CHELSEA BAR PROUDLY SUPPORTS THE COMMUNITY YEAR ROUND

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Get Out! Contributor
Jun 18, 2018
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4 minutes read

Rebar is defined as a structural bar that gives strength to concrete. REBAR Chelsea has made it their mission to be the neighborhood bar that gives strength to the LGBTQ community. From early on they brought the community together to raise money for those in need through various creative fundraisers, events and shows.

Shortly after opening in 2017 REBAR hosted several teams from Broadway Bares: Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids. Then in late summer REBAR partnered with two other Chelsea businesses, BARBA Men’s Grooming and Antonio Cedeno Presents, to host the La Isla Bonita to benefit those affected by Hurricane Maria. The community effort, featuring some of nightlife’s biggest name drag queens and performers, all of whom donated their time and talent, raised over $10,000, which was matched by APPLE, and brought the total to $20,000. Owner Franco DiLuzio notes, “It’s great to see how the gay community came together, both business professionals and nightlife personalities for such an amazing cause.”

Shortly thereafter, Sherry Pie and I approached REBAR with a new concept for a Monday night show.MARQUEE MONDAY debuted in October 2017, Sherry and I wanted the show to not only be entertaining but also to give back. The owners of REBAR loved the idea that the audience tips from the last number of each show would be used to raise money for a different charity each month. I am incredibly proud to share that, since October, we’ve raised over $9,000 for LGBTQ organizations such as SAGE, Ali Forney Center, Callen Lorde, Voices 4 Chechnya, RFTCA, and AIDS Walk. We even used the month of December to not only raise money for the Ali Forney Center but to also do a weekly coat drive,

In May 2018, Sherry Pie started hosting a recurring event, LOVE LAB, which raises money for the Research Foundation to Cure Aids (RFTCA). LOVE LAB is a dating game and bachelor auction hosted by Sherry, with DJ Matty Glitterati. Sherry added “we raised $1000 at Marquee and $2000 at the event, where a bachelor is auctioned for a date sponsored by local business such as ELMO, MNSTR Cycle and TRIAD Theater.”

It’s not just entertainment and events that are part of REBARS approach. They also offered their space to many great causes, hosting a calendar launch to support Rainbow Railroad, an LGBTQ editorial photo shoot, featuring transsexual women of color, and most recently they hosted VIVA GLAM, an event with MAC Cosmetics to raise funds for AIDS Walk.

I am incredibly proud of the work we do at REBAR. Pairing the help of the community and others in nightlife, REBAR, brings generous patrons and important causes together and has raised over $30,000 for different charities and organizations. As we approach PRIDE, a time to come together to celebrate our wonderful LGBTQ community and all the beauty within it, it is important to remember that we mustn’t forget about our community the other 11 months of the year. While honoring those who have struggled to help get us through this fight, we should also set an ongoing platform for love and support for the community as REBAR has done this past year. Imagine if all of the parties in NYC did just one song a night for a charity, like Sherry and I do at REBAR, how much we could be giving back as a nightlife community. As Tina Burner famously says, “We Are Stronger As A Community Than We Are As A Nation.”