CHRISTMAS IN JULY
Saturday, July 14
Candy Canes were abundant and the stockings were hung by the dance floor with care as Triangle of Hope celebrated "Christmas in July" with a holiday ex-drag-a-ganza on Saturday, July 14th. With the help of Lady Victoria, Dramatica, Barbara Gordon, DJ and Hennessy, emcee Mary Brewster and the rest of the TOH gang helped raise money for local HIV and AIDS organizations.
Lady Victoria kicked off the show with a Connie Francis holiday favorite, and Barabra Gordon skated (yes, we said skated, like ROLLER skated) her way through k.d. lang's "Jingle Bell Rock". Mary Brewster closed the show with her annual "All I Want for Christmas Is You" tribute to Gary, however, we hope that all Mary wants from Santa this year is some duct tape to keep those boobies in place!
Wrapped presents including a DVD player, CD boom box, and Camp gift certificates were raffled off at the end of the night, and although the weather outside was quite frightful (that means HOT!), a delightful time was had by all! You can see a couple photos in the new Town House Photo Gallery.
Triangle of Hope is now on 'holiday' and is taking the rest of the summer off to relax and rejuvenate. They'll be back this fall with a casino run up to Superior, WI and their 12th Anniversary show, stay tuned for further details!
—Mary Brewster
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
A letter from MB
Congratulations to Triangle of Hope…11 years is a long time. Let me take you back to November 1995: Bill Clinton was President. A gallon of gas was $1.35. Britney Spears was 14. O.J. Simpson was found 'not guilty'. And at Over the Rainbow on West 7th Street, Triangle of Hope was born.
In November of 1995, I had just recently come out, and started hanging at Over the 'Bow. I found the easiest people to meet were the people that served me, the bartenders. I got to know one of them quite well. His name was Thom. It just so happened that Thom was the Show Director for Triangle of Hope, a new organization founded to help support individuals living with HIV and AIDS. The idea of drag didn't instantly appeal to me, however, I had visions of boas and sequins. Rhinestones and high heels. Wigs and eyelashes. (Okay, drag did appeal to me.) I asked to be in their next show, and he agreed. I can't begin to tell you about the weeks of preparation it took for that night. Choosing a drag name. Picking the right songs. Getting the right wig. Buying my first pair of size 12 pumps. Sitting on a toilet seat while a lesbian applied my make-up. It was glamorous.
Fast-forward 11 years. Thom has retired from drag (although I do get him out of retirement from time to time), and I have taken over his position as Show Director. Triangle of Hope has held drag shows, casino nights, bingo, overnight trips to Jackpot Junction Casino, and has raised close to $250,000.00 for people living with HIV and AIDS. We've given money to Camp Heartland, District 202, Agape House and Dos, Park House, The Aliveness Project, The Minnesota AIDS Project, Grace House, and to the Duluth/Superior HIV and AIDS community. And I did not do all of this by myself. There are so many people to thank: I'll try to make my list short and sweet: First off, to Thom, for giving me wings. To Ti-Nea', for teaching me how to fly. To that lesbian who painted me on the toilet seat: Rachel Livingston. To Jo and Linda, and Barry and Holly, for giving Triangle of Hope a home. To Gary, TOH would be nothing without you. To Folke and Richard, for keeping Triangle of Hope alive. To Tom-Tom, who in the past few years has become not only a wonderful friend, but a 'sister' as well. To my 'other sister' (hey isn't that a movie?) Anastasia. You truly know the meaning of friendship. You're 'gone', but not forgotten. :0) To all of the performers who have ever graced the Triangle of Hope stage, and of course, to everyone that's ever supported TOH. You are the reason why Triangle of Hope is so successful. There is no cure for HIV and AIDS. That's why supporting organizations like Triangle of Hope is so important.
Lastly, in it's existence; Triangle of Hope has lost two very special people to the disease that we have been raising money for. Ed was a board member, and a dear friend we lost in 1997. He graced the stage once 'singing' LeAnn Rimes' hit "Blue". I miss you dearly. The second person is someone that I haven't really talked about in length since his death in 2004. That's my 'sister', Miss Rachel Hunter. For those of you that never met Ronnie, you missed out on one special being. Almost 6 feet tall, he weighed 10 pounds (no that's not a typo, he really did weigh 10 pounds. Well, maybe 100……soaking wet), and had a voice deeper than Barry White's. I can't begin to tell you how many good times we had, or how many fights we had, how times we had drinks together, or how many times we did drag together. All I can tell you is that AIDS took Ronnie away too soon. "Your candle burned out long before your legend ever did". I miss you every single day.
With all of that being said, congratulations to Triangle of Hope on 11 very successful years. May the community you support be blessed with 11 more.
Much love,
Miss Triangle of Hope, Mary Brewster