Gay Merced – Gay Central Valley

Announcing the Zoyer Zyndel scholarship fund at Fresno State!

When I heard about the passing of Zoyer Zyndel over the holidays I was just heart broken. Like many others in our community I have nothing but good things to say about him. Zoyer was one of the first community leaders to jump on board and publicly support the old Queer Fresno. He worked tirelessly and spent time working all over the community. Consequently, my heart leaped in my chest when I heard that on behalf of family members and friends Peter Robertson was spearheading a new scholarship in his memory. Here are the details from their press release:

Local LGBTQ activist and social justice advocate Zoyer Zyndel (2012, ’17) was an officer with Fresno State United Student Pride, and later served on the leadership team of Fresno State Rainbow Alumni and Allies Club. In his memory, family members and friends have established the “Zoyer Zyndel Scholarship Fund” to assist future MSW students in the College of Health and Human Services at Fresno State. A $25,000 goal has been set to endow this fund that will provide annual awards in perpetuity.
Estevan Parra Guerrero

To make a memorial gift, please click on the button below and follow these three steps: (1) Select “View all giving opportunities;” (2) Scroll down to the bottom
and select “Other;” and (3) Type in “Zoyer Zyndel Scholarship Fund.”

Make your gift online

City of Fresno intervenes in the sale of the Tower Theatre

A few weeks ago I got wind of a troubling rumor that a conservative church was trying to buy the historic Tower Theatre and turn it into a church. Obviously, this would be an alarming development for our local gay community if they were successful in doing so. Giving an anti-gay religious organization, of any kind, a foot hold in the Tower would be no less than a fly in the apothecary of tolerance and safety of the area. The longer term impacts on our local LGBTQ film festival and our local pride celebration could be no less than disastrous. If you want to read that original post you can do so here. After making some phone calls and sending out some emails to shake the bush some to see what fell out I was elated to see some drastic developments in this local saga reported by GV Wire earlier today.

The city of Fresno is ordering the current owners of the Tower Theatre to prevent Adventure Church from holding indoor services. This is an addition to a memo from Fresno’s new city manager indicating that the church — which is in escrow to purchase the theater — would need to obtain a zoning change to hold services at the iconic venue in the future. Since the news broke this week about the theater’s sale, many in the community have expressed concern that not only a house of worship could soon take over, but the effect it may have on other Tower District businesses. Generally, city regulations prohibit the sale of alcohol and legal cannabis in close proximity to a church. GV Wire℠ has been able to confirm that the sale of the Tower Theatre to Adventure Church is expected to close at the end of January.
David Taub, GV Wire

It’s unclear to me at this point if the sale of the property and buildings can be blocked but I am happy this all is coming into the light of day and that the City of Fresno is getting actively involved. We’ll be sure to keep our ear to the ground and keep you all informed.

Read the rest of this article at GV Wire

Splash nightclub might actually be coming to Fresno

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard the (almost) urban legend that Splash nightclubs is opening up a location in Fresno, California. Personally, I’ve been hearing this seemingly tall tale since 2010. Then I heard they had bought a building in the Tower and were going to renovate it and open right on Olive Ave in the heart of the Tower. You learn to let things go in one ear and out of the other when you’re running an info outlet like the old Queer Fresno and now, the NEW Gay Central Valley.