An LGBTQ space in Cortland is resuming its meeting groups and may open soon to the public following a coronavirus pandemic-inspired hiatus.
The Cortland LGBTQ Center – under the purview of the Family and Children’s Counseling Services of Cortland County – is beginning to have in-person groups at 165 Main St.
The first group back was a Gender Expression and Revolution, or GEAR, an adult group that started on Thursday. The group is for adults who identify as trans, nonbinary, genderfluid, genderqueer or questioning.
“We're very excited to start opening the center,” Michael Doughty, coordinator at the Cortland LGBTQ Center, said in an email Friday .”We're starting with groups but are looking to open to the public very soon.”
The Cortland LGBTQ Center was closed because of the pandemic and planned to reopen in the summer. Before Doughty was hired as coordinator, the center had been largely inactive.
Masks are still required inside the building, Doughty said, but there is a patio section where they conducted half of the group’s allotted time Thursday.
“We are starting the process of figuring out the schedule for the center and when it's open, as well as sending out applications for volunteers,” Doughty said.
The center has been in Cortland for 13 years, but Family and Children’s Counseling Services took over the group six years ago.
Lisa Hoeschele, executive director of Family and Children’s Counseling Services of Cortland County, said she was thrilled groups are opening up in-person at the Cortland LGBTQ Center.
“Absolutely in-person is going to be much more helpful,” Hoeschele said Friday. “ We had to do most of our work via telehealth or Zoom. But meeting people where they are and providing them with hands-on support is very effective.”
