Today! The Queer Umbrella Thrifting Fundraiser

Looking for a fun way to get involved with and give back to the LGBTQ community? This Saturday, Today, May 6, rom 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Town Hall Collaborative, The Queer Umbrella, a local Denver organization that aims to make the queer community more accessible, is hosting its second annual queer thrifting YardSale fundraiser to benefit two Colorado LGBTQ organizations, The Transformative Freedom Fund who supports the authentic selves of transgender Coloradans by removing financial barriers to transition-related healthcare, and YouthSeen, whose mission is to foster and empower the social and emotional well-being of LGBTQ youth and their families in all communities.

“Both organizations were chosen based on their work and community impact. It was important for us this year to choose an lgbtqia+ youth organization and a trans organization.” Walsh informs. “Given the 533 anti-trans bill introduced across the U.S. and the targeted attack on trans and LGBTQIA+ youth, it made sense to choose these two organizations working with these populations.” Additional goals of The Queer Umbrella Yard Sale are to get people connected to other queer community organizations, empower people through self-expression, and to explore gender-affirming style in a supportive space.

“The Queer Umbrella was founded with the purpose of making queer community accessible in the summer of 2020… Our community culture is historically rooted in nightlife, and aside from dating apps, we found it challenging to make queer friends,” Founder Kai Walsh says. “Virtually at first, we started hosting events and providing resources to connect the greater Denver area. From there, it’s been a blast to grow enough to fundraise for LGBTQ+ non-profits alongside our mission…We host queer events; our name is the Queer Umbrella; we are loud and proud to be queer. Our vision is to turn shame to pride and fear to curiosity. Self-acceptance is an important part of self-identifying as LGBTQIA+, and we have built a community of supportive, accepting individuals.”

Hoping to surpass last year’s funds raised, preparations for this year’s event started in April, where clothing of all shapes, colors, genders, and sizes was encouraged to be donated. “The most challenging part is the coordinating. Coordinating clothing drop-off locations, clothing collections, sorting and storing… We are a small team, so it’s all hands on deck in the final stretch. We would not be able to do it without the volunteers that will make it all happen the day of,” Walsh explains. “Last year, we raised $4,000 for the Colorado Name Change Project and the Transgender Center of the Rockies. We are hoping to raise over $6,000 this year—a lot of community members have been asking for another YardSale, and we are planning on delivering, hard.”

The pre-pride month YardSale fundraiser is a perfect place for queer-identifying individuals and allies to find affordable gender-affirming clothing, workwear, and vintage finds. “I am a trans-masc, nonbinary person,” Walsh shares. “Growing up, I wasn’t allowed to wear the clothes I wanted to wear, so I used to steal my brother’s clothes. We all know that feeling of wearing affirming clothes—a favorite shirt, pants, or hat. It makes you feel good inside. That’s what we are aiming for. Here’s an event in celebration of defining who you are, how you want. You know yourself better than anyone else does. It’s so important to build trust with your mind and body. Dressing in clothes that affirm you is a trust exercise with yourself!”

Many LGBTQ and gender queer individuals find it difficult to find clothing that both affirms their gender identity and is affordable. The Queer Umbrella wants everyone to feel like they have the freedom and convenience to make a positive impact in their community, pricing all thrifting finds at or under $10, ensuring everyone wanting to participate has the opportunity to, free from financial burdens found at many thrifting spots nowadays. “This event is an act of rebellion to anyone telling others how they can and can’t exist. It is a celebration of who you are and how you choose to express yourself. For any trans or queer person, this is an opportunity to show up authentically and be yourself,” Walsh adds.

Those attending the event will be able to enjoy delicious eats from Tabasco food trucks and tasty treats from The Easy Vegan while listening to live music from Denver-based, queer-identifying DJ Hex Kitten. Furthermore, patrons of the event have the opportunity to enter any of their 23 raffles including ski passes, dinner certificates, tickets to Meow Wolf, merch, and much, much more. “We are most looking forward to the letter writing station.” Walsh expresses. “We wanted to have a meaningful activity for people to celebrate themselves. We came up with the prompt of: Write yourself a thank you letter. We will have people write their address on the envelope and we will mail it to them.”

“This event comes at an opportune time, after waves of reactionary legislation that violate trans and queer rights to gender affirming care, education, freedom of speech, drag shows, and more. This event seeks to highlight the stubborn, persevering joy that binds the queer community and to declare that trans rights are human rights.” Walsh states. “During a time when self-expression is a radical and sometimes illegal act, YardSale ‘23 is here to shake up the community. In addition to thrifted clothes, Denver-based LGBTQIA+ nonprofits will host booths that provide attendees with the opportunity to sign up for queer social groups and volunteering, write letters to our representatives against anti-trans legislation, get resources for LGBTQIA+ mental health, and even snag a professional photo showing off thrifty finds.”

The Queer Umbrella acknowledges that now more than ever, it is crucial that queer and gender non-conforming individuals and allies feel that they have a space that is supportive, safe, accepting, and inclusive for everyone. “Given ongoing attacks on healthcare for trans youth and public gender expression, it’s more important than ever that we focus on the Trans community. That includes creating events designed for trans and gender non-conforming folks.” Walsh conveys.”We will continue hosting events and promoting other community/social events. We host a free monthly book club and regular game nights. Some fun events we’ve done in the past that would be fun to do again are queer dance nights and movie nights. We also are in conversation with local lgbtqia+ non-profits to host more educational events—such as how to testify at the legislature and how to help fight anti-trans and anti-lgbtq legislation.”