September 26, 1997 GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE 13

COMMUNITY GROUPS

North Coast member named to world chorus board

by Roger Durbin Cleveland-Neil Giewont, former president of the North Coast Men's Chorus, was recently elected to the board of directors of the international Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses, or GALA.

At the annual GALA leadership conference, this one held in Toronto, Canada, over Labor Day weekend, Giewont campaigned successfully for one of

the seats on the board. He cited his role as one of the earliest members of the North Coast chorus, his six years' experience in leadership positions within the cho-

rus, and his membership

the gay and lesbian experience. In the past few years, GALA helped North Coast by funding two of the works commissioned by the chorus, thereby providing direct support for gay voices to be heard-in lyrics, in music, and in voice. This is no small contribution in the world in which we live.

Members of the board of GALA, like Giewont, take their roles with great seriousness and fervor, for they are fully aware they

NORTH COAST MEN'S CHORUS

CLEVELAND OHIO

in the Coastliners, the chorus' ensemble group, as direct experience that would serve him well if elected.

GALA is a service organization of over 160 choruses with members from all over the world. The group sponsors several special events throughout each year (like the recent small ensemble festival in July in Muncie, Indiana, where the Coastliners were one of the featured groups). It holds an annual leaderhip conference, and conducts a large organization-wide choral festival every four years, most recently a Tampa extavaganza in which the North Coast chorus participated with great delight.

GALA is an important organization within

speak as a strong voice on gay and lesbian issues. As Giewont put it, he can see "the impact we [in gay and lesbian choruses] are making on the world, changing people one by one... from the closeted chorus member who now can be out and proud, to the mom or dad that now sits proudly watching their child on stage, to members using the chorus to come out to people they work with . . . and seeing their acceptance."

Giewont will be serving on GALA's longrange planning committee and the board development committee. He is very excited about these appointments, and feels that they both are very good fits for him. His first board meeting will be in Washington, D.C., in November. He will attempt to attend the Canadian Choral Festival in Edmonton in May 1998. Canada has over 20 choruses that

Coming out is an important step for our allies, too

"Yep, I'm gay." With those three words, Ellen DeGeneres used her candor to make the lives of lesbian, gay and bisexual Americans better. But you don't have to be famous to make a difference. National Coming Out Day-October 11-is upon us, and the Human Rights Campaign can help you make the most of it.

Coming out is one of the most important steps we can take to secure equal rights. People who are aware of the lesbian, gay and bisexual people they already know are much more supportive of ending discrimination based on sexual orientation. Whatever your next step is toward being more open and honest about your orientation, the time has come to take it. Whether it's telling a family member, friend or co-worker, the more honest and visible we are, the more we can break down unfair myths and stereotypes.

Coming out isn't just for lesbian, gay and bisexual people, either. Yes, as gay people we need to come out and be honest, but also

we need to encourage our fair-minded straight friends and family members to come out in their own way-by voicing support for equal rights. After Ellen DeGeneres came out earlier this year, her mother Betty came out as an advocate for lesbian and gay equal rights and is now HRC's 1997-98 National Coming Out Project spokesperson.

"As long as our gay sons and daughters face discrimination and are excluded from the basic protection of our laws, I will urge all American families to come out for fairness," Betty DeGeneres said.

Clearly, coming out is for everyone-so why not take your next step today.

For information on National Coming Out Day or to receive a free resource guide to coming out, please contact the Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Project, at 800-866-6263, visit our web site at www.hrc.org or write to 1101 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005. To join HRC, call 800-777-4723.

are members of GALA.

North Coast choristers are proud of Neil Giewont's accomplishment, and are excited to have his voice represent us at the international level. Those of us who know Giewont know that he will speak very clearly and with great conviction on issues as they come up, and will help to shape in good ways the gay and lesbian choral movement that GALA leads.

For those who do not know Neil Giewont, you may remember him as the Wicked Witch of the West in the chorus' production of The Wizard of Oz last June, under the direction of the chorus's music director Timothy Robson.

The eight-member Coastliners will have a concert as part of a four-performance season. The performance, "A Little Light in Their Loafers" (are we surprised?) is being held on Saturday, October 4, at 8:00 pm at West Shore Unitarian Universalist Church, 20401 Hilliard Blvd in Rocky River. Tickets are $10. Call Advantix at 216-241-6000 or 800-766-6048, or e-mail the chorus at ncmc@mindspring.com, or hunt down your favorite chorus member. Look for the ad in this issue of the Chronicle.

The Coastliners promise music ranging from the sublime to the outrageous. The larger chorus will be there as well, helping out and adding their voices.

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