|
Serving the central, eastern & northeast Wisconsin LGBT community since 1996 2008 Guernsey Gala Begins July 18 |
|
 Upcoming Official Guernsey Events July 18: Guernsey Kick-Off Show 10:30 PM - Napalese Lounge July 19: Guernsey Gala Annual Softball Tournament 12 Noon - Perkins Park in Green Bay 2007 Grand Total: $10,989.38 Total Raised To Date: $153,600+ |
The Guernsey Gala holds a special place in
the Wisconsin LGBT community's long history of battling HIV/AIDS. The competition was created in 1992 by
Wayne Thiele and his friends as a way to raise money needed to help
people living with HIV in the city of Green Bay who were struggling to
make ends meet. The Gala was
fashioned after Milwaukee's Possum Queen contest with candidates
running for the title of "Guernsey Queen" by collecting dollar "votes."
Four local bars - Brandy's II, The Napalese Lounge, SASS, Za's
Videobar - participated in the first "pageant" and raised several
hundred dollars. Over the next ten years Wayne - as his Guernsey alter ego "Elsie Bovine" - raised tens of thousands of dollars for the clients of Center Project, and later, the Green Bay office of ARCW. After the 2002 competition, Wayne asked Rainbow Over Wisconsin to take over the organization and promotion of the event. ROW members agreed and with Wayne's mentoring hand, began sponsoring the Guernsey Gala in 2003. Though other gay community-sponsored AIDS fundraisers like the Possum Queen or Madison's Cookie Jar changed focus and ultimately ceased to exist, the Guernsey Gala continues true to its original mission. In 2007, the Guernsey surpassed $150,000 in life time total funds raised. Rainbow Over Wisconsin is proud to continue to sponsor this long-running, caring tradition. For 2008, the Guernsey Gala has been "re-imagined" with more participants than ever! The biggest change is that the focus of the project has moved from "competition" to "collaboration." Seven gay-friendly venues in Appleton, Green Bay, Oshkosh and Sheboygan will hold fund-raising events and projects from July 18 to September 27. |
