Lavender Week celebrates LGBTQIA+ community

KYLEE LARY
PHOTOGRAPHER

AUDREY HESTER
STAFF WRITER

10/14/2024

Lavender Week, a full week of events celebrating LBTQIA+ students on Alma’s campus, will be Oct. 20 through Oct. 26. Events will be put on by a variety of clubs including Queer Spiritual Life (QSL) the Diversity and Inclusion Office, the Alma College Women’s Soccer team, the Pride House and the Gender and Sexuality Diversity Club (GSD). 

The idea originally stems from a “lavender graduation,” which is a term describing a graduation specifically designed to honor and support LGBTQIA+ students. The graduation does not replace a university’s typical graduation ceremony and instead serves as a supplemental addition. 

“We talked about doing [a lavender graduation] and then we thought, ‘Let’s start with what resources do we have, and what education opportunities do we have? How can we lift up the things that are already happening here, with the hopes of doing a lavender graduation?’” said Katrina Pekich-Bundy, Alma’s Interfaith Chaplain and one of the chief minds behind Lavender Week. 

“Lavender Week, especially on Alma’s campus, is important because we are not in session during Pride Month. A lot of our very important queer remembrance days are not very well-celebrated, or highly talked about,” said Cassandra McGaugh (‘27), President of GSD.

“My hope is that LGBTQIA+ students will be supported, will feel supported by the campus community and that people who were looking for resources will find them and that we can share a little bit more education around campus than we had previously,” said Pekich-Bundy. 

“As one of the chaplains on campus, I also hope that we can make spiritual life more inclusive. I know that there’s a lot of religious trauma surrounding LGBTQ [people], and it doesn’t have to be that way. Not all faith is like that. My hope is that if somebody is LGBTQ and is looking for some sort of spiritual path, that they can know that there are options out there,” said Pekich-Bundy. 

While Lavender Week is primarily designed as a space to support and welcome LGBTQIA+ students, any student can attend any event regardless of their own gender identity or sexual orientation. Events will be educational as well as enjoyable and community-building, making them easily accessible for any and all of Alma’s students. 

“We are hoping that [Lavender Week] will be open to anyone […] I’m really looking forward to the Trans Talks and lavender oil making,” said Pekich-Bundy. 

“We invite the entire campus into queer culture and into the queer community, at least for a week, and see how they feel about it. The main hope is that we leave the greater student body with a more positive view on the queer community. […] Best case scenario, we reach some students who aren’t quite out of the closet yet and they know where to find resources,” said McGaugh.  

Events will occur throughout the week. On Monday, “Trans Talks” will be hosted, and transgender people will share their personal experiences. This event will be accompanied by making lavender oil. 

On Wednesday, a documentary on Martha P. Johnson – a gay rights activist and drag queen known for being one of the most prominent figures during the Stonewall uprising – will be shown. 

On Thursday, Queer Spiritual Life will host an event using photovoice to speak on the idea of queer joy, and on Friday, the annual Masqueerade – a dance and “murder mystery ball” – will be hosted by GSD in the Opera House.