AMANDA DEDIE
Special to The Leader
Pride Alliance has created the “From Friends to Family” mentor/mentee program. It was conceived by Amanda Pruden, a senior majoring in women and gender studies and public relations, and the president of Pride Alliance. The program helps to foster friendships and family through the members of the group, keeping in mind members of the queer community who may not be emotionally or physically close to their families.
“We all like to think of each other as friends in Pride Alliance, but [for] a lot of queer college students, when they go back to their home for the holidays, it is really hard because they’re either not out or they have issues with their biological family, so we want them to think of Pride Alliance as another family,” said Pruden.
Pride has hosted many events on campus, such as Queer History Month, Trans Awareness Week, the Diversity Concert, National Coming Out Day, queer prom, and the Dragapalooza, as well as co-sponsoring Take Back the Night and the convocation event “TransDiscovery: Exploring Gender Variant Lives.”
“I like being able to talk about shared experiences and bring awareness to people,” said Terese Caiazza, a sophomore majoring in both French and Spanish and member of the Pride Alliance. “I like to have correct terminology, know that I am not alone, and to know that I’m not the only person to think one way or the other. I have a Pride community to back me up on it.” The CMA also hosts a peer mentor program called Fred LEADS, but the support provided doesn’t cover the needs for all who may require or want it.
“It wasn’t exactly what I was looking for in terms of looking for a community, social-wise. I wanted to make a similar program, but more focused on socializing and making family within people just for Pride,” explained Pruden. “So that’s where I got the idea, but it’s a more specific version than what the CMA offers.”
“From Friends to Family” is new and requires an application before becoming a member. The application includes your preference for becoming either a mentor or a mentee, as well as inquiries about prefered pronouns, gender identity, orientations and hobbies to ensure that a mentor and mentee pairing would be as compatible as possible. The only requirements to participate in the program are the application, disposable time and a willingness to expand friendship circles.
“We’re in the process of going through all the applications and matching people up with similar interests and identities, and pair[ing] them up so that they have someone you can always go to,” says Cameron Caulfield, a senior majoring in theatrical production with a concentration in scenic design and member of the Pride Alliance E-Board. “[They’re] somebody that can help you through their story and experiences, or even someone you can socialize with or who can help with schoolwork. It’s just trying to create and foster relationships, and it’s really trying to bind us together as a family instead of just a group.”
“From Friends to Family,” open to all members of Pride (which is open to everyone), has been met with positive reactions.
“I was really excited because I’ve been hoping for something like this. I feel like it’s something I would have wanted my freshman year. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to help somebody out and make somebody’s experience better,” said Caiazza.
Pride Alliance is an on-campus organization, hosted by the Center for Multicultural Affairs office, that is described on their FSU4U page as “Fredonia’s safe space for the LGBT+ community. The group commits itself to education, activism, awareness, and acceptance.”