Huntington Town gay group meets opposition

Despite some opposition, the Town of Huntington Senior Center's new Gay Straight Alliance Club will continue to meet.

Town officials said they received a letter in January signed by some people who use the senior center suggesting the club wasn't welcome.

Irene Tsikitas, director of adult and senior services for Services & Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Elders-Long Island, known as SAGE-LI, who facilitates the meetings, heard about the petition and decided to respond with an informational discussion at the center.

"We want to talk about what it means to be GLBT and create a safe and supportive atmosphere for GLBT elders and their allies," Tsikitas said after the discussion on Wednesday.

She said the group meetings, which began in October, will continue to be held on the second Wednesday of each month at 11 a.m. at the center in the Huntington Village Green complex.

Roy Schmitt, 64, of Lynbrook, a retired educator, spoke at the meeting of his journey to come out as gay. Schmitt said he and his spouse, John O'Hara, 57, have not had much success in finding social groups for seniors where they feel comfortable and safe.

He said there were many people who would benefit from a senior gay-straight alliance club.

Such clubs "are an important step in helping some of us who are reticent about coming out or getting involved in the senior culture," said Schmitt, who was joined at the event by O'Hara. They have been together for 32 years. "Because we have been so private for so long and a lot of us don't want to be found out that way, it's a great way to integrate us on both sides, from the non-gay world as well as the gay world."

Former Suffolk Legis. Jon Cooper of Lloyd Harbor was also a panelist. He said he was "shocked" and "disappointed" that a petition against the Gay Straight Alliance Club was circulated, especially in Huntington.

"The best way to counteract the ignorance and fears is through dialogue so I thought today's [Wednesday's] meeting was great," said Cooper, who is openly gay.

Leonard Kramer, 85, who splits time between Huntington and New Jersey, said he objected to the petition opposing the alliance's meetings.

"I tell people I have a gay son all the time," Kramer said. "There's nothing to hide . . . they [the GLBT community] are people and you just accept them as they are."