The Los Angeles LGBT Center’s sixth annual Intergenerational Thanksgiving celebration returned to the Anita May Rosenstein Campus this week, welcoming hundreds of LGBTQ+ youth and seniors for an evening of shared stories and a warm holiday meal.
“This year has tested us in ways we never have imagined,” Center CEO Joe Hollendoner said. “And yet, we continue to show up for one another. That’s how our community has always been able to survive difficult times, and that is how we’ll make it through the tough days ahead.”
The evening’s themes of connection and relationship-building were felt throughout, reflecting the continued need for safe and affirming spaces amid rising attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, harmful rhetoric, and socioeconomic hardship. “Gatherings like this one offer comfort and safety by creating a safe, affirming home for everyone,” said Kiera Pollock, Director of the Center’s Senior Services program.
The Center’s Culinary Arts Training Program—which prepared more than 500 servings of turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, and more for this event alone—remains a powerful bridge across generations. The program unites youth and senior clients of the Center to help nourish one another while gaining the technical skills needed to thrive both in the kitchen and the workforce.
In addition to the delicious Thanksgiving feast, program participants prepare upward of 150,000 fresh, nutritious meals every year for the Center’s youth and senior members—many of whom face housing and food insecurity. The program culminates in an externship that gives students direct, hands-on experience in professional kitchens.
Marvin Thornton, a graduate of the Culinary Arts program who now works in the Center’s kitchens as a full-time staff member, remarked on the power of having students of all ages learning together. “Having been in the kitchens for over a year now, I’ve seen how hard we all work as students,” he said. “Mistakes are made, things happen, but that’s part of learning. What the students get to take from that is the understanding it’s not the end of the world. That’s how we build resilience.”
No matter how challenging the world around us becomes, events like Intergenerational Thanksgiving continue to show what’s possible when our community comes together to support one another, share knowledge and lived experience—connections that remain essential to building a more just and equitable future.
This year’s Intergenerational Thanksgiving was made possible by our presenting sponsor Comcast-NBCUniversal Telemundo; official sponsors Angel City FC & Door Dash and Waymo; and supporting sponsors P/S Reserve and StorQuest. A special thank you to The Eisner Foundation for championing intergenerational programming.
See photos from the event by photographer Jordyn Doyel below:
