Club Q’s annual LGBTQ+ Thanksgiving meal will continue in a different location this year
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Every year, members of the city's LGBTQ+ community gather at Club Q for a Thanksgiving dinner. This year, organizers are moving the event to the Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church at 4:00 on Thursday, ensuring that despite the tragedy of the Club Q mass shooting, the community will still have a table where everyone belongs.
However, because of the last-minute changes, the Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church (PPMCC) is asking for help.
"We want it to be for anybody that needs, that wants to come, and we want to be able to serve but we have to have something to serve," said Jason Plata with PPMCC.
The church is asking for donations of cooked, Thanksgiving food items from restaurants.
"Right now, there have been a lot of places that are kind of running out of items," said Plata. "We are in the need of cooked prepared items that are Thanksgiving meal representations that can help out with this event."
The United Court of the Pikes Peak Empire is the oldest LGBTQ+ organization in Southern Colorado, which plans the meal every year.
Emperor Steven Grantham and Empress Hysteria Brooks, say despite the fear, they will continue on with the tradition.
"If we stop doing what we what we're here to do, that means that they won," said Grantham, "and we can't let that happen."
The Thanksgiving Dinner is intended to create a space for those who don't have a place to go or a group to celebrate the holiday with.
"When we come out to our families," said Hysteria, "when we tell our families a little bit about ourselves, it's not always reciprocated in the way that we would hope or wish it was."
The United Court of the Pikes Peak Empires says they make sure that when the holiday comes around, there is a table where everyone belongs.
If you would like to donate food, reach out to Jason Plata with Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church at jplata@ppmcc.org. You can also donate monetarily to a fund that will go toward the families here.
