Posts by Sarela Bliman-Cohen
August at QNEST
August may be quieter, but QNEST certainly isn’t. I’ve been spending a lot of time talking with state representatives and senators, housing experts, and Community Development Corporations, trying to figure…
Read MoreReflections on Pride Month: Building Community, Creating Awareness, and a Signed World Cup Soccer Ball!
Pride Month was an incredible opportunity for QNEST to connect with our community and raise awareness about the urgent need for safe, affirming housing for LGBTQIA+ youth. Throughout June, our…
Read MorePride Month: Small Actions Create Real Change
Pride Month is a celebration of resilience, visibility, and community. It is also a reminder that many members of the LGBTQIA+ community continue to face discrimination, exclusion, and hostility simply…
Read MoreMomentum is Building at QNEST!
LGBTQIA+ teens need places where they can simply be themselves, no explanations, no performance, no fear. That’s what our peer support groups are becoming. We’re growing. We’re now hosting regularly…
Read MoreQNEST Featured on the One Big Boat Podcast
QNEST recently had the opportunity to be featured on the One Big Boat podcast by Last Minute Productions. The conversation focused on the growing crisis of LGBTQ+ youth homelessness and…
Read MorePeer Support Group
We are proud to share that QNEST received a Beyond Pride Grant from the City of Boston’s Mayor’s Office of LGBTQIA2S+ Advancement (MOLA). This funding allowed us to launch our…
Read MoreThe Reality LGBTQIA+ Youth Are Living With Right Now
Many LGBTQIA+ young people are facing a level of pressure right now that is hard to overstate. Not just from laws or public rhetoric, but from the places that are…
Read MoreYouth Homelessness and Transgender Remembrance
November carries two important observances that speak directly to the work we’re building at QNEST. It is Youth Homelessness Awareness Month—a time to recognize the challenges young LGBTQIA+ people face…
Read MoreLive, Love, Learn: QNEST’s Parent Panel
On October 14, QNEST hosted a deeply moving parent panel at Myrtle Baptist Church in Newton, MA, bringing together parents and a young adult to share their journeys of love,…
Read MoreBuilding Awareness Through Conversation and Community
At QNEST, our mission is to create safe, affirming homes and supportive networks for LGBTQ+ youth who are experiencing homelessness. While our long-term goal is to open our first group…
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