LGBT Summer Celebration

We ended the month of July with our annual LGBT Summer Celebration. Here at LGBT Health and Wellbeing we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed both by volunteering or attending and adding to the wonderful atmosphere.

I’d like to take this time to share my experience at the celebration to hopefully encourage anyone who is hesitant about attending social events. I know from personal experience that going to something where you might not know many people, or anyone at all, can be intimidating; and for the socially awkward of us, even scary. By sharing my experience at the event, I hope to give you an idea of what LGBT Health’s events are like and ease your worries a little.

I have been volunteering in the Edinburgh’s offices for a couple of months now and it has been an incredibly valuable and overall wonderful experience. The LGBT Summer Celebration was the first event that we organised that I had the chance to attend and help out at. As a volunteer, I arrived before the official opening to help with some of the setting up and as soon as I walked into the building I knew that it was going to be a great experience. I was welcomed by other volunteers who were there to help with the event, and I can genuinely say that everyone there was wonderful and so excited to be working at the event. The venue was lovely, decorated with all the possible rainbow things you can find, and we had some amazing live performances that made everyone smile and even gave a little shimmy. As the helper at the craft table, I had the chance to talk to different people and get (accidentally-on-purpose) covered in glitter (I have no regrets, but I’m still finding specks of shiny foil around my house). What stood out to me most and what I will remember, is how much everyone cared about the community. It was clear that we were there to make everyone feel accepted and to celebrate the warmth and strength of our community.

So if the thought of sticking out or not knowing anyone is holding you back from coming to any of our events, please don’t worry. I barely knew anyone coming there and I had the chance to meet some wonderful people who did not hesitate to start a conversation and include me in activities. Both my friends, who I brought along with me, kept commenting on how welcome and happy they felt at the event. Both, not knowing what to really expect before arriving, said that they have never been anywhere where they felt like they were not judged and they did not have to worry about how they were coming across. The atmosphere at the celebration made you feel like you could just be yourself, it was this wonderful little bubble of support and acceptance and I am so happy I got to experience it. Also, I got to see a puppy in a stroller, so that seriously made my day.

After attending the event, the name ‘LGBT Summer Celebration’ absolutely made sense to me. It was a gathering of people who carry out small acts of kindness in their everyday life and it is right to take a day to celebrate that. I hope that you will find the time to attend some of our events and get the chance to feel like you found a place where you can be yourself.

Lenka