Community Voices

by Joyce Bolinger

A longtime member and supporter of the LGBTQI+ community, Jo Schneider owns Tucson’s downtown La Cocina, known for its outdoor patio, eclectic cuisine, and live music. When Tucson Mayor Regina Romero closed restaurants March 17 to contain the spread of COVID-19, Jo began serving free food to out-of-work dishwashers, servers, entertainers, and others — “we don’t turn anyone away,” she says.

Since March 22, Jo has served about 80 free meals 3 times a week. She has donated free meals to TIHAN as well. Part of a non-profit Feeding Those who Feed Us, Jo is also a member of Too Soon Arizona, a group of small businesses who plan to delay re-opening for safety concerns.

by Joyce Bolinger

Early this spring, a nightmarish scenario threatened local agencies who
serve people experiencing homelessness: the virus could rampage through shelters, meal lines, and outdoor “camps,” costing many lives and accelerating its spread throughout Tucson. »Meet Beth Carey

By Bruce Hyland
Photo credit: Tomcat Enterprises Photography© James Scott P. Pignatella

Kevin is holing up with his dearly beloved (Richard Wegner) and cooking food and sharing it with a couple other households. They are playing cards, games and working puzzles. He’s anxious, but very grateful to be with his husband through this. »Meet Kevin Maxey

by Bruce Hyland
Photo credit: Joyce Bolinger

Tom sometimes feels impatient, uncertain, nervous, agitated, but always grateful that he’s safe with his husband in their home. He has a sense that life will be changing. One aspect, given his nonprofit expertise, is how the performing arts will change. How will they survive? How will they adapt? He’s pleased to see pollution levels come down dramatically, even with it only being having been a short time when ships, planes, polluting vehicles, etc. made changes that allowed this. »Meet Tom Buchanan

by Bruce Hyland
Photo credit: Daniel Snyder

Brad is a life-long advocate for those who are less advantaged. He is a musician and lawyer retired from the Office of the Pima County Attorney. Today, Brad is pleased to act as attorney with Homicide Survivors. About the COVID-19 pandemic, he says, “We older LGBTQ+ have hard-won training to deal with this. We know how to survive a plague. .. Who else has been through this, but us?”
»Meet Brad Holland

by Bruce Hyland
Photo credit: Joyce Bolinger

Lola is busy with projects and focusing on being happy. She goes out for walks, being mindful on those treks of the beauty around her. “Of course I’ve had bumps in the road and hit boulders in life. But I learned to deal with things. My goal is to be happy. When I hit a dip, I look inside myself to see what’s really going on. It’s very important for us to know ourselves…” »Meet Lola Lai Jong

by Bruce Hyland

Southern Arizona Senior Pride volunteer Bruce Hyland interviewed Jill Koyama about how she is handling the unprecedented disruption in her professional and personal life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. »Meet Jill Koyama