LESBIANS ORGANIZE TO FIGHT CANCER
by TRACY BAIM




PLAY SLIDESHOW
(or click on image for larger view)


Nancy Lanoue in 2007. Photo by Hal Baim.


The first LCCP board. Photo by Tracy Baim/Outlines.


LCCP’s 2008 benefit, from left: HBHC’s Paul Fairchild, honorees Renae Ogletree, and Dawn Hancock, and HBHC Executive Director Michael Cook. Photo by Kat Fitzgerald.


LCCP’s 2008 benefit with Nan Schaffer and Karen Dixon. Photo by Kat Fitzgerald.

In October 1990, a small group of women met to create a new organization for lesbians impacted with cancer. They deliberately wanted to use “lesbian” in the title, and focus on cancer, because it was hitting so many lesbians. The founding meeting was hosted by Nancy Lanoue, who herself had survived cancer, and whose partner ( Jeanette Pappas ) died of the disease in 1989. It was held at Lanoue's business, Women's Seido Karate ( first opened as The Womyn's Gym and now known as Thousand Waves Martial Arts and Self-Defense ) .

The Lesbian Community Cancer Project thus started small, but eventually had a major impact on Chicago. While the staff itself never grew beyond more than four or five at a time, a lesbian organization that actually used that “L” word meant lesbians were more likely to have a seat at the table for major community debates and discussions. Executive directors including Norma Seledon, Vicki DiProva and Jessica Halem became spokespersons for more than just cancer issues—they were also lesbian leaders in a variety of platforms.

Part of LCCP's mission was visibility, and that they did in grand style. The annual Coming Out Against Cancer balls grew from a few hundred people to 2,000 in a few short years, becoming among the biggest lesbian benefits in the Midwest.

LCCP moved into the Howard Brown Health Center's space in 2004, forming a strong partnership that enabled both organizations to better serve the lesbian, bisexual and transgender ( LBT ) community. In 2007, the merger became official, and LCCP is now known as the Lesbian Community Care Program, a part of Howard Brown Health Center.

While many lesbians wanted LCCP to remain independent, funding realities presented a harsh landscape for a stand-alone organization. In addition, in 2007 two LCCP leaders, acting Executive Director Lisa Tonna and former Board President Mary York, were both battling cancer. In early 2008, they lost their lives to the disease, joining a string of cancer-related diagnoses and losses faced by LCCP founders and supporters.

From Out and Proud in Chicago: An Overview of the City's Gay Community, edited by Tracy Baim, Surrey Books, 2008.

Chicago Gay History
© COPYRIGHT 2024 Chicago Gay History
Powered by LoveYourWebsite.com