Mel, 40: Bi, Queer and Pan Folks Don’t Always Speak in a Gay or Lesbian Voice #AMPLIFY

Butler County Queer

Name:  Mel Age: 40 County of Residence: Butler, formerly Crawford and Clarion counties Preferred Pronouns: she/her How do you describe your identity? I am a queer, disabled, pagan, working-class fat white chick. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out to my family and friends in high school. I’m […]

Bill, 52, is a Gay Man Living in a Small Town in Cambria County #AMPLIFY

Gay Cambria County

  Name: Bill Age:  52 County of Residence: Cambria, formerly Indiana Preferred Pronouns: he, him How do you describe your identity? A white gay man who is not butch or fem. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I never formally came out to most family members. Over time it became […]

Jill, 49, Wants Young LGBTQ People To Have a Safe Place to Go In Cambria County #AMPLIFY

lesbian cambria county

  Name: Jill Age: 49 County of Residence:  Cambria, grew up in Somerset Preferred Pronouns: she/her How do you describe your identity? Woman, female, lesbian Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I was 23. Married to a man who very much understood me. Met a woman and spent the next […]

Char, 62, is a ‘Very Late Bloomer’ Lesbian in Cambria County #AMPLIFY

  Name: Char Age:  62 County of Residence:  Cambria. Lived in Somerset County during my childhood, until age 21. Preferred Pronouns: She/her How do you describe your identity? Female, woman, lesbian, gay Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out after being in a heterosexual marriage for close to […]

John, 38, Is a Johnstown Based LGBTQ Activist #AMPLIFY

Johnstown Gay

John has the distinction of being the 100th person profiled in this series since May 2015. Thank you, John. Name: John DeBartola Age: 38 County of Residence: I hail from New Jersey. I lived in Susquehanna County, PA when I was finishing high school. I have lived in Cambria County, PA and the surrounding area since 1995. Preferred […]

How To Sign Up For Toys for Tots in Western PA – 2015 Edition

I’m actually late this year with this annual blog post. Finding information on Toys for Tots programs can be time-consuming and challenging. My work with the AMPLIFY project has expanded my awareness of how difficult it can be to access programs the further your family lives from an urban hub. My hope is to add […]

AMPLIFY! Katie-Anne Speaks as Two-Spirited, Bi-Gendered Resident of Johnstown

Katie-Anne

AMPLIFY LGBTQ is a new occasional series of blog posts designed to give a “signal boost” to the voices of our LGBTQ neighbors throughout Western Pennsylvania. We are using a Q&A format and will mostly avoid editing their responses. The questions, however, may change as we ask each participant to tell us what we’ve missed […]