A Letter From The President

National PFLAG Staffer Visits Omaha

 Bob Dorr, PFLAG Omaha

 Posted on December 19, 2005

Omaha PFLAGers will have a chance in January to learn public speaking skills. On Saturday morning, Jan. 14, National PFLAG staffer Elizabeth Hampton Brown will conduct a training that includes a session on public speaking skills.

Elizabeth also will speak at PFLAG’s Jan. 12 meeting. Her topic: What National PFLAG Does. The meeting, in First United Methodist Church’s Mead Hall (west end of building), will start with support time at 7 p.m. The program will begin at 8 p.m. Come for coffee and socializing at 6:30 p.m.

The Jan. 14 training, at PFLAG’s meeting place in Mead Hall, will start with coffee and rolls at 8:30 a.m. Elizabeth will conduct a session at 9 a.m. on how to improve our membership recruitment and retention.

At 10:45 a.m., she will focus on basic public speaking skills with emphasis on skills for people who are nervous about speaking alone to a large group. She will talk about telling our personal story in a way that gets PFLAG’s message across. The free training, open to all, will end shortly after noon. If you would like to come, please call Bob and Betty Dorr at 333-7064 or email them at: bobcdorr@cox.net

Elizabeth has responsibility for helping PFLAG chapters in 16 states including Nebraska and Iowa. Her work also includes coordinating National PFLAG’s public response to judiciary issues and to marriage and family issues.

THE NEW FILM “BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN,” a gay love story, is winning acclaim from film critics New York, Los Angeles and Boston. It led in Golden Globe nominations with seven, making it a likely Oscar contender. It is the story of two young cowboys who work together during the summer in 1963 pasturing sheep on Brokeback Mountain. Here is a description of the film in December’s Greater Chicago PFLAG Chapters newsletter:

“During their time alone on the mountain the two young cowboys develop an attraction that bursts forth into a sexual relationship. After their initial sexual encounter they both deny that they are gay, but it is clear to the viewer that their bond and attraction is both emotional and physical.

“When the summer ends they go their separate ways. . . Each marries and has a family, but four years later they reunite and go back up to Brokeback for the first of several fishing and hunting trips during which their love grows along with their frustration at not being able to live their lives together. The remainder of the film takes us through the next 20 or so years of their relationship together and their lives apart from one another. . .

“This film, like many good films, can be viewed on several levels. It encompasses the issue of gay men who for whatever reason don’t feel free to live their lives openly. It deals with the wives and children of these men.

“There is also the tension of moments of true love stolen from an unsatisfying and unfulfilling ‘regular’ life. And the fact that the story takes place in a rural setting rather than an urban one gives another perspective to the evil and sadness of homophobia in our society. . .”

The film opened Dec. 9 on both coasts and is expected in Omaha on or shortly after Jan. 13.

AT OUR DECEMBER MEETING, Omaha PFLAGers donated two boxes of new toys and $57 to the annual Toyz for Totz drive. The Imperial Court of Nebraska collects toys and distributes them each year to children in less fortunate gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender families.

Thanks, you generous PFLAGers.

THE WORLD-HERALD PUBLISHED a series of articles in December entitled “25 Angels You Should Know.” They are people who unselfishly do volunteer tasks that help others and make the world a better place to live.

We have many such angels in PFLAG. From time to time, I have written profiles of these board members and volunteers, but I haven’t done any for a while. I am making a New Year’s resolution to get back to doing more of these in 2006.

Bob Dorr
Omaha PFLAG president