ARTBeat, July-August 1998

              July-August 1998
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Greensboro: 855-8558
Winston-Salem: 748-0031
Alternative Resources of the Triad ARTbeatNews@juno.eom
Your source for the Triad gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgenders news and information.
History of Alternative Resources of the Triad
Parti
Alternative Resources of the Triad was formed after
Kathryn Smith left her position as Executive Director of Triad
Health Project in early 1988. She recruited numerous friends
and acquaintances to assist in the startup. John Quillan of the
Charlotte Gay and Lesbian Switchboard provided invaluable
assistance on each step of the process and Greensboro attorney
Ron Johnson donated his services in attaining non-profit tax-
exempt status for the organization. A most significant event
was an anonymous gift of $1000 designated as seed money. As
the organization grew, others joined in the process and the
energy just seemed to grow. ART held its first 'official' event,
a lesbian health fair, in March 1988.
The heart and soul of ART, the Gay & Lesbian Hotline of
the Triad, was initiated shortly after the lesbian health fair.
This has proven to be the foremost function of the organization.
Someone donated the spare room of their apartment as a site for
the hotline and Bill Herndon donated the phone equipment. The
first training was conducted by John Quillan with seven persons
in June of the same year and included such Hotline pioneers as
Sean Cowart, Janelle Lavelle, Heather Cutler, Bo Newsom, and
Pat McCormick. The official opening of the hotline received
coverage in the Greensboro News and Record as well as two
local television stations. In fact, Sean took the first couple of
calls while a reporter and photographer were watching and
listening. The ball was rolling with the hotline and continues to
this day.
As the organization grew and prospered, it began offering
other services such as counseling by professional practitioners
and meeting space for support groups. Board members Jimmy
Hopkins, Sarah Rahenkamp, Lizz Hamilton and others made
significant investments in time, work, and emotional support for
the organization. Kathryn Smith received tremendous support
and advice from Henrietta Franklin throughout this period.
Mike Coverstone initially only wanted to help out with the
printing needs through his business, Rapid Impressions, but
after several months he decided to join the board of directors.
He had great communication skills, a good business mind, and
was completely supportive of the hotline. After his training to
work the hotline, he became a tireless volunteer in staffing the
phones and raising money to the keep the organization going.
Other individuals like Donald Draggoo, Harvey Linebeny,
Alan Christopher, and Margaret Bessette continued to help the
organization grow. ART changed locations several times during
this period until they found a home with the American Friends
Service Committee on Grove Street. The philosophies and
objectives of the two organizations meshed well and ART
remained here for several years.
At some point in 1989 the Hotline volunteers began holding
weekly rap sessions and someone noticed that only a few women
were attending and this was brought to the attention of the
planning committee. In order to correct this situation, the
committee organized Lesbian Connection and its first meeting
was held on Sunday, June 3, 1990. In order to pay its bills, ART
continued to plan and conduct several fund raising functions
such as pool parties, Halloween parties, Lesbian Luau,
Volunteer Appreciation, etc.
ARTBEAT is a publication of the
Alternative Resources of the Triad, a non-profit organization.
ARTbeat Committee
John Doan, Jerry Elmore, Charlotte Dula,
Luke Jones and Jonathan Ferris
Board Members
Stephen Carrigan - President
Wendy Scott - Vice President
Sharon A. Snow - Treasurer
Charlotte Dula, Sharon Maitiand, BUI Miller,
Richard Patridge and Ariene Fonorow
During January 1991 Ed Burrows agreed to help Kathryn
coordinate the hotline. Two long time board members, Mike
Coverstone and Harvey Linebeny, decided in February to step
down and were replaced by Jay Cheek and Andy Hagler. Other
board members were Susan Bryson, Delane Bowman, Alan
Christopher, and Mitzi Griffin. In August 1991 Kathryn
announced her intention to leave at the end of the year saying
that she simply needed a break and it was "time to pass ART
on." To help with the transition a board retreat was scheduled
with John Quillan facilitating. Several events were occurring to
raise money as well as visibility. The latter was achieved to a
major degree when ART participated in the Greensboro
Christmas parade.
We have covered in this article the major milestones in the
development of ART through 1991. In the September /October
issue, we will begin with the events of 1992 when one of ART's
ARTBEAT, volume 11, issue 3
06/24/98