Great Barrington — A new group, Queer Men of the Berkshires (Q-MoB), has been formed to empower queer men in the greater Berkshire region. According to group steering committee member Bart Church, the idea behind the group is to create activity and support groups, classes, and resources that foster community for queer men. The group currently has a membership of 32 members and six activity groups.
“The group was founded because the COVID pandemic really kind of shut down the whole community for several years, and everybody kind of ended up on meet-up apps because it was the only way for people to meet others,” Church told The Berkshire Edge. “Since COVID has become less of a fear for people, I think people are hungry for in-person gatherings where they can meet others around activities that they enjoy to create a more social community again. The other thing that has driven the need for this group is that a lot of gay-oriented coffee houses and bars closed quite some time ago because of the pandemic. A lot of the places where people used to meet in person have either closed or are no longer functioning.”
According to the group’s website, activities for this month include a hiking group, a potluck brunch, a dining club, and a gaming night. “There is a huge need for a real community in real-time,” Church said. “At our first meeting, we had 32 people show up to discuss and organize activities where people can meet one another and build community.”
“The group formed coming out of a sense that we need more presence in the queer community in our rural area,” Q-MoB Steering Committee Max Rivinus said. “We’re beginning the group with fun activities. The idea is that through our social activities, we will create strong social bonds in the queer community. One of the challenges to living in a rural area is that we don’t have queer clubs, and it can sometimes be hard to reach out to that community.”
Rivinus said that the group has been created to act as a hub for gay men to connect around various activities. “There have been several initiatives in the past, and several organizations still have a presence in the Berkshires,” Rivinus said. “But in the past, there was a little bit stronger of a community. As things have changed, those organizations have either dissolved or are doing fewer events. One of the goals is for us to make sure that people are aware of the things that are currently happening. Various activities are scattered throughout Berkshire County, and getting the word out about them is sometimes challenging. One of our goals is to unite all of these small organizations through this peer network.”
Church said that in-person activities are critical to the growth of the organization. “People want activities that are fun where they can meet new people of various generations and backgrounds,” Church said. “This is not a club and there is no membership fee. For somebody to participate in the planning of these events, they need to at least subscribe to our email list and attend at least one meeting to have a say in electing our steering committee.”
Church said that Q-MoB has received donations from its members to fund its startup. He said that, in the next two months, Q-MoB intends to incorporate itself as a not-for-profit corporation, seek a 501(c)3 fiscal sponsor, and then write out grant proposals to finance the development of group projects.
Church added that membership is open to people from Berkshire County and the surrounding region, including the Hudson Valley region of New York, Northwestern Connecticut, and Southwestern Vermont. “One important part of our mission is to be geographically diverse,” Church said. “We want to reestablish community resources to have a group that is a queer-friendly, queer-affirming, and queer-supporting community.”
“We also want to focus on the intergenerational aspect of our group and being a hub where young people can come and find mentorship and community in older gay men who might have experiences that would help them on their journey as young people,” Rivinus added. “I would like people to know that we’re trying to create an inclusive group that includes gay men of all different backgrounds, all different ages.”
For more information about Q-MoB, go to its website.
