QMUNITY's Stories of Older Queers

The interviews in this collection were donated by QMUNITY, British Columbia's largest LGBTQ community centre, located in Vancouver. They were conducted as part of a project called Stories of Older Queers: Videography and Archives of Queer Elder Experiences. Stories of Older Queers was a project of QMUNITY's Generations program, which offers services to LGBTQ adults 55+ to address their specific needs. The project creates a collection of video interviews and still pictures chronicling the experiences - good and bad - of older lesbian-gay-bisexual-transfolk before these pioneers' voices are stilled.

The interviews in this collection were donated by QMUNITY, British Columbia's largest LGBTQ community centre, located in Vancouver. They were conducted as part of a project called Stories of Older Queers: Videography and Archives of Queer Elder Experiences.

Stories of Older Queers was a project of QMUNITY's Generations program, which offers services to LGBTQ adults 55+ to address their specific needs. The project creates a collection of video interviews and still pictures chronicling the experiences - good and bad - of older lesbian-gay-bisexual-transfolk before these pioneers' voices are stilled. The project seeks to recognize the skills and experiences of older LGBTQ adults in successfully navigating a homophobic world and provide a platform for sharing their accumulated wisdom. By recording their experience in a welcoming, non-judgmental environment, queer seniors' histories have been preserved for future generations of researchers, students, historians, and others interested in the stories of older queers.

The project was funded by the Department of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (later renamed the Department of Employment and Social Development Canada). It received a grant from the Community Participation and Leadership Fund of the New Horizons for Seniors Program.

The interview recordings and records from "Stories of Older Queers" were donated to Dr. El Chenier's Archives of Lesbian Oral Testimony (ALOT). A portion of these interviews featuring lesbian content are also available to watch on the ALOT website.

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Displaying 16 - 30 of 36

Ellen Woodsworth

Ellen Woodsworth
Date: 2010-11-23
Name(s): Woodsworth, Ellen
Description: Tape of the QMUNITY interview with Ellen Woodsworth. Ellen was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1948 to a very socially progressive family; a torch that she carries with honor. Ellen spent her high school years in Japan, and then moved to Vancouver to complete her education at UBC. She both inherited and developed a great awareness of what was happening on the international stage, as well as her rights, responsibility, and privilege as a Canadian. In her teenage years, Ellen began to forge her own…

Greta Hurst Tape 1

Greta Hurst Tape 1
Date: 2010-10-29
Name(s): Hurst, Greta
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Greta Hurst.

Greta Hurst Tape 2

Greta Hurst Tape 2
Date: 2010-10-29
Name(s): Hurst, Greta
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Greta Hurst.

James Trenholme

James Trenholme
Date: 2009-11-13
Name(s): Trenholme, James
Description: Tape of the QMUNITY interview with James Trenholme.

Jenna Stuart Tape 1

Jenna Stuart Tape 1
Date: 2009-12-05
Name(s): Stuart, Jenna
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Jenna Stuart.

Jenna Stuart Tape 2

Jenna Stuart Tape 2
Date: 2009-12-05
Name(s): Stuart, Jenna
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Jenna Stuart.

Jesse MacGregor Tape 1

Jesse MacGregor Tape 1
Date: 2009-10-24
Name(s): MacGregor, Jesse
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Jesse MacGregor.

Jesse MacGregor Tape 2

Jesse MacGregor Tape 2
Date: 2009-10-24
Name(s): MacGregor, Jesse
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Jesse MacGregor.

Judith Radovan Tape 1

Judith Radovan Tape 1
Date: 2011-01-20
Name(s): Radovan, Judith
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Judith Radovan. Judith Radovan was born in Chile in 1944. Judith's father was very supportive of her, and Judith described her mother as a strong woman with a very positive demeanor. Judith had an early recollection of her mother preparing "tea and bread for a beggar," an outward focus that may very well have impacted Judith's later involvement and concern with the social needs of the people of Chile. In her early years, Judith lived in a number of…

Judith Radovan Tape 2

Judith Radovan Tape 2
Date: 2011-01-20
Name(s): Radovan, Judith
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Judith Radovan. Judith Radovan was born in Chile in 1944. Judith's father was very supportive of her, and Judith described her mother as a strong woman with a very positive demeanor. Judith had an early recollection of her mother preparing "tea and bread for a beggar," an outward focus that may very well have impacted Judith's later involvement and concern with the social needs of the people of Chile. In her early years, Judith lived in a number of…

Libby Davies

Libby Davies
Date: 2010-12-22
Name(s): Davies, Libby
Description: Tape of the QMUNITY interview with Libby Davies. Libby Davies was born in Aldershot, England in 1953. Her father was in the British military, which meant frequent moves to countries all over the world, including Cyprus, Germany, and Malaysia. Libby remembers her culturally diverse childhood as being filled with amazing activities such as visiting remote villages in the jungles of Southeastern Asia. Her changing environments, coupled with her parents' social and political engagement,…

Mary Brooks Tape 1

Mary Brooks Tape 1
Date: 2009-10-26
Name(s): Brooks, Mary
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Mary Brooks. Mary Brooks was born in Birmingham, England in 1955, and describes herself as "a good powerful woman that has grown up to be a lovely dyke". Mary became aware of gender roles at a young age, as she observed the privilege of her brothers, while being trained to run a household. Anxious to experience life outside of the expected mold, and to surface, amidst her own internalized homophobia, Mary ventured across the Atlantic to Toronto in 1978. A…

Mary Brooks Tape 2

Mary Brooks Tape 2
Date: 2009-10-26
Name(s): Brooks, Mary
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Mary Brooks. Mary Brooks was born in Birmingham, England in 1955, and describes herself as "a good powerful woman that has grown up to be a lovely dyke". Mary became aware of gender roles at a young age, as she observed the privilege of her brothers, while being trained to run a household. Anxious to experience life outside of the expected mold, and to surface, amidst her own internalized homophobia, Mary ventured across the Atlantic to Toronto in 1978. A…

Murray MacKay Tape 1

Murray MacKay Tape 1
Date: 2009-10-23
Name(s): MacKay, Murray
Description: Tape 1 of the QMUNITY interview with Murray MacKay.

Murray MacKay Tape 2

Murray MacKay Tape 2
Date: 2009-10-23
Name(s): MacKay, Murray
Description: Tape 2 of the QMUNITY interview with Murray MacKay.