Events Archive

October 2003

Sat. October 11

MutualFriends Autumn Fest,

The 2nd Annual Mutualfriends.org Autumn Fest. will be held on October 11th, 6:00-11:00pm. at Stoneyhbrook Farms.

Stoney Creek Farms is a beautiful, rustic getaway in Noblesville Indiana, perfect for a Fall gathering. Tickets: $10 in advance and save $5 off of the door price. Go to the website, mutualfriends.org, or go to: http://www.mutualfriends.org/autumnfest.htm directly.

We have rented the barn loft again and will be offering hayrides (this time with musical themes, such as a disco hayride, a showtunes hayride). We are also going to have activities for children: costume contest, ghost stories read by a volunteer, and pumpkin carving contests. Gather around the bonfire again for more zany ghost stories - the kind you make up as you go around the circle, or simply enjoy the fall evening, chatting with friends, sippin' on hot chocolate and enjoying some tasty treats.

Sun. October 12

AIDS Walk Indy

AIDS WALK INDY, the local HIV/AIDS fund raising walk in the Indianapolis metro area will be held Sunday, October 12 at the site of the Indiana AIDS Memorial. The memorial is located at Crown Hill Cemetery, 700 West 38th Street, Indianapolis.

The WALK is presented by The Damien Center, Indiana AIDS Fund and Indiana Still Cares and sponsored by Target and the Indiana State Department of Health, among others.

According to Betty Wilson, CEO of the Health Foundation of Greater Indianapolis and the parent organization of the Indiana AIDS Fund, the goals of the event are to honor and support those living with HIV/AIDS through contributions to the Greg Powers/Direct Emergency Financial Assistance fund and to celebrate and remember the lives of those who fought the disease.

Tracy Elliott, Executive Director of the Damien Center, said AIDS Walk proceeds are used to provide emergency financial assistance to people affected by HIV/AIDS. Elliott suggested that with projections for home heating fuel costs to rise as much as 300% this year coupled with the significant increase in Marion County property taxes, housing costs will increase significantly. He added that federal funds for housing assistance to people with AIDS in Marion county has been cut almost 40%.

"With these developments we hat can anticipate more of HIV/AIDS patients will be homeless, cold, and hungry in 2004. AIDS Walk proceeds help to prevent this suffering. All of the net proceeds of the Walk are used for emergency financial assistance so that people have shelter, heat and food," Elliott said. He also pointed out that most of the recipient agencies, like The Damien Center, do not deduct administrative expenses from the DEFA grants they receive.

According to Stephen L. Everett, Director of the Indiana AIDS Fund, another key component of the event is raising awareness of HIV/AIDS through educational opportunities like the health and education tent. "Since Indiana remains above the national average of young people under the age of 25 who are living with HIV/AIDS, it is important to reach our youth," Everett said.

Proceeds from AIDS WALK INDY will provide funds for those with HIV/AIDS who need immediate, emergency assistance with shelter, utilities, food and medicine. It is estimated that there are more than 10,000 Hoosiers with HIV/AIDS.

For more information on registering to walk or volunteer, visit www.aidswalkinindy.org or call the AIDS WALK LINE AT (317) 709-3292.

Sun. October 12

INDIANA EQUALITY (IE) FUNDRAISER

IE Seeks Fairness In Jobs And An Improved Economy Through Inclusion Of Sexual Orientation And Gender Identity In State Law

Fort Wayne--Civil rights organizations from across the State have formed an unprecedented coalition to persuade the legislature to amend the State's civil rights law to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

In Indiana, a person can still be fired or denied credit, housing, or access to public accommodations simply for being gay or transgender.

Indiana's current law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, disability, national origin and ancestry. Indiana Equality is calling on the Indiana General Assembly to add "sexual orientation and gender identity" to that list.

Indiana Equality consists of multiple Statewide organizations, including the Gender Fairness Coalition of Indiana (GFCI), Interfaith Coalition on Nondiscrimination (ICON), Indiana NOW, Indiana Transgender Rights Advocacy Alliance (INTRAA), Indiana Youth Group (IYG) and Justice, Inc. Among the regional groups taking part in the coalition are the Citizens for Civil Rights (Lafayette / West Lafayette), Free Rein (South Bend / Mishawaka), Gay/Straight Alliance (Columbus), Greater Indianapolis Fairness Alliance, Indy Rainbow Chamber of Commerce, Northeast Indiana Equal Rights Education Network (Fort Wayne), the Bloomington and Seymour chapters of PFLAG, and the Tri-State Alliance (Evansville).

This does not come without a cost. The State is split into regions. Each region is asked to come up with $2,500.

On October 12, 2003, Fort Wayne (region 3) will be doing a fundraising event. NIERC, a division of EREN (formally known as United Sexualities) of IPFW is sponsoring on a benefit Drag Show to help raise some of the money. Plan now to attend this event and put Indiana on the map of anti-discrimination.

The fund-raising drag show to support the work of Indiana Equality (IE) will take place on:

Sunday, October 12th
6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Walb Ballroom on IPFW campus in Fort Wayne

Saturday Oct. 18

Purdue Drag Show

From 7:00 pm to 9:00pm at Loeb Play House - Purdue University Stewart Center

Delta Lambda Phi National Social Fraternity is proud to once again sponsor \"God Shave the Queens\". This annual event features national and regional talent from around the midwest. Don\'t miss this unique and truly original event!

Tickets are $6 dollars through Purdue Box Offices and all Ticketmaster locations.

Come help us raise visibility and awareness of Purdue\'s GLBT community as we continue to make our presence known!

Questions?

Oct. 24 - Nov. 22

TOTS presents Western Civilization! The Complete Musical (Abridged)

Experience 1000 years in 100 minutes at Theatre on the Square with Western Civilization! The Complete Musical (Abridged), Lyrics by Austin Tichenor and Reed Martin, Music by Nick Graham.

From those crazy Reduced Shakespeare guys who gave us The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged, The Complete History of America: Abridged and The Bible: The Complete Word of God: Abridged comes a raucous musical history of civilization for the last 1000 years. Set to the most distinctive and influential musical style of the millennium "DISCO", the outcome is unbelievably funny. Songs include "History Ain't What It Used To Be", "Everybody Hates The French", "Blame It On The Lord" and "Deja Vu, All Over Again".

Shows are on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 2:30 pm. Contact the Theatre box office at 317-637-8085 for details or to order tickets.

Theatre on the Square
627 Massachusetts Ave
Indianapolis, IN 46204
www.tots.org

Friday Oct. 31

2003 Grande Masquerade

The 2003 Grande Masquerade will be held on Friday, October 31 at the Indiana Roof Ballroom. Beginning at 7:00 p.m., over 450 people will gather to raise nearly $100,000 that will provide direct services to 1,400+ Indianapolis-area men, women and children directly affected by HIV/AIDS. This event also allows The Damien Center to remain the premiere local agency for HIV prevention offering free testing, outreach and education.

With its Honorary Chair US Representative Julia Carson, the dinner gala begins with a VIP cocktail hour followed by the dinner gala, silent auctions and dancing with Tim Brickley Band. The gala will also showcase performances by Dance Kaleidoscope, the Indianapolis Men's and Women's Choruses and the LUV Family.

The Damien Center will also honor Judy O'Bannon at the Grande Masquerade with their Positive Voices Award. The award will be presented by Wayne Zink, a member of the Center's Board of Directors and friend of Mrs. O'Bannon.

Mrs. O'Bannon has been a longtime supporter of The Damien Center and other HIV/AIDS service organizations. Through public service announcements and appearances, she has lent her compassionate voice to help raise an awareness of the impact of the disease on communities, and served as the honorary chair for events including the Grande Masquerade; the Indiana AIDS Walk; and Spotlight, which benefits the Indiana AIDS Fund. Additionally, in October 2001 and March 2003, she led delegations to South Africa with a primary focus on strengthening ties between HIV/AIDS organizations in that country and Indiana.

New to the event this year, will be four days of events that are being planned, organized and hosted by area bars in the community. Over the summer, the bar owners of Club Cabaret, English Ivy's, Greg's, Industry, Metro, Talbott Street and The Ten came together, wanting to be a part of Grande Masquerade in a way that not only raises awareness in the community about the impact of HIV/AIDS, but makes a direct financial commitment to helping The Damien Center's mission as it relates to helping those affected by the disease.

As a result of this unique collaboration, participating bars will be donating all monies raised during this week of events at no cost to The Damien Center. Instead, 100% of proceeds will go directly to the Center's client services. Weekend passes can be purchased for $20 at The Wicked Monkey, Curly's Cleaners, Just Hair, Outward Bound, Vic's and Metropolis Gifts.

For additional information about Grande Masquerade, the weekend of events, please go www.damien.org or call (317) 632-0123.

Friday Oct. 31

Halloween Party at Jaguars

In a joint venture, Indy SoulSistahs and Jaguars are hosting a Halloween Party on Friday, October 31, 2003, from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. This event is open to the GLBT community and its allies. There is NO cover charge to attend this event. The front and back bars will be open, along with the kitchen for your dining pleasure. The dance floor will be open, so you can dance the night away. There will be prizes such as dinner for two at Jaguars for the best costume, a .50 raffle for movie passes to Lowes Theaters, food and prize giveaways, and a 50/50 raffle. So dust off that costume, and get ready for a night of dancing, socializing and fun. We hope to see you there.

Dave Dillery and Gary Dirks, owners of Jaguars, located at 924 N Pennsylvania, want their restaurant and dance bar to be a place for everyone, and wish to introduce themselves to the GLBT community of Indianapolis.

IndySoulSistahs (ISS) wants to continue provide visiblity and support for lesbians of color, promote unity within the GLBT community at large, build bridges between groups and individuals.and have a little fun.