Dorothy (and the Friends of Dorothy) agree: There's No Place Like Homo. That’s why we’re still thrilled that Stonewall Youth was finally able to purchase our lovely and historic building in 2018!
Along with housing Stonewall Youth, we’re making the Stonewall Community Center (SCC) a multipurpose community center designed to fulfill needs expressed by many people and social justice organizations in our community, particularly those that are “by and for” people of color and/or LGBTQ+ folks. The needs expressed include affordable and accessible office space, event and performance space, a large community kitchen, and access to space/equipment needed by low-income emerging entrepreneurs.
Many of the reasonably priced office, meeting, performance, and fundraising spaces in our community that were once available have been repurposed as condominiums, storage spaces for larger businesses, and other uses. Few of the remaining places areADA accessible. Our space will provide a stable and affordable place for a wide range of people to use.
The Community Center will provide leadership and entrepreneurial opportunities. Our plans for the space include a commercial kitchen, an all-ages performance space, a computer center, and other resources. These will provide income for local organizations and low-income community members.
We are particularly delighted with being able to host a youth and all-ages performance and event space. Many of the performances and events in Olympia take place at bars and other venues that are immersed in bar culture. By purchasing a permanent LGBTQ+ youth space, we will be able to work with allied organizations to host regular dances, music/spoken word performances, art shows and other events in an environment that is sober and safer. Low-income community members will be able to generate income from organizing events and performances.
Stonewall Youth is working with other organizations to create a community commercial kitchen. Stonewall Youth participants regularly voice a desire for a kitchen for greater access to healthy snacks, opportunities for community meals, a site to prepare food for fundraisers, and the opportunity to support emerging food entrepreneurs. Several of our allied organizations share this desire. These will provide income for Stonewall Youth and other organizations and will open up entrepreneurial opportunities for youth, such as youth who want to organize all ages shows, youth who want to teach cooking classes or youth who are aspiring food entrepreneurs who could use the kitchen to make sellable items.
Stonewall Youth staff, participants, and volunteers during our Capital Campaign
OMG, we bought our building!
In 2018, Stonewall Youth purchased our historic and conveniently located building in downtown Olympia at 112 State Ave NE. It’s a two-story building with a total of 4400 square feet. Built in 1910, the building is located less than a block from the Olympia Transit Center and within a few blocks of the Olympia Community Center, Percival Landing, and a host of downtown businesses.
We love it! Stonewall Youth currently inhabits the entire first floor, which is on street-level. It is ADA accessible and consists of a large main room with many lovely windows, two offices, two bathrooms, and a small kitchen. The main room has ample space for our library, our music and art programs, a youth staff office and a Biz Zone where youth participants can use computers and work on projects, and a large cozy area that is sort of the "living room" space where youth can hang out.
The second floor has a Stonewall Youth office and 10 other offices currently rented by an array of local artists, therapists, and other small businesses. The income from the rented offices covers our mortgage and many other building expenses.
The path towards building ownership was long, precarious, and demanded a steep learning curve! In 2016, the building that Stonewall Youth shared with several nonprofits for seven years was sold for development.
As we investigated our options and talked with a wide range of community members, it became clear that purchasing property was the best and most sustainable course of action for the youth we serve, our organization, our community, and other local LGBTQ+ and social justice organizations that need space for offices, meetings, and events.
We were fortunate that the previous owner of the building we eventually purchased was willing to let us lease space in the building and also sign a “Lease to Own” agreement with us. This gave us almost two years to raise the funds to purchase the building with an agreed-upon and very reasonable price of $415,000.
Thanks to the support of our generous donors, a loan from our credit union, and the hard work of volunteers, staff, Board members and participants, we finalized the purchase in July of 2018.
Former youth interns
A Space for LGBTQ+ Youth…in spite of local gentrification.
The necessity of dedicated and reliable LGBTQ+ youth space was at the core of our drive to purchase our HQ. Secured LGBTQ+ space provides a safe supportive space in which LGBTQ+ youth can explore and express the complexities of their identities and interests. LGBTQ+ youth -- many of whom have experienced homelessness and other struggles -- want and deserve the permanence of the place in which they seek refuge, build memories, make art, dance, support each other, share skills, heal, and grow. Perhaps even more profound and meaningful is that dedicated LGBTQ+ space provides a sanctuary in which LGBTQ+ youth can simply exist. As they are.
For nearly 30 years, Stonewall Youth has provided a wide range of services, support, and programs for LGBTQ+ youth. Like many nonprofits, Stonewall Youth regularly paid 10%-25% of its yearly income towards rent. Instead of building equity and increasing an ability to contribute to their communities, many community-supported nonprofits are caught in the cycle of paying rent to for-profit property owners. Is this the best use of the generous donations of community supporters?
For many nonprofits, renting results unpredictability and in a lack of control over their space. Stonewall Youth had to move at least ten times in the 28 years prior to finally purchasing our building. Some of these moves were propelled by positive circumstances, such as needing more space because of expanding programs. (Even these beneficial moves were taxing on our limited resources.) But most of the moves were caused by the problem we faced in 2016: being kicked out because the building was sold to new owners who want to develop a building for a different use.
Ownership of our building means that Stonewall Youth is more sustainable. We’re building our own equity instead of assisting for-profit building owners and corporations to build their equity.
Former Stonewall Youth staff and volunteer with WA State Supreme Court Justice Mary Yu.
IT TAKES A COMMUNITY TO CREATE A COMMUNITY CENTER!
Help us create a fabulous, useful, multicultural, multigenerational center that will benefit our communities for generations! Now that we’ve successfully purchased the building, we’re raising funds needed to make the second floor ADA accessible (including installing an elevator), installing a commercial kitchen, and other improvements.
DONATE: We love our community and the work we do at Stonewall Youth. We don’t love asking for money! But the cold truth is that renovating our Community Center takes money. All donations to Stonewall Youth are deductible, and there are many ways you can contribute financially to this community project:
Donate online through GiveCloud, Network for Good or through Venmo. You can also send checks to our mailing address (see below). Every dollar counts!
Make make a tax-deductible donation of stock to our brokerage account.
If you’re a current or retired Washington State public employee, please consider supporting Stonewall Youth through the Washington State Combined Fund Drive. (Our code is 0316285).
We welcome offers of setting up a bequest or paycheck deduction.
Check to see if your workplace is has a "Matching Gift" program to match its employees' charitable contributions. If there is no current program, consider asking your employer to set up a Matching Gift program!
BE A STAR SPONSOR: Organizations, businesses, and individuals who make a donation of at least $500 are invited to be a Star Sponsor. Along getting your name on on our Donor Mural, we will work with you to create a gift, opportunity, or memorial to honor your sponsorship. For more information, contact Bryn Houghton at bryn@stonewallyouth.org
ENGAGE: We could use plenty of help from folks who want to help us with the following:
Developing and implementing ways of making the building more accessible, interesting, safe and useful to many facets of our community. Tell us your ideas!
Fundraising: you could help us out with our existing fundraiser, or create your own fundraiser. examples: you could host fundraising dinner party or other event at your house or another venue. You could help us further develop our list of community members who might have the means and interest in donating.
Building renovation and maintenance.
All those other skills you have or are interested in learning!
How to get engaged: CONTACT us for current opportunities or fill out our VOLUNTEER FORM. You can also Sign up for our newsletter below. We'll keep you posted via our website and Facebook!
Stonewall Youth is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Our tax ID number is 94-3202727.