The Center Coachella team partners with communities across the east valley to affirm LGBTQ+ belonging .
With great pride and more than a bit of excitement, the Center Coachella location will open its doors to the public on Monday, Nov. 22, at 10 a.m.
Residents of the East Coachella Valley community, supporters, and elected officials will be on hand to celebrate this milestone.
Like many places, the Coachella Valley has a diverse and dynamic LGBTQ+ community, but safe and affirming spaces east of Cathedral City are limited. Following the murder of openly bisexual Juan Ceballos in Mecca in 2014, local high school students organized and produced the Youth Participatory Action Research Report in 2016. This youth and community-driven report addressed LGBTQ+ needs in the Eastern Coachella Valley and sparked an era of activism, organizing, and community building.
Today, five years later, The Center’s Coachella team partners with communities across the east valley, sharing experiences that affirm LGBTQ+ belonging and developing the next generation of leaders. All of this has been made possible because of you and your support.
Mayor Steven Hernandez
Coachella Mayor Steven Hernandez told Uken Report that the Center Coachella can be summed up in one word: Community.
“There are residents that are coming out or have come out,” Hernandez said. “To be able to have access to community, resources, counseling and a sense of place, I think is a good thing.”
At The Center, leaders like to say they create vibrant community by helping LGBTQ people along their way, wherever they might be in life’s journey.
If you’re looking to meet new friends, get resources, or enrich your life and your place in community, The Center Coachella could be the place for you. It serves people of all ages.
The Center is the only non-profit community center run by and for all LGBTQ people of all ages in the Eastern Riverside County. Financially, it receives support from across the desert communities, which includes local municipalities, foundation grants, individual and business memberships, special events, and gifts from friends who support the LGBTQ community, including sustaining donors from the Ocotillo Club.
Visit the Coachella office at 1515 Sixth Street, Coachella, CA 92236
Image Sources
- Steven Hernandez: City of Coachella
- The Center Coachella: The Center
