LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
The Rainbow Room: CAMP's Cousin on the Eastern Shore |
by Doris Gelbman |
Not quite a year agoMemorial Day Weekend, in factsix women in the Salisbury area met for hamburgers on the grill and a hand or two of poker. During the course of the afternoon, the discussion turned to the gay community in Salisbury and our apparent lack of unity or "outness" as a community. Many of usas individualsare quite comfortable with our identity, and while we feel comfortable with that here, it seemed that we always end up in Rehoboth Beach, Dover, Wilmington, DC, Baltimore or elsewhere to "play". Why do we have to drive an hour or more just to be who we are? Two of the women in this group who have lived here for over ten years commented that there has been little successful effort to unite the gay community in Salisbury. We all agreed that it is sad that there is nowhere on Marylands lower shore for gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgenered (G/L/B/T) people to meet or socialize in any form. Sadand lonelyfor many of our brothers and sisters. Then the idea was floated of starting something ourselves. No one in this group is independently wealthy, and none of us have the time or resources to open a bar, coffeehouse or other establishment. So we talked about setting up a community center on a "co-op" basistrust Lesbians to think of a co-op!and using our members to hang dry-wall, keep the books, put in a coffee pot and voila. Well, I wasnt sure everyone was serious, but a week later we met again. Not only was everyone serious, two or three more people were added to the original six. Things began to snowball in earnest. It was clear by then that we really didnt know what type of establishment would best serve the G/L/B/T community so we decided to do a survey asking everything from age, sex, education level and number of kids to what interests one has in leisure activities, politics, religion, support groups and much, much more. The surveys were handed out one by one over a few months, then before we knew more than 100 were filled out. Obviously, Salisbury was hungry for just this sort of activity. Critical mass was reached, a mailing list created with 140 plus interested persons, and we now have over 70 paid members. The Rainbow Room has had several social events, including: The First Annual Great Toaster Oven Giveaway in October (for National Coming Out Day) and a very well attended holiday party in December. There are tentative plans for one major event each month. More recently, we have formally incorporated, appointed a board of directors and officers, and set-up committees for things such as fund raising and event planning. We have a newsletter, a phone is being installed, and a web page is in the works. Our mission is to serve the needs of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered people of the Greater Salisbury area (and the Lower Eastern Shores of Maryland, Virginia and Southern Delaware) by creating a community among these people, by encouraging personal comfort and safety, educating the public and serving as a resource and support avenue for other groups in the area serving the needs of the gay and lesbian community. There is work to be done to build the Rainbow Room. If you live on the Eastern Shore, you are invited to come be a part of our efforts. Our address is: Rainbow Room, P.O. Box 1003, Salisbury MD 21803. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 8, No. 2, March 13, 1998. |