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NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Press Contact: Gordon Hensley, 828-406-9015
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BoonePride Officially Announces the High Country’s Third Annual GLBTQ Event “Cultivate Pride”

BoonePride, a newly formed non-profit organization, announces Friday and Saturday, June 8 & 9 as the dates of Pride 2007, the High Country's third annual GLBTQ celebration. With this year’s theme, “Cultivate Pride,” we invite everyone to help us fulfill our mission to celebrate, unite, and support our growing GLBTQ community. As in years past, there will be a DJ dance including top 40 music videos and a cash bar until 1am Friday night at the Broyhill Inn and Conference Center. The following day, we are planning other events which may include a picnic, softball game, legal workshops, and an evening of local talent. This year, we are excited to devote a portion of the proceeds to start a scholarship for a deserving high-school student from the area, as well as funding our on-going commitment to provide LGBTQ literature to public libraries for young adults.

The $10 Tickets include all events and are available on the web site starting in May, or at the door the evening of the event. For more information, visit www.boonepride.org. A complete schedule of events will be posted online in April.

If you are interested in volunteering, vending or donating to Boone Pride, please contact: pride@boonepride.org

New SC Pride Season Announced!

The new date for South Carolina Pride is September 22, 2007. This new date will make a fitting 'cap' to the new Pride Season in South Carolina. The change in date will help avoid excruciatingly hot days and freakish thunderstorms which have plagued SC Pride in recent years.

We hope you will enjoy the change in time of year as we return SC Pride back to Finlay Park in downtown Columbia.

More events will be planned to surround the parade and festival and announced. So mark your calendars for Saturday, September 22 and we'll see you there!

SC Pride 2007 Theme: Equal Rights Are Human Rights

For more information, visit http://www.scpride.org.

Women-In The Woods is gearing up for the 3rd Annual Camp Weekend. The event is scheduled for July 27-29, 2007 at the Deep River Campground in Asheboro, NC. We are excited to bring you another fantastic event at a new location. We will have an event filled weekend of food, music, games, contests and a raffle with wonderful prizes. The campground also offers a variety of activites, including fishing, boating, swimming, basketball, badminton/volleyball, horseshoes, walking trails and a large game room with 3 pool tables and arcade games. There is also a wonderful group area with a large gazebo and Pavilion for everyone to hangout with each other.

The event is in the planning stages, so stay tuned for more information about musical guests, scheduled activities and so much more. Visit the official website at www.women-inthewoods.com. Camping Reservations can be made at the Reservation Station on the website.
The Women-In The Woods Weekend is brought to you by Carolina Lesbian, a non-profit organization. This is our annual camping event for women. We hope you will join us for a fun filled weekend, meeting new women from the southeast and forging new friendships. If you would like to volunteer to participate in the planning of this event, please visit our website. For businesses/organizations that would like to advertise with us or sponsor this event, please contact us.

For more information, visit Women-In The Woods

The Lesbian & Gay Community of Charlotte will be holding a Volunteer Open House for all new, returning, and potential volunteers for the following organizations:

• The Lesbian & Gay Community Center
• Pride Charlotte
• Gay & Lesbian Switchboard
• One Voice Chorus

The open house will be held Saturday, March 24th from 2PM to 4 PM at the Lesbian & Gay Community Center, 1401 Central Avenue, Charlotte, NC, 28205. (704)333-0144

Come find out how you can get involved with some of these great community groups. Refreshments will be served.

Gay Charlotte
Pride Charlotte
One Voice Chorus

PRIDE Charlotte, an event of the Lesbian & Gay Community Center, is updating its website and we are giving you a preview of one of the new features - a message board to interact with us and the rest of the LGBT community.

The boards include categories for announcements, suggestions, pride stories and memories, a soapbox, and other discussions.

The forums can be viewed by everyone but you must register as a member to post.

Stop by and interact with us at http://www.pridecharlotte.com/forums

And keep checking back to PrideCharlotte.com . The new site should be uploaded soon and we will soon be announcing the date for PRIDE Charlotte 2007 as well!

Also, visit us on myspace at www.myspace.com/pridecharlotte.

See you there!

PRIDE Charlotte Task Force

Studio Diesel is the newest lesbian club to come to the South!

Opening in August of 2007, Studio Diesel will be setting a new benchmark for all alternative lifestyle bars in the country. With innovative style and a provocative ambience, Studio Diesel is sure to be your first choice in after hours entertainment.

Our premier location will open in the University Area of Charlotte, NC. Nestled just off of I-85, it will be 15 minutes from downtown and 15 minutes from the Concord/Kannapolis Area. Studio Diesel will be open Tuesday through Friday starting at 4pm, serving up Happy Hour hors d'oeuvres and drink specials until 2am. Saturdays start at 4pm and the party continues into the night with the liveliest DJ's spinning dance hits all night long. Sunday we slow it down with our hangover party starting at 2pm. Watch sports, videos and other entertainment on multiple screens located through out the bar or play video games in our spacious game room.

Studio Diesel will feature a variety of entertainment: Drag Kings & Queens, Musicians, Bands, Poets , Actors and Artists. Don't miss the announcement of our Grand Opening VIP Party. The VIP party is by invite only, giving all attendees an opportunity to see the sensual, aesthetic style before the general public and experience the newest alternative-lifestyle club to open in North Carolina..

Join our mailing list (coming out soon) to get more information and tickets to this special event. Visit our website at www.mystudiodiesel.com or our myspace page at www.myspace.com/studiodiesel.

And don't forget... Studio D is the place to be!!

Open Letter to Friends of The Center
By: The Lesbian and Gay Community Center
Publication: 02/07/2007
Author: The Board of Trustees of the Lesbian & Gay Community Center

Dear Friends & Sustainers of the Lesbian & Gay Community Center,

As recently published, the Center is in a transitional phase of development. As of February 1st, the Center is under new leadership and the Board of Directors have made important and tough decisions to ensure the continuation of services the Center currently provides. Some important changes to know are:

• The Center no longer can sustain paid staff. As of February 1st, the Center will be a 100 percent volunteer organization until further development occurs. This was an especially difficult decision to make, but we feel that it is best for the Center's future.

• The Centers hours of staffing have also been reduced. New hours will continue to be Tuesday - Thursday from 5pm - 8pm and Saturdays from 10am - 1pm.

• The Center has eliminated unnecessary bills to reduce the day-to-day operational costs of the center.

• The Board of Directors are also taking on a new direction to apply for grants, develop events for the Center that are low cost to produce and seek annual donations from sustainers like you.

We want to let you know that first and foremost this is YOUR Center, and it will not survive without your participation. On February 13th, we will be holding a Town Hall meeting to gain input from the Community. We strongly urge you to attend this meeting to give voice to your concerns and wishes for the Center.

Additionally, we will introduce movie night at the Center. Our first movie night will be Friday, February 16th at 7:00 PM and we will feature The Devil Wears Prada. We feel this will be a fun event for everyone to enjoy and help support the Center.

It is important to know that you can always help sustain the center by donating time, or by giving monetarily to the Center. Our website www.gaychrlotte.com makes this easy for you to do through Click-to- Pledge. With this system, you can donate by Visa, MasterCard, or PayPal. You can also participate in our Dollar-A-Day program by having your payment divided in to 12 monthly payments. This system will allow you as a sustainer to control how you contribute to the Center's financial success.

In closing, The Board of Trustees would like to thank everyone who has helped make the Center possible for the past five years and hopes that you will help maintain our Center and the services it provides for many more years to come.

Sincerely,

The Board of Trustees of the Lesbian & Gay Community Center

__________________________________
The Lesbian & Gay Community Center
1401 Central Ave Charlotte, NC
704-333-0144
www.gaycharlotte.com

BREAKING NEWS

SOUTH CAROLINA PRIDE IS ON THE MOVE

On January 20th, the South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Pride Movement met and made the decision to move our annual Pride Parade and Celebration from spring to fall. The move is a positive step for our community as Pride has outgrown its current schedule. In a proactive move, SC Pride will move the rally, parade and celebration from late May to the weekend of October 12, 13 and 14, 2007. The main events will take place on the 13th in celebration of National Coming Out Day and our struggle for equality. The event moves back to Finley Park, with the parade returning to downtown. Also, the State House rally returns. New events will be added to round out this special weekend celebration. Football, the State Fair and Gay Pride will make for a fabulous fall.

Our Pride season will kick off in May and last till October with many events planned. This year will see the Miss/Mr. South Carolina Pride Pageant becoming two events as we will now crown a King and a Queen at new events hosted by PT’s Cabaret. The Mr. South Carolina Bear and Cub contest will heat things up at Club Fusion. For those still looking for a Pride event in May, we will be hosting a no media community picnic on the 19th. Our newest Pride event, the Pride Film festival, hosted by the Nickelodeon Theater, will kick off the second annual event with exciting new films. Date’s and details to be released soon. For continued updates on all these events please visit www.scpride.org for more information.

These moves were made after serious thought and discussion, with our community needs in mind. October will offer us a wonderful opportunity to attract thousands more to our major events. We have always been one of the earliest prides in the south and now we will be able to network and advertise at other Pride events, such as Atlanta, Asheville, Charlotte, and NC Pride. The weather also played a major factor in this move, with October being milder, with less chance of thunderstorm plaguing events as in the past. We will also move our event into a time period where all our major colleges will be able to play a larger role in the event. And finally, SC Pride has become too large to fit in one week. SC Pride will now celebrate the Pride season from May to October, with new and retooled events that will celebrate the mission of the South Carolina Gay and Lesbian Pride Movement. Our winter season will consist of Pride Idol, Kings and Idols, and our annual Christmas concert.

We hope you all join us in celebrating this exciting change as SC Pride moves from one week of events to a new Pride season that will encompass our entire community and celebrate Pride all year.