LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County

LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County Our Vision

The LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County strives to become a local thought leader for issues affecting LGBTQ+ people.

The LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County fosters inclusivity, well-being, and social justice for the LGBTQ+ community through advocacy and the provision of safe, supportive spaces. Our Mission

The LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County fosters inclusivity, well being, and social justice for the LGBTQ+ community through advocacy and provision of safe, supportive spaces. We envision addressing human rights issues by advocating for societal change to protect the physical, mental and emotional well being of our community. HOW WE ACHIEVE OUR MISSION & VISION

LGBT Equality Alliance partners with businesses, community groups, schools, foundations, and corporations to support LGBTQ+ community members in Chester County through pride festivals, after school events, education programs, art shows, health fairs, youth activities, and more. LGBT Equality Alliance aims to remove barriers of communication between Chester County LGBTQ+ residents and the greater community. It is our focus to unify the greater community so that all LGBTQ+ community members feel at home and supported in their living environment. Funds raised from annual and monthly events support the above initiatives and also provide funding for LGBTQ+ awareness trainings, GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) Clubs, and student scholarships. Our events are open to all open-minded, supportive community members. Learn more at https://www.lgbteachesco.org/

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, donor, or volunteer, contact us at https://www.lgbteachesco.org/contact/

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There are a few ways to connect with LGBTQIA+ community across Chester County this week, whether you’re looking for peer...
09/14/2026

There are a few ways to connect with LGBTQIA+ community across Chester County this week, whether you’re looking for peer support, something social, or a chance to share what you know.

Don’t Be A Stranger: LGBTQIA+ Peer Grief Support Group: Thursday, September 17 | 6:00 PM

Downingtown Library, 122 Wallace Ave, Downingtown

A peer-to-peer grief support space for LGBTQIA+ adults (18+) navigating loss and grief in its many forms.
RSVP/details: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025840/

Game Night at the LGBTEApot: Thursday, September 17 | 6:30 PM

LGBT Equality Alliance, 14 Gay St., 1st Floor, Phoenixville

Come spend the evening playing games with LGBTQIA+ community members and allies. Bring a favorite game if you have one, or just show up and join in.
RSVP/details: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025839/

Skills Share & Presentation Night:Friday, September 18 | 7:00 PM

LGBT Equality Alliance, 14 Gay St., 1st Floor, Phoenixville

A low-pressure community night for sharing skills, ideas, interests, and presentations with each other.
RSVP/details: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/315763229/

You don’t have to know anyone to come to one of our programs. These spaces exist so LGBTQIA+ people across Chester County have more opportunities to meet, find support, and build community locally.

We are officially three weeks away from OutFest.OutFest is an intentional space we create for people to come together an...
09/13/2026

We are officially three weeks away from OutFest.

OutFest is an intentional space we create for people to come together and make real, meaningful connections with each other outside of the bigger, louder, and sometimes overwhelming celebrations.

It is a quieter, more intimate kind of community event. A place for people who may still be figuring out what coming out means for them, who are unsure where they fit in LGBTQIA+ community, or who have been feeling lonely or disconnected.

The goal is simple: to create space where people can come as they are and connect at whatever stage they are at.

That might happen through making art together. It might happen through a conversation. It might happen while listening to q***r poetry, seeing work created by local LGBTQIA+ artists, learning something new, or watching someone step onto a drag stage for the first time.

This year, OutFest will include:

🎨 Painting with Silly Little Art Shop
🧵 Sewing, Mending & Philosophy with Atlas
👑 An Amateur Drag Show hosted by Divinity Cruz
✍️ Poetry with Alyx Matchett
🪪 Name Change 101 with Eastern PA Trans Equity Project
🖼️ An art show featuring local q***r artists

All of those different forms of expression are part of the point. OutFest is about seeing the many ways people in our community express who they are, while having space to explore your own identity and connection to community too.

You do not have to arrive knowing exactly who you are, where you fit, or what you want out of the day.

Just come be with us.

Sunday, October 4 | 12–5 PM
Chester County History Center
225 N. High Street, West Chester

Free to attend.

More information: bit.ly/outfest26

Tonight there are two ways to connect, and they are pretty different so take your pick!At 6:45 the Reading Fightin Phils...
09/08/2026

Tonight there are two ways to connect, and they are pretty different so take your pick!

At 6:45 the Reading Fightin Phils open their 13th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night at FirstEnergy Stadium, 1900 Centre Ave in Reading, and a night like that is loud and public and full of people who may not know much about us at all, which is its own particular kind of visibility — sitting in a stadium where our community's name goes up on the scoreboard lands differently than being quietly told you're welcome somewhere.
https://www.milb.com/reading/tickets/promotions

At 7:00, back at 14 Gay Street, our LGBTQIA Peer Support Group meets in a room where nobody has to explain themselves first, and where the whole point is that you can walk in as whatever version of yourself actually showed up that day.
RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025815/

Thursday at 6:00 the 20s and 30s folks are walking and talking at Johnsontown Park, 122 Viaduct Ave in Downingtown, meeting near the parking lot, and it sits close enough to the Downingtown Amtrak and SEPTA station that you can get there without a car, with leashed dogs welcome to come along. This one is hosted by a volunteer community leader rather than staff, so please use your own discretion about transportation, the venue, and your own safety.
RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316299484/

Friday at 6:30 the LGBTEApot turns into an arts and crafts night, so bring whatever you're making and let it go wherever it goes.
RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316145300/

Office hours are Tuesdays and Thursdays 9–1 and Wednesdays 3–7 at 14 Gay Street, 1st Floor in Phoenixville, if you'd rather come by when it's quieter. Everything else is at https://www.lgbteachesco.org

OutFest Series: The DadsScreening, October 3The night before OutFest, we're at the movies.The Dads follows a group of fa...
09/03/2026

OutFest Series: The Dads

Screening, October 3

The night before OutFest, we're at the movies.

The Dads follows a group of fathers of trans and nonbinary kids across a single year — from quiet retreats in rural Maine and Minnesota to protests, family milestones, a Supreme Court decision, and the collapse of gender-affirming care. It's a film about what fathers do when their kids' safety stops being hypothetical.

Directed by Emmy Award–winning filmmaker Luchina Fisher and executive produced by Dwyane Wade, it's the feature-length follow-up to the Emmy-winning short of the same name (Netflix, 2023).



We're co-hosting with PFLAG West Chester/Chester County as part of the OutFest series.

📅 Saturday, October 3 ·6PM

📍 Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center · 226 N. High St, West Chester, PA — directly across the street from where OutFest happens the next day.

Before the film: VIP cocktail hour with special guests.

After the film: a panel with producer Stephen Chukumba, a featured cast member, and dads who've attended the retreat.

Chester County is hosting its first pro bono Name Change Clinic! 🏳️‍⚧️During this virtual clinic, participants will rece...
09/02/2026

Chester County is hosting its first pro bono Name Change Clinic! 🏳️‍⚧️

During this virtual clinic, participants will receive a free, private consultation with an attorney who can help complete their name-change petition, answer questions, explain the next steps, and assist with a waiver of publication or motion to seal the record if requested.

📅 Thursday, October 1
⏰ 3–5 PM
💻 Virtual via Zoom
📍 Open to Chester County residents ages 18 and older

The filing fee, county name-search fees, designated fingerprinting fee, and one publication fee will be waived. Participants will only be responsible for the second required publication fee.

The clinic is open to anyone pursuing a legal name change, whether for gender affirmation, religious reasons, or another personal reason.

Registration is required, and space is limited:
https://www.chesco.org/6015/Name-Change-Clinic

OutFest is Sunday, October 4, noon to 5, at the Chester County History Center in West Chester.We'll have local q***r art...
09/01/2026

OutFest is Sunday, October 4, noon to 5, at the Chester County History Center in West Chester.

We'll have local q***r artists showing work, poetry, a painting session, a couple of hands-on workshops, and an amateur drag show at 4. A few community organizations will be tabling if you're looking for a resource or just want to talk to somebody.

It's free. Drop in whenever, stay as long as you want.

We're still adding to the schedule — more over the next few weeks.

Chester County History Center
225 N. High Street, West Chester
https://www.lgbteachesco.org/blog-events

September Programs & EventsA new month means more ways to connect, create, move, talk, listen, and be in community. Here...
08/31/2026

September Programs & Events

A new month means more ways to connect, create, move, talk, listen, and be in community. Here is everything happening with the LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County this September.

Tue 9/1 · 9:15 AM — LGBT Equality Alliance Business MeetUp Monthly gathering for LGBTQIA+ owned businesses and allied professionals, at the Chester County Library in Exton. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-county-lgbtqia-business-networking-group/events/312942308/

Thu 9/3 · 6:30 PM — Game Night at the LGBTEApot!! Games, snacks, and good company at the office. Bring a favorite game or just show up. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025814/

Fri 9/4 · 7:30 PM — Poetry Night at the Equality Alliance A q***r and trans-affirming space for creativity, storytelling, and connection. Read, listen, or just come sit with us. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/315763235/

Sun 9/6 · 10:00 AM — Phoenixville 1st Sunday Walk A beginner-friendly community walk along the Schuylkill River Trail, starting at the Rainbow Crosswalk. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/equality-alliance-of-chester-county-lgbtqia-hiking-group/events/315176645/

Tue 9/8 · 7:00 PM — LGBTQIA Peer Support Group A safe, supportive space for LGBTQIA+ adults to connect, share experiences, and find community. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025815/

Thu 9/10 · 6:00 PM — LGBTQ+ 20s & 30s: Hike at Johnsontown Park Walking and talking for folks in their 20s and 30s, in Downingtown. Organized by a volunteer community leader; the Alliance is not responsible for venue liabilities, transportation, or personal safety. Please attend at your discretion. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316299484/

Fri 9/11 · 6:30 PM — Arts & Crafts at the LGBTEApot! Bring whatever you're working on and let your creativity roam free. Pizza will be served. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316145300/

Thu 9/17 · 6:00 PM — Don't Be A Stranger: LGBTQIA+ Peer Grief Support Group Peer-to-peer grief support for LGBTQIA+ adults 18+, at the Downingtown Library. All forms of grief welcome; listening is participation. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025840/

Thu 9/17 · 6:30 PM — Game Night at the LGBTEApot!! Our second game night of the month, back at the office. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025839/

Fri 9/18 · 7:00 PM — Skills Share & Presentation Night! Community members share a skill, an interest, or something they love nerding out about. Humor welcome, perfection not required. 18+. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/315763229/

Tue 9/22 · 7:00 PM — Kennett Area Adult LGBTQIA+ Peer Support Group (Virtual) This month's Kennett Area group meets online — a trans-led peer support space for LGBTQIA+ adults in southern Chester County. The virtual link will be posted on the event page. Details: https://www.lgbteachesco.org/event-details/virtual-kennett-area-adult-lgbtqia-peer-support-group-2026-09-22-19-00

Wed 9/23 · 6:00–7:15 PM — Chester County LGBTQ+ Ally Affinity Group A space for allies to ask questions, share experiences, and find ways to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community here in the county. At the Chester County Library. Registration required. Register: https://ccls.libcal.com/event/15991108

Sat 9/26 · 10:45 AM — Gender-Expansive Community Connection A peer-led social and support group for anyone exploring their gender identity — questioning, settled, or somewhere in between. Note the newer start time. RSVP: https://www.meetup.com/chester-countea-q***r-meetups/events/316025837/

You don't have to come to everything. You don't have to know anyone already. You don't have to have it all figured out.

Come to what fits. Take what you need. We're glad to be in community with you.

Open office hours: Tuesday and Thursday 9–1, Wednesday 3–7, at 14 Gay Street, 1st Floor, Phoenixville. Everything else, including newsletter signup: https://www.lgbteachesco.org

Address

14 Gay Street
Phoenixville, PA
19460

Telephone

+14843812729

Website

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