hoffman said. “The younger community is more apt to work together as one. I see that happening. “It’s a different time we’re in right now. I’m happy with what they are doing. I think we definitely need it.” O