The Senior Alliance

Inside The Senior Alliance – MiGen: Downriver Sip & Chats (Ep 52)

In this episode, Emma Case, Planning and Advocacy Specialist at The Senior Alliance, is joined by Kat Hutton, Program Director at MiGen, and Kristin Holtz, Database Curator at The Senior Alliance. Kat talks about MiGen, its mission in supporting LGBTQ+ older adults, the unique challenges LGBTQ+ older adults face, and how MiGen works to address those situations. Kristen talks about how she and Kat collaborated to create Sip and Chat events through The Senior Alliance and the impact these events have had in helping to foster community and combat isolation among LGTBQ+ seniors. Important information! www.thesenioralliance.org. Produced by The Senior Alliance and Blazing Kiss Media.

Emma Case (00:00):
Welcome to Inside The Senior Alliance, a podcast exploring resources and issues in the field of aging. I’m Emma Case, Planning and Advocacy Specialist at The Senior Alliance, the Area Agency on Aging, serving Western and Southern Wayne County. Joining me today is Kat Hutton, Program Director at MiGen, and Kristin Holtz, Database Curator at The Senior Alliance. Kat. Kristin, thanks for joining me today.

Kat Hutton (00:20):
Thank you for having us.

Emma Case (00:21):
Kat, I want to start with you and get some background on MiGen. Can you share a little bit about what MiGen is, your mission and how you support older LGBTQ+ adults?

Kat Hutton (00:32):
MiGen, our Michigan’s LGBTQ+ elders network, is an organization that serves folks 45 and up who are self-identified as part of the community. I know a lot of times people bristle when I say 45 and up, but it’s kind of exemplary of a lot of the reasons that we focus on LGBTQ+ older adults because unfortunately, this population has a lot of disadvantages. They tend to have lower economic resources, fewer resources for caregiving. They might face a lot of discrimination in healthcare or the workplace. And so folks need a lot of assistance and sometimes they need that a lot earlier than traditional senior service organizations are able to provide. We also find that LGBTQ+ older adults are much more likely to be caregivers, not just for friends, but even for family of origin, whether or not they have a good relationship with that family, that they tend to look at LGBTQ+ folks and say, oh, well you don’t have kids.

Kat Hutton (01:30):
You have the time. You know, so you have these people who are, you know, disadvantaged in a lot of ways, but are also this really amazing, vibrant community that are really focused on togetherness and community. And so at our organization, we really focus both on providing basic need assistance, things like food box delivery, social programming to help people who are isolated, but we also train other providers. So we train organizations like AAAs or nursing facilities or other organizations across the state to help them be more affirming so that our folks can go in there and have a good experience.

Emma Case (02:09):
Kat, what unique challenges do LGBTQ older adults face, and how does MiGen address those?

Kat Hutton (02:16):
I will say first of all, this population is, you know, there’s different estimates about how much the population identifies LGBTQ+ but at the end of the day, we’re talking about thousands, millions of people. And so there’s a lot of different variation within that community. However, when we’re looking at the research, we see that on almost any type of domain that folks in the LGBTQ+ older adult community are facing some difficult challenges. So, one, I mean, there’s the challenges just of being older. There’s the ageism that any older adult might experience, people trying to limit an older adult autonomy, people having challenges of the cost of care or senior housing. But then in addition to that, when you’re a member of this community, you might be facing some other aspects of discrimination or other challenges or hurdles into living the life that you want to.

Kat Hutton (03:10):
For example, you might have someone who perhaps is very isolated in their community. Maybe they are rejected socially in their community, so they don’t have a lot of folks they can interact with. So maybe they don’t have rides to appointments, maybe they don’t have people who are checking up on them. We have people who have experienced discrimination in healthcare, often times for their entire lives, especially if they lived, you know, in the eighties through the AIDS crisis, who are very reasonably fearful of going to healthcare appointments and maybe avoiding necessary care, to the point where then their comorbidities become quite challenging to deal with, I guess is the way I would say it. You know, so you get a lot of different ways where LGBTQ older adults are facing really unique challenges. Something that is really on top of mind in this discussion is about social isolation, though.

Kat Hutton (04:06):
So I have a lot of folks who come to me and they say, you know, I just want to meet people I don’t know where to meet people who are going to accept me. And so they try to go to different spaces, but they feel like they might have to hide who they are in those spaces, and that causes stress that limits authentic interaction. Or they’re looking for places and they want to meet people like them, but they might feel intimidated about going into a new space, or they might lack the social skills even to be able to make and retain friendships. And so we really focus on helping people, you know, getting someone, a buddy to come with them to a social event or sending someone up to the friendly caller, or helping to find space for folks to meet and feel safe and feel like they can be themselves.

Emma Case (04:50):
Kristin, at The Senior Alliance, we recently started the Sip and Chats with MiGen. Can you talk about what sparked the idea of creating these events, what the events are, and how did it all come together?

Kristin Holtz (05:02):
I am very passionate about working with the LGBTQ+ community. So this past June, I proposed to The Senior Alliance that we have our tent with information and outreach at the first Pridefest held Downriver in our service area in Wyandotte. We had an absolute blast and people loved seeing us in the community at that event, whether they were familiar with their area Agency on Aging, or if it was their first time being introduced to us. So soon after that event, The Senior Alliance’s Chief Operating officer, Kelly Faber, sent me an email with a news article about MiGen for an in-person meetup for LGBTQ, older adults in the Ferndale and Royal Oak areas with affirmations in MiGen. She noted how cool it would be to bring something like that to our Downriver area, and if we could connect with MiGen and a community partner to host these meetings.

Kristin Holtz (05:50):
So as I started thinking, the first local business that came to my mind to work with for this type of project, and this in our service area was Kekoa Brew Company located in Wyandotte. Kikoa’a owners, Alyssa and Tyler have created a cozy welcoming atmosphere, and it is apparent in the way that they have made such an impact on the community. They exude inclusivity and belonging just by being who they authentically are. So when I approached them with this idea, they were ecstatic to be a part of the Sip and Chats. So soon after that, MiGen and myself met with Alyssa at Kekoa, to collaborate and fabricate this idea and our first Sip and Chat was this past September. We’ve been holding them on the second Mondays of each month, and right now they are very open-ended. So we are kind of just gathering and saying, hey, this is a safe place to meet and come as you are and get to connect with other people who are looking for those same type of resources in their communities.

Emma Case (06:48):
Kat, what inspired you to collaborate on these events in the Downriver community?

Kat Hutton (06:52):
When The Senior Alliance reached out to me, I nearly cried in the meeting because I was so grateful. At the start of this year, I had said that one of my goals was to expand our in-person reach into some of these areas that are often missed. So places like Downriver where services for LGBTQ+ folks are very far and few between, and talking to folks who live Downriver, they are craving a community. They’re craving places to meet where they feel safe and welcomed. And so when The Senior Alliance came to me and said, not only came to me saying, hey, do you want to work with us on this? Also, we found a space also, you know, we found some resources. That was so incredible to me because that really shows to me a commitment to this community that you are actively working with us and helping us find these spaces and locations because that’s what people need. And so I was so grateful because in places like Downriver or other places where folks tend to feel very isolated, these kinds of groups are so important. And that has really been shown to me in the meetings that I’ve been able to attend that listening to these folks, they are so grateful to have somewhere where they can go and talk with each other and not wait for that one time a year in June where they feel like they can be themselves.

Emma Case (08:12):
Kristin, how does this event align with the broader mission of The Senior Alliance?

Kristin Holtz (08:16):
The Senior Alliance strives to give people the information, tools, and resources to live their own way. People deserve to live the way they choose, where they choose, and to do it on their own terms. And I think that the drive behind creating and innovating this type of space for older LGBTQ adults in our service area is fueled by that passion to advocate for everyone to have a community that they feel safe, heard, seen, and valued in.

Emma Case (08:42):
Yeah. How do events like Sip and Chats foster community and combat isolation among the older adult LGBTQ+ community?

Kat Hutton (08:51):
You know, something that Kristin said was about how open-ended this space was. And that’s really by design, because when we have these spaces, part of this is to really learn about the community. And in order to do that, we need to let them just be themselves and tell us what’s on their minds and what they’re thinking about. So when we have these meetings, not only is it a place where people can come and chat and talk about what’s on their minds or talk about what’s important to them, it is also a place where we are able as organizations to connect with the community and start building programs together. So, at the meeting that happened after, not this last meeting, but the meeting before, it was a really wonderful meeting where we sat down with folks and we were talking about what can we do beyond this meeting even?

Kat Hutton (09:39):
So people were so grateful to be in this space. I mean, there were a lot of tears, there was a lot of joy, there was people sharing really deep feelings, but there was also this sense of, great, now that we’re together, now that we have this space where we’re able to find each other, how can we take this momentum and move it forward? So saying, what other spaces can we go to? What other programs can we create? What is it that we’re seeing in our community that we wish was different? And how can we collectively design programs to work on that led by the people right there in the community who we’re trying to help? So that’s really so important to the ethos, is it’s not just that these are spaces for people to connect, but it’s also an opportunity for us as organizations to be really responsive to the direct needs of the people we’re trying to serve by letting them come in and just share with us their authentic feelings and their authentic desires so that we can use the resources that we all have access to, to get them what they need.

Kat Hutton (10:38):
And so, through that, not only does it foster community, but it also helps people feel like they have some sense of control over their lives so they can be a part of the solutions that they’re looking for, which is so impactful. And then that helps them move that further. You know it doesn’t only help us as organizations, but it also helps the people feel bolstered to take further action in their communities. Which of course then just helps everyone feel a little less isolated when they have people who are organizing together in their community to create the spaces they want to see.

Emma Case (11:09):
I want to ask both of you, what have you observed during these Sip and Chats? Are there any memorable moments or interactions or any positive feedback from the participants so far that stood out to you?

Kristin Holtz (11:20):
Yeah, Kat, I want to echo some of the things that you were just talking about because there just strong points. When I think of feedback or impact, truly going into this, trying to create a space and serve the LGBTQ+ older adult population in the best way we can, I feel like I have learned so much to this experience. Just as much, if not more from the participants who are joining us in it, allowing that open-endedness of you tell me what you need and want so that we can work together to provide that in our community. I think that it has been super rad to have LGBTQ affirming businesses from the community show up to these meetings such as Stacy and Jason from Green Lotus Spa saying, we have a space for you here as well. How can we join forces?

Kristin Holtz (12:12):
How can we reach more people so that they know about us and we know about them? Because the more data we can gather from each other, the more powerful these experiences and connections can be. One of the biggest feedback people have been telling me is, I cannot believe that there’s an event like this Downriver. I cannot believe that this is in Wyandotte. This is in my city. I don’t have to go venture out, you know, 45 minutes over an hour to meet with people in a different town, to feel like I can show up authentically safe in a place or be myself. And some people have said, hey, I am, I’m kind of shy, but I’m still just going to show up here to take space and to learn. And I think those are such powerful things for people to share with us as well. Also, something that I have learned through connecting in these places is that, you know, when you look for community you don’t just show up and it’s there. You have to invest into it. It’s a harmonious relationship that we have with it. You have to invest in it. And the ripple effects from there are grand.

Kat Hutton (13:12):
And I think something that’s been really great about this space too, is it’s really responsive to what’s going on in people’s lives, who are showing up. So like the first couple meetings were less support group kind of focus, and we’re really just more social. And a lot of that, actually, I guess in some ways, the support group, we were all talking about what do we do to prevent ourselves from burning out when things feel really tough? And that doesn’t just mean like us as professionals, but even us, just as people when the world is feeling like it’s against us, what are we doing to feel good about ourselves? And so it was me and some older gentlemen just brainstorming these ideas, and it was this really beautiful intergenerational moment of us, you know, sharing our thoughts and perspectives. And then another meeting, like the next meeting was a larger meeting, more folks attended that one and it turned naturally.

Kat Hutton (13:58):
We were just doing introductions, but it naturally turned into a support group just doing those introductions. And people were sharing and I remember, you know, some people were crying and feeling a little guilty about that, and everyone else was going, no, absolutely not. You can’t feel guilty about that. This is the space for that. You know, like, we are all here to love you and we are all here to support you. And it was just so beautiful to watch because, you know, I’m coming in here, I’m a social worker by trade, you know, I’m an LMSW, and you know, I come into these moments wondering how much am I going to have to facilitate or how much am I going to have to help keep things going? But we come to these spaces, we really just need to provide a space to people.

Kat Hutton (14:42):
Like they know what they need, they know what they want, and they just need a space to do it. So I felt so humbled in that room, just that watching these people interact and you know, interacting as well. But even just taking a step back and looking at it, just seeing these people support each other through some really challenging times. People they just met that day but that they are so willing to hold love in their heart for. And that is what’s so beautiful about this community, is that willingness to hold love in your heart for virtual strangers, just in the nature of you are a human being and that makes you worthy. And that is just, you know, I’m tearing up even talking about it, but it’s really moving to be in these spaces. Whether it’s a time where we’re mostly kind of just, you know, gabbing about some movie we saw recently, or if it’s a meeting where we’re talking about really challenging things in our lives, it’s so impactful no matter what the situation is.

Kristin Holtz (15:36):
Agreed. Kat, as you were speaking, like giving me goosebumps, I agreed the capacity just to love someone and going from people feeling safe enough to open up about some really hard things going on in their lives and watching, like you said, virtual strangers, hug them, put their arms around them, offer them a tissue. Such a beautiful experience. Like you said, just sitting back and taking that all in and realizing that the point of these spaces are to have those interactions and those interactions may have not happened, may not happen for those people to experience without this. I think that’s why it’s just so important.

Emma Case (16:07):
I love hearing all of this. I’m super excited for the future of Sip and Chats. Kat, where can our listeners find out more about MiGen?

Kat Hutton (16:15):
Yes, you can find us online@migenconnect.org. That’s M as in Mary, IGEN connect.org. So if you go on there, you can find a bit more about our organization. You can find our events calendar to see what else we have going on. We also have a contact form on there too. We’re always open to ideas. So if you’re listening to this and maybe you’re not in the Wyandotte area, you’re in a different area and you want to see us to do something similar where you are, or you want some advice on how to foster community in your area, please reach out to us. We’re happy to connect. We serve statewide, so we are very happy to connect with folks. Whether you need assistance with basic needs, maybe you need some case management services, maybe you need a listening ear, maybe you need help making some new friends or meetings with new people. Whatever it is that you need if you’re an LGBTQ+ older adult or someone who cares for them, we are here for you.

New Speaker (17:07):
Kristin, where can our listeners find out more about Sip and Chat?

Kristin Holtz (17:11):
Folks can learn more about Downriver Sip and Chats by following The Senior Alliance, MiGen and Kekoa Brew Company on social media. They can visit our website as well as receiving our monthly newsletters, or reach out to info@thesenioralliance.org to email me about any questions or collaborative thoughts you may have as well.

Emma Case (17:32):
Yeah. And Kristin, thank you so much for joining me today.

Kat Hutton (17:34):
Thank you.

Kristin Holtz (17:35):
Thank you for having us. It was good talking to you all.

Emma Case (17:37):
If you have any questions about services or programs The Senior Alliance offers, you can call us at (734) 722-2830 or email us at info@thesenioralliance.org. Information about our agency or the programs and services we offer can be found on our website at www.thesenioralliance.org. On Facebook, we can be located by searching for The Senior Alliance. Finally, our X, formerly known as Twitter handle is @AAA1C. I’m Emma Case. Thank you for listening to this episode of Inside the Senior Alliance.

Speaker 4 (18:09):
Inside The Senior Alliance is a production of The Senior Alliance and Blazing Kiss Media.

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