NONPROFIT SPOTLIGHT: Pride’s Table

Photos by Elissa Ebersold

“The goal was to band together the older generation and the younger generation, so the older generation could share wisdom and the younger generation can share current knowledge.”

Usually when you think of LGBTQ+-based organizations, visions of Pride Month flash through your head. For the entire month of June, flags are prominently displayed outside of homes and businesses, corporations change their logos to include rainbows, drag brunches are heavily advertised, and each town seems to have its own celebration. Then, once July hits… nothing. The logos are switched back at midnight, LGBTQ+-centered events drastically wind down, and people once eager to step up to support a cause seem to sink back into the shadows only to reemerge next June. Where did the community go? Where are all of the opportunities for the gay community to gather together without fear of judgment? 

This is something Gina Moran sought to change when she created Pride’s Table, a nonprofit organization that gives LGBTQ+ folks of all ages a space to come together to enjoy a meal and each other’s company at least once a month.

Moran holds a master’s degree in social work. When she started her schooling, she wasn’t sure which population she would want to work with. 

As I did internships and had more experiences, I realized working with the older population is for me. A lot of LGBTQ+ seniors are isolated. That population is huge right now because of the baby boomers. Many didn’t have children. A lot of them lost partners in the AIDS epidemic. Many of them were outcasts, so they don’t have family to rely on. If they have to go into assisted living, many will re-closet themselves, [hiding their identity] because they’re not sure how they’ll be perceived. A lot of staff aren’t necessarily trained to be sensitive to that.

While searching for a space to be involved, Moran stumbled across a New York City-based LGBTQ+ advocacy group. A subsection of their website mentioned dinners where multigenerational LGBTQ+ folks could gather and share their knowledge, experiences, and socialize without any added pressure to stay in the closet or worry about putting on a costume of heterosexuality. However, the program never took off, possibly as a result of Covid. Yet, while Moran struck out on becoming involved through that agency, she “kept itching to be a helper” and the idea of get-togethers involving meals stuck in her mind. 

Thus, Pride’s Table of the 518 was born last May. Moran reached out to friends and family and assembled a small, passionate staff of like-minded helpers to create a safe and welcoming environment for anyone within the LGBTQ+ community to join for monthly lunches. 

“The goal was to band together the older generation and the younger generation, so the older generation could share wisdom and the younger generation can share current knowledge,” a cause she especially felt the need to spearhead in the aftermath of the most recent election.

“I didn’t feel like there were enough general, not therapy-based, social opportunities for people to get together. A safe, private space, on a bus line, where you weren’t going to feel like you were on display.” Because of the lack of therapy basis, Pride’s Table has not received grants or formal funding. Instead, the organization is run entirely from donations.

“That’s why, to celebrate our one-year anniversary, we’re having an online auction to continue our work.” The online auction includes goods from local stores, gift cards to local businesses, tickets for Moulin Rouge at Proctors, a week-long stay in Lake George, overnight stays in local luxurious hotels, and more. The auction starts on May 8 and runs until May 19.

Perhaps one of the most heartening things about the auction is just how much Pride’s Table was welcomed by local businesses. When Moran asked for donations, some declined (financially, times are what they are), but she received zero negative responses. Everyone wanted to help if their financial situation allowed. 

In fact, much of the Capital Region has embraced Pride’s Table. Schenectady Pride is planning on providing an upcoming meal, Proctors generously gave a backstage tour to everyone who attended February’s event, local drag performer Amanduh Brown hosted drag bingo, local musician Girl Love provided live music at their December lunch, and most recently, Pride’s Table collaborated with Mama Dragons — a group that provides education and support for parents of LGBTQ+ individuals — on a screening of Heightened Scrutiny, a documentary about the Supreme Court fight for transgender adolescents’ rights to access gender-affirming care. 

For LGBTQ+ folks, socialization is a way to know that they belong, express local history that might otherwise be lost, and ensure themselves that future LGBTQ+ kids have the opportunity to grow up safely, regardless of the uncertain political climate.

Pride Month, while beautiful and necessary in its own way, can be an overwhelming and nebulous display of allyship. One that might feel so large that it can be isolating in itself. In order to create a community, it’s best to start small, in your hometown. Not just in June, but throughout the year. The world is full of helpers and they might just be in your own backyard waiting for you to join.

Pride’s Table is meeting at Proctors Theater’s Key Hall on May 9 from 12-2 p.m. Their auction is running from May 8-19 and can be found at www.32auctions.com/pridestable. You can find more information about the organization on their website www.pridestable518.com.