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September 25th, 2020 - Out & Proud: Belonging Matters by Stefani Deoul

 

We’re Queer, We’re Here, and This Is Probably Why

If you’re like the vast majority of people reading Letters today, you—like me—will have lived somewhere other than Rehoboth Beach before you first visited here, before you heard of CAMP Rehoboth, and before you may have become a member.

But then, if you’re like the “vast majority” of people reading Letters today, a funny thing happened on your way to RB. Maybe you came to the beach, saw a copy of Letters, turned to your significant other, or your partying housemates, and exclaimed, “we need to live here.” Maybe you were house hunting, knowing it was an LGBTQ welcoming place, and realized you were going to need to find a few friends. And your realtor suggested, “here’s a copy of Letters for you to read…and there’s (in my case) a CAMP Rehoboth Follies tonight….”

Either way, CAMP Rehoboth’s community-building presence and Letters are the vectors that probably sealed the deal, whether you recognized it or not.

Why? I’m sure there’s a million studies, but I think it’s pretty simple. I think it truly comes down to one word: community. Moving is hard. Making new friends is hard. Coming out endlessly is hard. Isolation is hard—even for introverts. Not everyone who comes here has a pre-paid, pre-packaged personal life account or life-hack with legible directions.

Lesbian author Emily White’s book, Count Me In: How I Stepped off the Sidelines, Created Connection, and Built a Fuller, Richer, More Lived-in Life, takes her introvert-self out seeking—not friends or lovers—but a larger community to join.

According to White, research into loneliness looks first at our relationship with ourselves, then with other individuals, and then with the "collective self"—where we fit within larger groups. "Increasingly, we're losing that collective self, focusing on ourselves and our private relationships,” she writes.

And that “collective self” is Rehoboth’s secret weapon.

From the early 90s and Founders Steve and Murray’s humble CAMP Rehoboth beginnings, this need for connection was a baked right in. CAMP Rehoboth threw down an anchor on Baltimore Avenue, and founders and volunteers, an enormous number of volunteers, helped build a haven with ropes and nets long enough now to stretch far and wide.

And this is why so many of us moved to Rehoboth Beach and why LGBTQ people and their allies continue to do so. They may not participate in any activities or events, may not even read this publication regularly, but they soak up and are sustained by the energy and culture this organization built.

If you’re raising an eyebrow, let me put it differently. You probably didn’t move here for airport access. You probably, honestly, didn’t move here for the outlet shopping (even if some of us are known to partake on occasion). And you probably didn’t move here for career opportunities.

Nope. I bet you moved here for community. A community nourished by CAMP Rehoboth.

And to keep it mattering requires money. And that Money requires Membership. It’s like giant M&Ms. Or maybe, adding an M with all the Memories past and future., it’s the CAMP Rehoboth Triple Play—it’s CAMPtastic!

Every day, every program keeps this community stable, healthy, and growing. And a volunteer corps composed of dedicated, extraordinary human beings keeps the action in motion. But sadly, electric bills, mortgages, and programmers don’t get paid by volunteer hours. If they did, we’d be powered up for the century.

Pandemics hurt everyone. We knew Sundance wasn’t going to be “the Sundance of old.” But we’re still here, Zooming classes, hosting a craft show outdoors, and gearing up to give flu shots.

Because, well, community.

I wrote a column a little while ago and referenced Anatevka, the town from Fiddler on the Roof. Anatevka is a vibrant community when we meet it, and when the stage show or movie is over we ache for the community being torn apart and strewn out of existence.

We know this pandemic has hurt many people in many ways. We understand some people may not be able to pay their membership dues right now. But for those who can, we need you to Memberize! And for those of you who truly can, perhaps you can help a member who can’t. Make yours a membership for you, and then add a membership for a person in need. Join up or renew at camprehoboth.com.

After all, it’s all about community. It’s why we came.

Stefani Deoul is a television producer and author of the award-winning YA mystery series Sid Rubin Silicon Alley Adventures, with On a LARP, Zero Sum Game, and Say Her Name.

‹ September 25th, 2020 - It's My Life by Michael Thomas Ford up September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Shots Gallery 1 ›

Past Issues

Issues Index

  • December 11, 2020 - Issue Index
  • November 13, 2020 - Issue Index
  • October 16, 2020 - Issue Index
  • September 25th, 2020 - Issue Index
    • September 25th, 2020 - Cover to Cover with Issuu
    • September 25th, 2020 - The Way I See It by David Mariner
    • September 25th, 2020 - In Brief
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Matters by Murray Archibald
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Out by Fay Jacobs
    • September 25th, 2020 - Sundance 2020
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP News
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Conversation by Fay Jacobs
    • September 25th, 2020 - Intentionally Inclusive by Wesley Combs
    • September 25th, 2020 - Community News
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Rehoboth History Project by James T. Sears, PhD
    • September 25th, 2020 - Out & About: Belonging Matters by Eric C. Peterson
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Houses by Rich Barnett
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Critters
    • September 25th, 2020 - Who's That?...That's CAMP! by Anita Broccolino
    • September 25th, 2020 - Health and Wellness by Marj Shannon
    • September 25th, 2020 - Health & Wellness Classes
    • September 25th, 2020 - LGBTQ+ YA Column by Barbara Antlitz
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Cares by Kerry Hallett
    • September 25th, 2020 - It's My Life by Michael Thomas Ford
    • September 25th, 2020 - Out & Proud: Belonging Matters by Stefani Deoul
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Shots Gallery 1
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Shots Gallery 2
    • September 25th, 2020 - Historical Headliners by Ann Aptaker
    • September 25th, 2020 - Spotlight on the Arts by Doug Yetter
    • September 25th, 2020 - Booked Solid by Terri Schlichenmeyer
    • September 25th, 2020 - CAMP Courtyard View by Michael Gilles
    • September 25th, 2020 - Straight Talk by David Garrett
    • September 25th, 2020 - Dining OUT by Fay Jacobs
    • September 25th, 2020 - The Real Dirt by Eric W. Wahl
    • September 25th, 2020 - Celebrity Interview by Chris Azzopardi
    • September 25th, 2020 - Deep Inside Hollywood by Romeo San Vicente
    • September 25th, 2020 - We Remember
  • August 28, 2020 - Issue Index
  • August 14, 2020 - Issue Index
  • July 31, 2020 - Issue Index
  • July 17, 2020 Issue Index
  • June 19, 2020 Issue Index
  • May 22, 2020 - Issue Index
  • April 17, 2020 - Issue Index
  • March 6, 2020 - Issue Index
  • February 7, 2020 - Issue Index

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