As the summer season kicks into high
gear this Memorial Day Weekend, it seems an appropriate moment to
remember a time when Rehoboth Beach wasn’t quite the gay-friendly
community it is today. Just a quarter century ago, there weren’t many
openly gay people in Rehoboth, and there was nothing in the way of a
gay-support institution like CAMP Rehoboth. Then, Joyce Felton got to
know Victor Pisapia at the Back Porch, and together they made a bold
move by opening the Blue Moon, giving the town a great new gourmet
restaurant and providing gay people a friendly gathering spot within the
city limits. Despite good crowds, the Moon didn’t have an easy path to
public acceptance in the early days, as misunderstanding folks often
targeted the bar with rocks and eggs hurled from passing vehicles.
Still, Joyce and Victor persevered, and
with each passing year, more gay people came. And more gay-owned and
gay-friendly businesses opened in Rehoboth, encouraging people like John
and myself, then Steve and Murray to come for more than a short stay.
When Steve and Murray began organizing CAMP Rehoboth a dozen years ago,
police-sensitivity training was not a comforting annual ritual but a
real necessity. Gangs of teenagers still routinely picked fights with
gay couples on the Boardwalk, and even many local homeowners were
fearful that the arrival of more gays might somehow negatively affect
their “family” town. The political atmosphere was tense,
particularly for a town with a name that means “room for all.” Not
that everything is perfect in Rehoboth today, but the gay and straight
communities not only get along much better but also frequently work
together toward common causes. Gay residents and visitors have numerous
permanent support institutions, and all of Southern Delaware is better
for the progress made.
Sometimes, watching history repeat can be
fun. I must say I get a sense of déjà vu as I watch John’s and my
favorite little Florida community begin its emergence from the closet.
Similar to the Rehoboth of two decades ago, the gay population of the
pretty little lakeside town of Mount Dora, located a half-hour northwest
of Orlando, is finding its voice. Of course, there have always been gay
folks in Mount Dora, especially given its reputation as an artists’
community (with a nationally known art festival each winter), its quaint
architecture and shops, horse-drawn carriages, and hilly New
England-like appeal. There’s no place like it in the state of Florida,
and John and I were drawn to the town from the moment we first dropped
in for a visit a little over three years ago. Our “gaydar” set on
high, we immediately noticed quite a few gay men and women working the
boutiques and bistros, but as we talked with them, we learned that the
only gay social life was the occasional dinner party at someone’s
house. Most of us commuted to Orlando for fun or affiliation with
institutions that supported the gay community. Then, in February of
2002, two women from the New Jersey suburbs of New York joined the
growing number of gay northerners who were moving to the Mount. Marsha
and Glenna loved the town’s ambiance but were surprised at how few gay
people knew each other. With backgrounds in public relations, graphic
design, travel and event promotion, they immediately set out to bring
the area’s gay community together. They booked a local beer cellar and
bistro, the Frosty Mug, for the town’s first ever public gay party
last July. About a dozen people showed up, not including the unhappy
individuals who tossed a brick through the restaurant’s glass door.
Undaunted, the women set out to recruit more gay people to attend a
sequel event a month later, going business to business, even stopping
people on the street to extend an invitation. (Yes, sometimes gay people
do recruit.)
The August “Tuesday Night Friends”
gathering drew a standing-room crowd of 150 gay men and lesbians (and a
few straight friends), ranging in age from their early 20s to mid 80s.
That success led to a mystery-train party aboard a local historical
steam railroad the next month, and further get-togethers throughout the
fall. The crowd grew with almost every event, and this year Glenna and
Marsha moved the regularly scheduled parties to a larger restaurant, the
Gables. Now, the monthly events are so big—the April one passed the
200 attendance mark—that both the Gables and Frosty Mug are designated
as official sites, and many partiers hop from one venue to the other.
Next up is the Friends’ first dance (with live music), to be held at a
large reception center in June. The group’s first-ever tea dance is
scheduled for a Sunday in September.
About 50 local businesses (many of which
provide substantial door prizes for the parties) now list themselves in
the Friends’ monthly newsletter. The newsletter itself looks a lot
like the first year’s edition of Letters from CAMP Rehoboth, full of
news, a calendar of events, and all those business listings. There is
talk of a more formal gay business association, as well as charity
fundraisers; and news media from the Orlando Sentinel to GayOrlando.com
have profiled the group’s rise. “Each month, we get more people from
Orlando coming to Mount Dora for Friends nights,” Glenna said at one
recent event. “It’s fun to have the city people commuting in our
direction instead of the other way around.”
The women, who are aware of CAMP Rehoboth
and what has happened in Rehoboth Beach, say they have no big goals for
their fledgling group “other than to offer our community a chance to
get together regularly.” But, Glenna notes, when you bring people
together, “new ideas tend to evolve.”
The baby steps are having an impact on
the town, as more businesses and a growing number of art galleries get
involved. There has even been a spin-off men’s night party, and a
group of local women joined together this month for a trip to the
Southern Womyn’s Festival near Atlanta. Before long, I expect to see a
variety of social-support programs and possibly even a Sundance style
auction emanating from the group.
“We thought we’d move down here to
take it easy after the hectic pace of our lives in the New York area,”
Glenna says, “but this is on the verge of becoming a full-time job.”
That sounds like something Steve Elkins might have said a dozen years
ago, as his and Murray’s idea for a community organization for
Rehoboth was rapidly growing into a more than full-time commitment.
Visit the website Tuesdaynightfriends.com.
for additional information.
Oh, yes, and Victor Pisapia, who moved to
Australia a few years back with his partner Jim Barr (who was the first
editor of Letters from CAMP Rehoboth), is now leading international
Gourmet Safaris, the next being planned for Greece this fall. All of us
still like to keep in close contact with everyone at CAMP Rehoboth, for
it is indeed a small world after all.
Bill
Sievert, who this month celebrates his 30th anniversary with life
partner John Theis, may be reached by e-mail at allforthecause@aol.com.
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