SAGE Tulsa featured at OkEq’s “First Thursday”

OkEq’s December First Thursday exhibit gives SAGE Tulsa’s members a chance to stretch their artistic wings, and show their talent. SAGE (Service and Advocacy for GLBT Elders) is a national program for older LGBT adults. Still a vital and active force in our community, even after retirement, in long-term relationships or single, SAGE Tulsa participants continue to provide critical leadership to our movement.

The artistic works include all forms of art expression from oil and acrylic paints, to hand made sculptures and pencil drawings. Many SAGE members are published authors and have been featured artists in galleries across the country. Most pieces will be for sale and have been donated by the SAGE artists.

SAGE constituents often have felt the sting of having to go back in the closet to access social services, after having lived “out and proud” for decades. Isolated from the larger Tulsa community and feeling as if they have aged out of the nightlife scene, they sometimes struggle to connect with the LGBT community.

Rejecting the category of “senior citizens,” many have led inspiring lives as instructors, artists, musicians, community leaders, professionals, and are so woven into the fabric of Oklahoma history, that their sexual orientation has almost been hidden.

The artwork on display from members of SAGE Tulsa reflects their lives and their times.

The show begins with a reception on Thursday, December 4 from 6-9pmat the Dennis R. Neill Equality Center, 621 E. 4thStreet in downtown Tulsa. There will be a door prize drawn of the artists’ work; the show continues throughout the month.

SAGE Tulsa meets every Tuesday from 10am to 3pm in the Sue Welch Great Hall at the Dennis R. Neill Equality Center. For more information phone: (918) 743-4297, or email: sage@okeq.org

Founded by a dedicated group of volunteers in 1980, Oklahomans for Equality/OkEq is Oklahoma’s oldest gay rights organization. From testing for HIV/AIDS and hosting the annual Tulsa Pride and Diversity Celebration to operating the Equality Center and documenting the Tulsa LGBT community’s rich history, OkEq works for social justice and full inclusion for Oklahoma’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) citizens and their allies. For more information, see www.okeq.org

The Gayly – December 2, 2014 @ 11:10am