As Pride month enters its homestretch, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved at local nonprofits, whether for a one-off event in June or continuing work the rest of the year.
Here’s how to volunteer with just a few Chicago LGBTQ+ nonprofits this year.
Brave Space Alliance
Brave Space Alliance is an LGBTQ+-focused mutual aid nonprofit seeking to build community resources, particularly for marginalized members of the queer community. Founded in 2017 to better serve the South and West sides, the nonprofit provides health and support services.
That includes the Dignity Suite, a free initiative devoted to queer individuals, BIPOC sex workers, and those “othered” society, seeking to offer people clothes “that make them feel seen and dignified” and have their essential needs met, according to Aicha Chehmani, the nonprofit’s community engagement strategist.
Volunteers can also devote time to the Community Pantry, where community members are able to find household essentials and groceries on weekdays.
“The way Brave Space operates is really focused on participant experience, and folks feeling like guests,” he said. “In the same way we don’t want participants to feel like guests that just come in and out, we don’t want our volunteers to feel that way either. Our volunteers should feel like they are part of the BSA community when they come in.”
Additionally, the nonprofit does outreach through events, including the Chicago Dyke March (June 27) and Navy Pier Pride (June 27). For these events, the best way to get involved is to email Chehmani directly (aichac@bravespacealliance.org), as volunteers are being added on a rolling basis, he said.
Volunteer sign-up is flexible, and those interested can sign up via the online form, specifying the day and time they intend to contribute, as well as adding their email to the mailing list.
Center on Halsted
Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., is an LGBTQ+ community and health center in Northalsted offering behavioral health services, HIV and STI testing and resources, youth programming, and more.
The Center on Halsted requires in-person volunteer orientations for all newcomers, alongside partial background checks, which can take up to a month, according to Steven Braun, head of the Volunteer Ambassador Committee.
Volunteering ranges from one-time commitments, such as helping set up, clean up, and and check people in at Pride events, including the Pride Fest beer (June 20, 21), the Pride Fest Youth Space (June 20, 21), marching alongside the Center on Halsted at the Pride Parade (June 28), and volunteering for the Center’s Pride viewing party that day. Beyond Pride month, one-time volunteers can help maintain the Center’s rooftop garden.
More consistent opportunities, such as volunteering as a front-desk receptionist, require a three-month commitment of three hours per week.
The Volunteer Ambassador Committee was created last year, offering volunteers a more complex role within the nonprofit. That can involve giving tours of the center, answering questions at table events, and working on the monthly newsletter.
“I think it’s so important for everyone to feel like a member of the community and the Center on Halsted is a great catalyst for that,” Braun said. “It’s like a magical place. When I enter there, I can just be my authentic self, and there haven’t been that many places in the past that I’ve always felt I could be that, so that’s why it’s special to me.”
Gay for Good
Based in 23 cities across the country, Gay for Good is a nonprofit devoted to the LGBTQ+ community through service projects. Launched in 2012, the Chicago chapter recently organized a North Avenue Beach clean-up. Gay for Good’s outreach goes well beyond the queer community, the nonprofit hoping to further visibility and community building.
“Pride does not end in June,” executive director Anne Friedman said. “Our mission, at its core, is about bridge building and community and creating a sense of belonging for our volunteers.”
Upcoming events include a food distribution program in partnership with Care for Real (July 11), in addition to a food packaging event (July 25) alongside Nourishing Hope, and volunteering at the Chicago Furniture Bank (Aug. 18). The nonprofit also supports year-round projects, including virtual and independent options. That includes the Kindness Rock Painting Project, where volunteers can paint “kindness rocks” for the Blaze Bernstein Memorial Garden in Foothill Ranch, California.
Smaller, independent projects can consist of making cards for seniors or organizing a “D.I.Y.” community clean-up, Friedman shared.
To get involved, those interested can create a volunteer profile through Gay for Good’s website, as well as signing up for the local chapter newsletter.
Howard Brown Health
Providing healthcare and gender-affirming services, alongside social justice initiatives, Howard Brown has served the city since 1974. Howard Brown Health has six locations, alongside the Broadway Youth Center.
To volunteer for most opportunities, including clinic-based services, people must apply, attend an orientation, and participate in a background check and screening.
Volunteering with the Broadway Youth Center requires a three month commitment “to minimize the changes for the young people, so they have some consistency,” said Steven Solomon, the community impact officer at Howard Brown Health.
Other opportunities are more flexible, whether volunteering at one of the Brown Elephant resale shops or volunteering at the Sheridan location, as well as working street festivals, such as Midsommarfest earlier this month. Volunteers can also sign up to march alongside Howard Brown Health during the Pride parade (June 28).
“It’s really like a lot of volunteer programs all wrapped in one,” Solomon added. “We give options so that people can see what’s relevant for them.”
“With the current administration, there’s a lot of attacks on our community, and so people are [asking], ‘What can you do with your time and your energy to help combat some of this?’,” he continued. “And you support organizations like us that are actually doing the work and supporting the folks that are being attacked. We haven’t changed our services, we haven’t changed what we do for a community. We continue to fight on, and so, if you want to support us, you can help keep us going.”
Other opportunities
Dozens of Chicago’s LGBTQ+ organizations have opportunities available for volunteers. People interested in helping out in the community may also wish to consider organizations such as Affinity Community Services, Equality Illinois, Lambda Legal or South Side Help Center, among others.
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