PRIDE MONTH MAY only come once a year—but the Bellingham Queer Collective (BQC) celebrates community and togetherness for the LGBTQ+ folks year-round. The social group has only recently gained nonprofit status in Washington State, and while they already serve an important role in Whatcom County, Founder Michelle Harmeier says they’re just getting started.
Harmeier is a former educator, and in addition to her work with BQC, she also serves on the board of Northwest Youth Services and Pride IN Bellingham Committee. She and her partner intentionally chose to retire in Bellingham for its climate, nature access, and friendliness towards LGBTQ+ individuals. However, she found that making connections—namely with other queer folks—proved harder than expected, especially in the wake of the pandemic.
“We said, let’s just start to try to socialize and find people in the community,” Harmeier says. “So we hosted a movie event and invited the LGBTQ+ community to come to the Mount Baker Theatre to view a documentary film that was connected to the same questions we were asking.”
That film was “Ahead of the Curve,” a documentary about lesbian culture, the founding of Curve Magazine, and how queer communities connect and gather in the digital age. The screening, which took place Nov. 5, 2022, was a major success—and all 125 tickets sold out.
Harmeier says the event was also a “visioning opportunity” on a broader scale, as all attendees were asked to write feedback about the kind of queer community they’d like to create. Discussions continued in a Facebook group that eventually became Bellingham Queer Collective. BQC is now 700+ people strong as of April 2023, and members come from all walks of life.
Since its founding, BQC has organized and promoted a variety of
queer-friendly, intergenerational events in Bellingham, including weekly shows at the Pickford Film Center and outings to existing events at Mount Baker Theatre. They’ve also partnered with Wild Whatcom for queer nature walks, organized an LGBTQ+ film screening in partnership with CASCADIA International Women’s Film Festival, and even hosted a formal winter Glitter Ball at the Mount Baker Theatre.
“Several members came to me [at the Glitter Ball] and said, ‘I didn’t go to my school prom, because I didn’t feel like I could go with a same-sex partner. … This felt like the prom we never had,’” Harmeier says. “Those are the moments where I feel like, yes, we’re having an impact — and there is a need here.”
Most gatherings are centered around Downtown Bellingham, and participating in BQC events is also a way to support the downtown corridor’s economic health and vibrancy.
“The idea is creating social opportunities for people to network, gather, feel support, and then also to promote queer-owned and queerfriendly businesses,” Harmeier says.
Looking ahead, the BQC’s aims extend beyond meet-ups alone— Harmeier says they’re in the early stages of creating a brick-and-mortar community center in Downtown Bellingham. Such a space would also provide educational, medical, and health resources and referrals.
“I feel like it’s our job, as the elder queers in this community, to create structures and systems of support so that our younger generations can flourish and thrive,” Harmeier says. “It’s important that Bellingham community members that are not part of the queer community realize that LGBTQ+ people don’t always feel safe in Whatcom County, and there is no safe space downtown that isn’t monetized.”
To learn more, contribute, or get involved, head online or visit the Bellingham Queer Collective group on Facebook.
