Support available for LGBTQ+ community in St. Joseph
By Ashley Luthans
June is recognized as Pride Month, and organizations in St. Joseph are highlighting resources for those in the LGBTQ+ community who are struggling.
People in the LGBTQ+ community can struggle with mental health and may feel alone at a higher rate. According to Mental Health America, LGTBQ+ teens are six times more likely to have signs of depression as opposed to teens who do not identify as LGBTQ+. However, there are resources and organizations in St. Joseph that can help.
Brian Kirk is the pastor at First Christian Church in St. Joseph. Kirk shared that First Christian Church is “Open and Affirming” to the LGBTQ+ community, allowing them full participation in the church. First Christian Church also participates in several pride events.
“Pride Month is an opportunity for the community to come together, both allies and people who identify as queer, and to say you have value, you have worth and you’re supported,” Kirk said. “That fits perfectly with what we believe the message of Christianity is: that people have value and worth and dignity, and should be treated with compassion and care. And so that’s why our church gets involved with Pride.”
Another organization that aims to help people in the LGBTQ+ community is PFLAG, which is a national program that has a chapter in St. Joseph. PFLAG provides resources to members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies both in-person and online.
Through Missouri Western State University’s website, a “Rainbow Directory” is available showcasing the LGBTQ-friendly businesses in St. Joseph as of 2018.
This year, St. Joe Pride Festival will take place on Sept. 6 and 7.
Kirk stressed the importance of making resources available to those who need them in the St. Joseph community.
“I think the challenge in any community like this is to make it a safe space for people to find the resources that they need,” Kirk said. “If people feel like they’re going to be criticized or judged for being who they are, they’re less likely to speak up … So part of our goal is to always be trying to grow as a community that’s more and more welcoming, more and more open to difference, so that folks who need particular resources, particularly in the LGBTQ community, feel like this is a safe space to ask the questions they need to ask and get the advocacy that they need to find their way to those resources that we do have available.”
