Queer Youth Leadership Awards

In Support of Family and Community: 11th Annual Queer Youth Awards

United Way Community Matters
Mary Lou Goeke
Monday, August 25th, 2008

“I was driving home from work a few weeks ago, listening to the KZSC Closet Free Radio broadcast, thinking more about the week ahead of me than the show. As I approached a traffic light, an articulate young woman came on the air talking about her relationship with her father. It was difficult, she said, when she first told her father that she was gay. Although he loved her, it was hard for him to accept her sexual orientation.

This is a story I’ve heard before, I thought to myself. Another tale of a child whose parents don’t understand or don’t know how to continue loving and accepting them after they come out. It’s a story that rings too true for the youth across Santa Cruz County. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) youth face a wide range of reactions from their parents, from anger and rejection to tolerance and acceptance. However, it is the silence and invisibility that is said to be the most painful and isolating part of the coming out process.

As I continued listening to the show, however, the story quickly changed. The young woman, Sarananda Osheim, a senior at a local Santa Cruz high school, told the audience that after she had become involved in education and visibility activism for local LGBTQ youth, her father saw the amazing potential of his daughter and has since become one of the most loving and supportive forces in her life.

Sarananda is currently being recognized by far more than just her immediate family. Her commitment to her school, her community and her peers has placed her as one of the four awardees of the 11th Annual Queer Youth Leadership Award. The Queer Youth Leadership Awards (QYLA) is a Santa Cruz County event that brings together families, public officials, community organizations, and youth (gay and straight) to thank and highlight our young community leaders.

These young leaders have been nominated for a wide range of work for their communities – from connecting LGBTQ youth across the county to safe and supportive spaces, to being out and visible role models for others. Reading the biographies of the awardees and nominees, available on the QYLA website, is highly inspirational and emotional. Their stories surpass struggle and survival, reminding us of the importance of supporting those who are making life easier for all youth.

The awardees and nominees for this year’s show are, once again, exceptional youth. The Awardees are: Sarananda Osheim from Harbor High School, Omar Fuentes from Pajaro Valley High School, Danielle Elizalde from Watsonville High School and Laurel Stern from Santa Cruz High School. The nominees are: Gilberto Mendoza from Harbor High School, Yahaira Marquez from Pajaro Valley High School and Alayna Manor from Santa Cruz High School.

Awards are also given to individual and organizational allies to LGBTQ youth. This year’s Ally to Queer Youth Award will be presented to Joe Eugene, and the Organizational Ally to Queer Youth Award will be presented to the YWCA in Watsonville. Being an ally to LGBTQ youth is vitally important because it is allies who are the lifelines for youth in crisis.

Being a supportive LGBTQ ally is like being a loving parent. If the Queer Youth Leadership Awards have taught me one thing, it is that our community’s commitment to supporting the leadership and potential of all youth is as important as the support that is given from parent to child. When our community embraces our youth, we encourage growth, confidence and responsibility.

Become a part of this community even by joining me at the 11th Annual Queer Youth Leadership Awards on Saturday, April 26th at New Brighton Middle School in Capitola. There is a community resource fair starting at 5 pm, with a catered buffet dinner at 5:30 and the Awards Ceremony and Variety Show beginning at 7 pm.

The United Way of Santa Cruz County is a proud co-sponsor and I encourage you to visit their website at www.QYLA.org and learn more about the young LGBTQ people and their allies. I also encourage you to support the event in any way that you can. Tickets locations throughout the county are listen on their website. Donations towards the event would also be most welcome. The Queer Youth Leadership Awards is produced by the Santa Cruz County Task Force for LGBTIQ Youth, an affiliate of the Diversity Center.

The support of family and community is of great importance to our communities LGBTQ youth. Please join me in standing with the families of the young people who are tirelessly working to make Santa Cruz County a more welcoming and loving place.

For more information, call (831) 427-4004 or visit their website at www.QYLA.org
For the past 15 years Mary Lou Goeke has been the Executive Director of the United Way of Santa Cruz County. She has 32 years of experience providing social services to elders, children and families. The mission of Uniterd Way is to improve the lives of the people of Santa Cruz County by convening the community to seek solutions to their needs and by efficiently raising funds for the human care programs the United Way supports. Their website is www.unitedwaysc.org”

High Praise for QYLA

Saturday, March 15th, 2008

Emily Reilly
City Council Member and former Mayor, City of Santa Cruz, and candidate for State Assembly

“I was a judge this year for the QYLA, I have been able to do that a couple of times and its just the best event of the year, its fabulous, but there is a young [person] here [Hayden Stern] who is one of the winners, and I thought, imagine being in high school and having this day happen. Its going to be a different life…”

QYLA Interviewed on KZSC Closet Free Radio

Monday, March 3rd, 2008

Closet Free Radio, KZSC 88.1 FM, hosted an interview about the Queer Youth Leadership Awards (QYLA) on 7:00pm Monday March 3rd. Harbor High School student Sarananda Osheim and Aptos High School student Dieter Schmidtmeier, along with QYLA Coordinator Jacob Breslow, shared updates on QYLA nominations, auditions, and the Awards Ceremony.

Raise High the Rainbow

“Raise High the Rainbow”
Good Times
Written by Kara Ford-Martinez

Santa Cruz sends a positive message to its queer youth How many young boys have you seen wearing pink shirts and lavender colored sneakers? Probably not many. That’s because other children would tease them if they donned these colors. “That’s so gay” is a commonly heard taunt in schools nationwide where children face homophobia regularly. Even in liberal, lovely Santa Cruz. To combat this, many have bravely spoken up in defense of what it means to be queer. From April 11 to 17, Santa Cruz is sending a message to its queer youth and their allies, to let them know how much the city appreciates the work they have done.

“There’s a perception that Santa Cruz County is a progressive community and yet, in reality, there are many pockets of homophobia,” says Stuart Rosenstein, chair of Santa Cruz County Task Force for LGBTIQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Intersex and Questioning) children. “Queer youth face discrimination every day, whether it be from parents who don’t allow them to live open, affirming lives, to harassment from peers, to having queer issues and history totally censored in their K-12 curriculum.”

Brandi Foucheaux, a Harbor High School student and president of the Rainbow Society Club says her family is supportive, “but when it comes on the home front, when I bring my girlfriend over, it can be a little bit tense. They’re warming up to it. I’m proud of them because the first step to acceptance is acknowledging that your child is gay.”

Rosentein notes that Wednesday, April 13 is the National Day of Silence, one of the largest national youth movement events, which is designed to give visibility to the silence of homophobia. “There just isn’t enough being done to combat this,” Rosenstein adds.

On this day congressman Sam Farr will express his support for queer youth. Students of all ages, from kindergarten to college, are involved. Harbor High School students plan to hold a rally the day before and speak out on silencing and its effects on queer youth.

Theaters in Santa Cruz have opened their doors to queer themed performances during the week as well. On the stage of the Broadway Playhouse are “R & J” and “A Beautiful Thing,” two plays that deal with queer issues. “R & J” is a modern rendition of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, with an all-male cast. “A Beautiful Thing” tells the story of two young men who fall in love in working-class London.

Over at Kuumbwa Jazz Center, stand-up comedian Suzanne Westenhoefer hits the stage April 15. A brave woman—she was one of the first openly gay stand-up comedians—she fearlessly performed gay stand-up to straight audiences in mainstream comedy clubs and went on to win numerous awards, including two from GLAMA (Gay and Lesbian American Music Award).

On April 16, Full Spectrum Chorus comes to life. Celebrating the queer community through song, expect the chorus to perform a variety of music styles, from jazz and classical to musical theatre and pop. The mood ranges from the serious to campy.

“We’re doing a piece called ‘Gender Polka,’ which celebrates and makes fun of all the gender switching that goes on,” says chorus member Yael Lachman. “We often switch the gender roles just for fun.”

The Lionel Cantu GLBTI (Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Trans and Intersex) Resource Center, at UC Santa Cruz, has set up two special queer events. On April 16 alumni and anyone interested are welcome to the Lavender Reception for refreshments and a look at the gallery. The current exhibition is of lesbian portraits. The following day, April 17, the center has created Gay Day on the Bay, an afternoon of whale watching. The cruise will set sail from Moss Landing Harbor.

The grand finale of the week is the eighth annual Queer Youth Leadership Awards ceremony, by proclamation of the city of Santa Cruz, on April 17 at Santa Cruz High School Auditorium. Five queer youth, 13 allies and two organizations have been nominated.

“I kind of expected it,” says Foucheaux, who was nominated. “But I don’t know who nominated me for the award. That makes me excited, the fact that someone acknowledged me.”

“Even though queer youth issues have been visible in the press lately, they’re generally about homophobic issues,” Rosenstein says. “What’s unique and special about these awards is that they celebrate the positive accomplishments of our young queer people.