A Movement. A Reality. “RENT.”

Through my AmeriCorps position with the Runaway Outreach Program at the Boys and Girls Club of the Fox Valley I work as a co-facilitator with a weekly LGBTQ teen support group at Harmony Café in Appleton. Harmony is a community café run through Goodwill Industries, with another site in Green Bay. The café is truly a part of the community. Other than the fact that there are delicious food and beverage options available at the café, there are a myriad of healthy program options every day. For instance, different individuals lead groups and programs that focus on such topics as meditation, grief, substance abuse, and LGBTQ teens/adults. In addition, local bands play their music on various nights.

Yesterday I was able to be a part of a one of the LGBTQ-focused programs. A movement. A reality. “RENT.” Two cast members from the Broadway production of “RENT, now playing at the Performing Arts Center (PAC) in Appleton, came to Harmony Café in Appleton to speak about the topics in the production during a “Conversation Café” event. Harmony Café and PAC staff organized this event to bring discussion of the production into an intentional program space. Throughout the event I helped with tasks needed for the venue, from signing in people at the door to group discussion facilitation. It was an honor to do so with a team of committed people who made the idea of this discussion a reality. In addition, it was powerful to listen to and then engage with the cast members about everything from identity to AIDS to community, particularly because I saw the show at the PAC a few nights later.

Young and old alike were present at the discussion. My 17-year-old sister and five of her friends came to this event, which reiterated the importance of youth engagement in such discussions about society. With today’s youth so often being influenced by the media around them, “RENT” has no doubt reached thousands of youth, but in a positive light. I believe it is important for youth to build a lifestyle of knowledge, acceptance, and discussion on such issues as those in “RENT” at an early age; after all, they will eventually be the leaders of this country. WAHRS employees face the issues in “RENT” on a regular basis and in different ways, which is why the work we do is relevant and important to youth.