A Milestone for LGBTQ+ Rolla

Yesterday, June 30, 2025, was a milestone in my life and, I hope, in the life of my community. Back in 2010, as I recall, Susan Murray prodded me down a path towards affirming and supporting the LGBTQ+ community. In 2013, my wife’s health crisis put a pause on progress, but by 2017 I was starting to think again about how I could best fulfill my calling to serve the LGBTQ+ community and help everyone flourish.

In 2019, I started putting things in action. Being straight, I didn’t have any idea what would best serve the LGBTQ+ community in Rolla, so I had lunch with a couple of gay acquaintances. The repeated message I received was that we needed a focal point. There are LGBTQ+ individuals everywhere, but too many of them think they are the only ones. They don’t realize how many peers they have and don’t have a way to find community.

Then the pandemic hit. After some dithering, I realized that COVID wasn’t going away anytime soon, so I might as well get on with life. I had connected with Onyx Russ, a nonbinary grad student, at a couple of campus events. We started talking about what we could do. LGBTQ+ Rolla was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in August 2020. Other people came and went, and eventually we decided to have some Zoom gatherings. Those went well, and then when the weather was nice enough, we started gathering in person in city parks.

Finally, in June 2021, we held our first Pride gathering at Schuman Park. I would have been satisfied with 30 people, but 80 showed up! That demonstrated and validated the message I had received: LGBTQ+ individuals are hungry for a way to connect with one another. Human connection is vital for human flourishing.

Since then, the organization has grown exponentially. Pride 2022 had about 200 people, so in 2023, we moved to the downtown festival lots. We added a drag show, which resulted in blowback and extended city council meetings for months. Fortunately, the furor died down, and now drag shows are accepted as normal entertainment. We continue to have drag at Pride and have hosted shows at S&T and at the local VFW post.

When the LGBTQ+ Rolla board of directors did its strategic planning for 2025, we decided to open a physical location. Shasta Johnson, our president, found a rental property that would work for us. We signed the lease in April and started renovations. Lots of people contributed to the work of turning a run-down, former tanning salon into a beautiful and functional space.

Finally, yesterday, we had a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Rolla Chamber of Commerce and opened to the public. I would say we had 75+ people in attendance. It was amazing! There is so much excitement about having a space where we can gather, host small events, open our affirming clothes closet, and more!

My personal calling is to live out the Gospel message that the kingdom of God is at hand! I believe that the kingdom of God is universal human flourishing. We all have physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational needs. It is my hope that the LGBTQ+ Rolla Community Center will be a place where people can experience true community, true connections. It is my hope that it will enable LGBTQ+ members of our community to flourish, to grow into the best version of themselves.

Yet I must remember that this is a milestone, not the end. Now the next phase of work begins: keeping the doors open, fighting bigotry in the community, managing the inevitable conflicts that will crop up as people from diverse backgrounds come together. But I am convinced that we will succeed if we keep focused on our mission: Affirming, Supportive, Visible Community.