On June 1, Goddard House Assisted Living and Olmsted Memory Support in Brookline held their third annual LGBT Pride Flag Raising to celebrate Pride Month.
Residents and associates gathered to hear from community speakers and to witness the raising of the pride flag, which will remain raised throughout the month of June. Grace Moreno, executive director of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, spoke at the flag raising ceremony, sharing her own story to detail the unique challenges LGBT individuals face to find acceptance in their families and communities. Moreno also praised the Goddard House team for their commitment to fostering an inclusive community for all older adults, noting that a number of LGBT seniors end up hiding their identities and histories from others in their community as a result of not being accepted. Goddard House was the first Assisted Living community in Massachusetts to receive LGBT Cultural Competency Accreditation, through SAGECare.
Goddard House resident John Kaufman, who runs the community’s Reel2Reel film studies group, also spoke at the ceremony. Throughout the month of June, Kaufman will show films featuring LGBT characters and storylines for residents to watch and discuss.
When it was time to raise the LGBT Pride flag, assistant executive director Lance Chapman and Goddard House resident Linda Shaver carried it together to the flag pole before attaching and raising it. As the flag was being raised, the symbolism of each color was read aloud and explained.
