There has been an increase in the number of social groups for LGBTQ+ seniors in Hampshire County over the last few years, stemming in part of the efforts from Rainbow and Allies, a social coffee group that meets once a month now across different communities.
One of the catalysts in starting groups in Hadley and Amherst, Marc Barrette, 65, wanted to be a part of creating a space for LGBTQ+ seniors where they could connect in a community setting on a consistent basis. Barrette said all are invited to these social hours, but it was important to establish a space for the aging gay community to meet.
“Loneliness is the critical issue right now for seniors and it has become an epidemic and to fruition during COVID,” Barrette said.
Barrette said he found the inspiration to start his own local group after learning of one in Holyoke during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shortly after starting a group with a few other residents in Belchertown, then later in Amherst after moving, Barrette was able to help bring these social hours after they had been lacking for a handful of years for the senior community.
“The idea was to have a place where people from the LGBTQIA and allies could come together for one hour a month for a cup of coffee. That was the impetus for this all,” Barette said. “I’m not in charge or anything like that, I always just tried to facilitate.”
Over the last three years other communities have adopted the Rainbow and Allies coffee hours within their senior communities. Currently there are nine groups that meet monthly across Western Massachusetts senior centers in Amherst, Holyoke, Belchertown, South Hadley, Northampton, North County and Hadley. For more information on when a specific senior center’s group meets, contact the senior center in your community.
Barrette added the growth of these coffee groups for LGBTQ+ seniors would not have grown across the county without the support of these communities’ senior centers and the volunteers who step up and help run the typically monthly meetings. These efforts in return have created social spaces for the elder LGBTQ+ community and its allies to gather and connect on a regular basis.
“Luckily, I think a lot of people are finally starting to come out of their shell and I think they’re realizing as we get older, the loneliness thing is really becoming prevalent and this is a space to connect with peers and find some community,” Barrette said. “As far as the continued outcome of it, it’s going to blossom even further.”
Reflecting on the community he’s found himself when in through the different groups he’s frequented, Barrette said he and many others have made new friendships, companionships and overall connections with one another through these groups and relating on everyday life. He added the Amherst group he still attends regularly sees an average of 10-20 participants each week, now more than a couple years old.
Along with the monthly meetings, different senior centers will add other gatherings in relation, such as the Hadley Lavendar Potluck Lunch of the LGBTQ+ community last month. Attendees were invited to bring a dish to share or their own lunch while meeting with other LGBTQ+ seniors.
The space has helped support older members of the LGBTQ+ community in a time of life that has its extra challenges, and according to Barrette it has provided a space giving many a connection with others.
“We have several men who came out later in life. In a majority of these people, remember the discriminatory times they lived in. A lot of them had families, kids. So, for them to be able to come to a group and be able to talk about that with maybe somebody else is I would say a therapy session, but it’s also a way to community,” Barrette said. “I think we might see more of them [groups] popping up with the senior centers because I know the [state] aging commission is working on that and getting seniors these types of groups.”
