Gay Hotline begins
16 th year
A pioneer of unstigmatized counseling , the Counseling Center
for Sexual Minorities operates the Gay Hotline seven
nights a week with volunteers.
BY
£ £
N E S T O R ___ P E R A L A
o ahead, the counselor is on
the line,"
"Good evening. This is Mike. May I
help you ?"
Thus begins a typical conversation on
the Gay Hotline, properly known as the
Counseling Center for Sexual Minorities
(CCSM), which this summer completed
:/p
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fifteen years of service to the community.
The Gay Hotline started in 1972 when
the Second Foundation, a social-charitable
organization for gay men and women, set
up a counseling service for the gay com
munity consisting of a telephone hotline
and paraprofessional one-to-one counsel
ing by the members of the Board of Di
rectors. Later that year the program was
badly in need of evaluation and reorgani
zation, so recruiting of people outside the
Second Foundation was begun. In January,
1973, the group decided to break all ties
with the Second Foundation and become
autonomous because they wanted a new and
clearly defined public service image, pro
fessional standards, and nonprofit status.
The group unanimously agreed that an un
stigmatized counseling alternative to the
traditional mental health approach was
needed for sexual minorities. The name.
Counseling Center for Sexual Minorities,
was chosen after the Seattle model.
The most urgent need and most easily
realized goal was determined to be an in
formation, referral, and crisis intervention
telephone hotline. A training session for
future telephone listeners was begun in
February, 1973. The first training session
lasted four months and was attended by 20
people weekly. By March, articles of in
corporation and by-laws were drawn up.
Space was rented at the Northwest Hotline
Facility at 1007 NW 23rd Avenue. Monthly
bills for rent, phone, and publicity were
paid by membership pledges, but by 1974
there was not enough money to meet ex
penses, so arrangements were made with
the Doctors' Official Telephone Exchange
for telephone listeners to work in their own
homes with calls being patched through
from the Exchange. This arrangement is
still in effect.
From its beginning, CCSM has attempted
to be of help to all sexual minorities. Its
training sessions include information
about cross-dressers. In 1974 a cross-
dressers’ rap group for transvestites and
transsexuals began meeting at Centenary
Wilbur Methodist Church. This group
later developed into the Northwest Gender
Alliance, the local cross-dressers’ organi
zation, which works with CCSM to be of
service to this segment of the population.
From its original schedule of offering
hotline service three nights a week, the
Gay Hotline now operates seven evenings
a week from 7:00 p.m. to 11 p.m. A typi
cal evening's call may vary from. "I'm
new in town, where are the bars?”
"W hat’s happening in the gay commun
ity?’ ’ " I just had a gay experience; does
that mean I’m gay?’ ’ to "M y daughter has
just announced she’s gay; what can I do?"
The answer to the last question ends up
with the caller being referred to Parents
and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
(PFLAG) which has one-to-one counsel
ing and monthly meetings.
Although the hotline has Counseling
Center in its title, it has not been able to
offer the one-to-one counseling that the
name states. The only time this has been
possible was in 1975 when for four months
funding was obtained from CETA Title II
for three full-time paid employees. Exten
sion of the funding by the City Council lost
because of the opposition of Councilman
Frank Ivancie.
Funding over the years has been diffi
cult. Support has come from individual
contributions, benefits put on by various
organizations, and dues from members.
Contribut ions are always welcomed.
Because of normal attrition due to job
changes, moving, etc., there is always a
need for new hotline workers. Several
times a year weekend training sessions arc
held. Those interested should call the
hotline number, 228-6785. Training
includes actual practice in answering the
calls, information about the gay commun
ity in Portland, how to discuss typical calls
about being lonely and depressed, prob
lems with one’s lover or about finding a
partner, feelings of guilt and low self
esteem, problems about coming out,
masturbation, fetishism, problems of
parenting, cross-dressing, etc. Up-to-date
referrals are made to professionals such as
doctors and lawyers who are not necessar
ily gay, but who are understanding of gay
problems.
Fifteen years of serving the community
has been made possible by the hard work
and persistence of dedicated volunteers
who give of their time and energy. The
Gay Hotline. CCSM, looks forward to
many more years of service.
•