Rainbow Family & Friends is a non-profit social and charitable organization located in The Villages, Florida.  Our goal is to provide activities, support, and charity to the community and all those interested in support, respect and human rights equality for all.  Join us at our next meeting or one of our sponsored events.

Upcoming "Family" Events Calendar



USED BOOK SALE A BIG SUCCESS!
Ya' won't believe it!! Fred & Herb counted up the bucks and we raised $2928 with the book sale. We are very excited by the success of this project and proud of all we have accomplished. Thanks to everyone for your efforts and hard work especially to Karen & Suzanne who helped steer this committee to a successful end. Yawhoooo for that Power of Love!


A Beginner's Guide to Orlando Gay Days
Is this your first year at Orlando's Gay Days festival? If it is, you're in for a fabulous journey, but you're going to need a road map to navigate your way through this wonderland of gay vacation delights. The Beginner's Guide includes information for both men and women coming to Gay Days. It is also a great resource even if you are a regular attendee since Gay Days grows each year.

Gay Days is an all-over town, something-for-everyone vacation extravaganza. The staff at GayDayS.com is proud to be an important part of making this the best vacation you'll ever have.

Some people come to Orlando during Gay Days just to enjoy the company of 150,000+ other gays and lesbians, but most are looking to fill their itineraries with fun, fun, fun.

It does take a little planning and information to be sure you get everywhere you want to be. Be sure to check our complete Calendar of Events since only the highlights are represented here.

This guide describes the major categories of events, tells you how to get tickets, and gives you some ideas about transportation. Events tend to fall into three major categories:
Theme Park Visits
Hotel events including the Gay Days Expo, welcome cocktail parties, pool parties, comedy, etc...!
City Parties - There are main events around town such as the Parliament House, and there are parties for both women and men.For each category you'll find an Overview, a Getting Tickets section and a Getting Theresection. So, get your trip planner out and mark your route!

In the News Sources

Many of our posted articles in the news are gathered from the Gay Politics Report. You can subscribe to this service by clicking here.
IN THE LGBT

Sea of Red

Orlando's love of Gay Days has only grown stronger, as has the gay community's love for Orlando

By Troy Petenbrink
Published on March 14, 2013, 3:24am | Comments

"I would warn Orlando that you're right in the way of some serious hurricanes, and I don't think I'd be waving those flags in God's face if I were you. This is not a message of hate – this is a message of redemption. But a condition like this will bring about the destruction of your nation. It'll bring about terrorist bombs; it'll bring earthquakes, tornadoes and possibly a meteor."

To say that conservative Christian Pat Robertson missed the mark when he made this statement in 1998 in response to the city of Orlando, Florida's support of Gay Days would be a polite understatement.

Orlando's love of Gay Days has only grown stronger, as has the gay community's love for Orlando.

What started as a single-day LGBT takeover of Disney's Magic Kingdom has expanded to a week of events held throughout the city, attracting thousands of participants. The benefit to the local economy is estimated at around $150 million.

''It was fabulous to see the sea of people wearing red shirts flooding the Main Street of Magic Kingdom and the other parks,'' recalls Syrel Fadullon. ''I felt welcomed and comfortable. And to me that was amazing and reassuring.''


Fla. lesbian in relationship charged with sex crime after turning 18 
Windy City Times (Chicago) (5/24)

The national council of the Boy Scouts of America voted Thursday to end its ban on openly gay youth members, but kept in place its ban on LGBT adult members or volunteers. The Mormon church said it supported the move, which was approved by a vote involving more than 60% of council during an annual meeting in Texas. About 2.7 million youth and 1 million adults were involved with the Boy Scouts of America as of Dec. 31. CNN (5/24), The Wall Street Journal (5/23)

Nev. Assembly approves marriage-equality amendment 
A constitutional amendment that would repeal a ban on same-sex marriages and remove references to gender in the state's marriage law passed in the Nevada Assembly this week. An identical measure must be approved in the 2015 legislative session before the question can be put to the state's voters. Assemblyman James Healey, who is openly gay, told his colleagues about his partner who was killed in a motorcycle accident three years ago. "I stood up at Eddie's funeral and I promised his mother and his family that I wouldn't stop fighting until we had this," Healey said. Las Vegas Review-Journal (5/23), Reno Gazette-Journal (Nev.) (tiered subscription model)

Immigration bill moves forward without LGBT language 
The Senate Judiciary Committee this week voted 13-5 to approve an immigration-reform bill after Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., withdrew an amendment that would have provided a remedy for same-sex binational couples. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told Leahy that he would not support the amendment because he believed Republicans would abandon the bipartisan effort if the LGBT language was included. Activists expressed anger at both parties, with one calling the withdrawal of the amendment "shameful." Metro Weekly (Washington, D.C.)/Poliglot blog(5/22), Advocate.com (5/22), BuzzFeed (5/21)