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The Spectrum

The Spectrum

Written by: Linda Thomas-Fowler
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 The Spectrum is a podcast looking at issues important to the LGBT communities. If you don't happen to associate with one of those letters that's ok! This show is aimed at helping people outside those communities understand just how important these issues are and why we need your support. Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Rainbow Ridge Social Club: Building Community in the Northern Shenandoah Valley

    Rainbow Ridge Social Club: Building Community in the Northern Shenandoah Valley
    Dec 24 2025
    **Episode 33 – Building LGBTQ+ Community in Hostile Times | Rainbow Ridge Social Club** In this episode of **The Spectrum**, we sit down with **Augie** and **Paul**, two organizing members of the **Rainbow Ridge Social Club** in Virginia’s northern Shenandoah Valley. What begins as a conversation about social events and friendship quickly becomes something deeper: a powerful, honest discussion about resilience, belonging, and the life-saving importance of queer community. Augie and Paul share how Rainbow Ridge grew from a small Facebook group into a thriving network of over 1,000 LGBTQ+ people and allies — offering free or low-cost events, radical acceptance, and a place to feel safe. Paul also speaks openly about surviving targeted hate and vandalism, and how finding (and building) community helped turn fear into strength. This episode is for: * **LGBTQ+ viewers** who are searching for connection, safety, or reassurance that they are not alone * **Allies — and those who want to be** — who want to better understand what LGBTQ+ people face, and how community, visibility, and acceptance truly make a difference At a time when anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and violence are increasing, this conversation puts real faces and voices to the headlines. 💜 Topics include: * Creating queer community in small or hostile environments * Radical acceptance and accessibility * Coping with hate and finding healing If you believe people are people — or want to understand what that really means — this episode is for you. 📍 Learn more about Rainbow Ridge Social Club: [https://therainbowridgesocialclub.org](https://therainbowridgesocialclub.org) 📩 Interested in sharing your story on *The Spectrum* (anonymously if needed)? Email: [SpectrumPodcastHost@gmail.com](mailto:SpectrumPodcastHost@gmail.com) **You are not alone. Community matters. And understanding starts with listening.**
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    30 mins
  • Casa BruMar Foundation: Fighting for LGBTQ+ Rights, Resources, and Housing Advocacy in Virginia

    Casa BruMar Foundation: Fighting for LGBTQ+ Rights, Resources, and Housing Advocacy in Virginia
    Nov 23 2025
    In this episode of The Spectrum (Episode 32, recorded November 20th, 2025), we sit down with Evelyn BruMar, the Executive Director of the Casa BruMar Foundation. Find out how this **Latina-led LGBTQ organization** serves as a crucial home and resource hub across the **whole Commonwealth of Virginia**. Evelyn, a first-generation American of Mexican and Chumash descent, shares her deeply personal motivation for this extensive advocacy work, including her experience living on the streets after being disowned as a minor. Her commitment solidified in Virginia when the state barred her and her wife from adopting a foster child. **What does Casa BruMar Foundation do?** The mission of Casa BruMar is built on providing protections and access to resources that were historically absent in Virginia before 2020, when it was legal to discriminate against LGBTQ people. They work tirelessly to "cut through red tape" and navigate local laws (from school board policies to foster care). Core services include: * Connecting people, including those displaced or struggling with affordable housing, to existing county programs. * Helping young people obtain a **GED or high school diploma**. * Ensuring the **elderly population** is not discriminated against in faith-based hospice facilities. * Operating the **Rise Up Scholarship**, named after a friend named Marja, which helps LGBTQ young adults (ages 18-25). **Facing the 2025 Crisis** Evelyn confirms a significant **uptick in people reaching out for help in 2025**, including LGBTQIA+ individuals, as well as straight or cisgender people who face hate for how their children identify or how they are perceived. **Innovative Solutions & Advocacy** Learn about Evelyn's creative solution for same-sex couples before marriage equality was legal: **forming a business (an LLC)** to protect assets and ensure rights. Evelyn and her wife, Heidi, adopted the name "BruMar," legally established themselves as a business, and protected their assets by putting them into the company's bank account. Furthermore, Evelyn details the life-saving **crisis intervention training** Casa BruMar provides to **first responders and law enforcement** in Manassas and Prince William County. This training is designed to foster empathy and provide officers with the appropriate language needed to engage safely with people experiencing trauma, including non-binary and trans youth who are often misgendered or dead named. **Support the Future of Advocacy in Virginia** Looking ahead to 2026, the foundation is focused on closing the housing gap and advocating for simple but crucial policy changes, such as mandatory single-stall, private bathrooms in public facilities and schools, which Evelyn argues protects all children, especially the most vulnerable. The foundation is planning to open a new **community center in Woodbridge, Prince William County** in 2026, which Evelyn believes will be the first community center in Virginia with an attached **pride clinic and pharmacy**, alongside social services. To support this vital work or inquire about resources, visit **CasaBrumarFoundation.org**.
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    29 mins
  • ARE and The R.I.S.E. Center

    ARE and The R.I.S.E. Center
    Nov 7 2025
    n this episode of The Spectrum, we visit the R.I.S.E. Center at the AIDS Response Effort (ARE) in Winchester, Virginia. Executive Director Katie Vance and Co-Director Matt Buracker share the inspiring story behind ARE’s 35-year mission to support people living with HIV and to build community through the newly established LGBTQ+ R.I.S.E. Center. Learn how ARE provides medical and non-medical case management, free HIV and STI testing, harm reduction programs, and vital community resources like a food pantry, LGBTQ+ library, and gender-affirming clothing closet. Katie and Matt also discuss the challenges of funding cuts, the importance of inclusive spaces, and how people can help sustain this vital community work through donations, volunteering, and advocacy. 👉 Learn more: https://aidsresponseeffort.org 👉 Donate: https://aidsresponseeffort.charityproud.org/Donate/?cid=25863 👉 Volunteer or get involved: https://aidsresponseeffort.org/get-involved/ If you enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share to help spread awareness of the important work being done by ARE and the R.I.S.E. Center.
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    17 mins
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