This past year saw several changes to neXt. neXt was a spin-off of FUSE and was formed in March 2010 to meet the needs of St. Louis' gay/bi/curious men age 30-55. Men who are 55 and older are encouraged to attend Rainbow Brotherhood. At the time of the split of the two groups, FUSE was meeting on Thursdays at the warehouse at Bad Dog Bar. Rainbow Brotherhood was given that night, and neXt moved to Tuesdays.
But neXt wasn't always neXt. We didn't have a name in the beginning. We didn't even really have a following. A few dedicated members helped to form and shape the "neXt" name, logo, and vision. Over the course of a few weeks, neXt was born in early spring 2010. We continued to meet on Tuesdays until scheduling conflicts moved us to our current meeting place: in a conference room of an office building. At that time, we moved back to our previously-established Thursday nights.
Over the past eight months, neXt has become quite a cozy group of familiar faces. We're like family, but always great newcomers with a warm smile and a friendly "hello". The intention of neXt is to be inclusive of everyone in our LGBT community, and as we press forward in 2011, we're going to make it happen.
Our long-time coordinator, Ian Koller, is pursuing another career path, so as we look to fill the void, neXt will continue. The group will be facilitated by core members and volunteers until we find the next neXt coordinator. If you're interested in the position, please send your resume to Carolyn at cguild@stlefa.org. Let's continue neXt's goals together.
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