A range of issues important to LGBTQ people and those who value equality were front-and-center during an in-depth conversation that brought expert panelists and an audience together to find ways to stand up against attacks on our community.Leading national and international experts on a range of topics — from LGBTQ aging and the heartbreaking challenges transgender elders face when dealing with family and care facilities — as well as members of the public, journalists, and clinicians (in total, about 100) gathered in Orange County for the most recent engagement of America’s longest-touring LGBTQ panel series, LGBTs In The News with Thom Senzee.
Archive for month: June, 2018
Levi Kreis has come a long way since his early days in Tennessee where he wanted to become a minister. Rooted in country music, Levi’s versatility as a musician, actor and an artist has taken him to the top of the charts, Broadway-including a Tony Award, movies, TV-including an appearance on The Apprentice and all over the world.
Modesty aside, how would you describe yourself?
Let’s see. If Dolly Parton had Peter Allen’s first born son, that’s a good place to start (laughs).
David Piazza, Dr. Vincent “Vinnie” Pompei, Gay Orange County, HRC, Human Rights Campaign, Jason Stuart, Levi Kreis, Phil Yaeger, Radiant Health Centers, Stairway to the Stars
It was an evening filled with the spirit of giving at Radiant Health Centers’ star-studded gala Starway to the Stars on June 2nd. The event held at the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, attracted around 300 guests and helped raise $755,000 toward its Capital Campaign, bringing RHC’s campaign fund to $1.2 million, and putting Orange County another step closer to opening a health center for underserved members of its LGBTQ-plus community.
June 27 marks National HIV Testing Day, which helps promote testing and early diagnosis of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. There are 6,711 individuals living with HIV disease in Orange County and by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates, an additional estimated 941 residents who have HIV and don’t know it – some of whom will develop AIDS before realizing they are HIV-infected.
Levi Kreis has come a long way since his early days in Tennessee where he wanted to become a Minister. Rooted in country music, Levi’s versatility as a musician, actor and an artist has taken him to the top of the charts, Broadway-including a Tony Award, movies, TV-including an appearance on The Apprentice and all over the world.
Modesty aside, how would you describe yourself?
Let’s see. If Dolly Parton had Peter Allen’s first born son, that’s a good place to start! LOL
The Pulse is on the Red Carpet With Singer Songwriter Levi Kreis to talk about his involvement and performance at Radiant Health Centers #Stairway to the Stars Event in Orange County. The event was held at the Ritz Carlton in Dana Point and raised over $750,000 to bring a comprehensive health center for the LGBTQ community in Orange County.
Levi Kreis is a country singer-songwriter and won the 2010 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for originating the role of Jerry Lee Lewis in Broadway’s Million Dollar Quartet.
Media contact:
Sandra Wellhausen
swellhausen@wrightoncomm.com
C: 619-245-8866
IRVINE, Calif. (June 4, 2018) – Today the U.S. Supreme Court narrowly ruled against the Colorado Civil Rights Commission in a case where a baker refused to make a wedding cake for an LGBTQ couple citing religious beliefs.
In this particular case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled based on concerns unique to this case and ruled that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission’s handling of this case was flawed but reaffirmed the equal rights of the LGBTQ plus community to be free from discrimination.
While this ruling does not change the LGBTQ community’s basic civil rights, it is a setback at the Supreme Court for the LGBTQ community. This ruling will give same-sex couples more reasons to fear that businesses won’t always welcome them or serve them.
“As an organization that cares for all people in our community with compassion, empathy and respect, we will not let this ruling slow us down,” said Phil Yaeger, executive director and CEO, Radiant Health Centers. “We will continue to support and fight for equal rights for our LGBTQ plus community. While our mission is focused on advancing the unique health needs of our LGBTQ plus community, we see discrimination in any professional setting—from bakeries to doctors’ offices—as harmful to the health of Orange County.”
Already four in 10 youths say the community they live in is not accepting of LGBT people, and members the LGBT community are more likely to attempt suicide.
In the healthcare setting alone, almost 9,000 LGBTQ residents of Orange County are without health insurance, and many live at or below the poverty level so even basic healthcare is out of reach, let alone HIV prevention or suppression medications and mental or behavioral health counseling.
“To truly create a healthy Orange County for all, we need the discrimination against our LGBTQ plus community to end,” said Yaeger. “Today’s ruling is unfortunately a step in the wrong direction.”
About Radiant Health Centers
Radiant Health Centers has provided more than three decades of exceptional care and support to people affected by HIV and their loved ones. It has been instrumental in driving new HIV transmissions down over the past 15 years; however, six people a week in Orange County are still diagnosed with HIV.
Radiant Health Centers encompasses traditional HIV testing and prevention outreach as well as long-standing services to Orange County’s HIV positive community while also creating a safe space to help more members of our LGBT community in need of compassionate care. Learn more at www.radianthealthcenters.org.
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When asked what we are most proud of, we think about our life’s greatest accomplishments: career, education or relationships. What I am most proud of is my ability to share my HIV story with others and being able to do so gives me a sense of confidence and pride. Just a decade ago, I recieved a positive diagnosis for HIV and at that moment it meant a death sentence. An inevitable and painful end, along with the stigma and fear of discrimination.
