Gay for Good Twin Cities Has a Good Thing Going

“Oh, it’s going remarkably well,” says Gay for Good Twin Cities Chapter Leader Jayne Schaecher.

“We could do five events a month, and they’d all be capped,” adds Heidi Schreiber, who holds the same title at the same organization.

“Typically, when we ask for 25 people, we get 30 people that volunteer so that there’s a waiting list to be involved in our events,” Schaecher concludes.

But it wasn’t always this way.

Gay for Good started in Los Angeles when three friends got together to put the positive impact of the LGBTQ+ community on display after the passage of Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in California, in 2008.

It was introduced to the Twin Cities in March 2015 when Beth Mejia, who served on the Human Rights Campaign Board of Governors along with Schreiber, visited the home of Schaecher and Schreiber. Around the dining room table, they discussed the volunteering organization Mejia had discovered in Los Angeles and how it might be a good fit for the Twin Cities, Schaecher says.

In April 2015, Gay for Good Twin Cities hosted its first event, an Earth Day cleanup of a park in North Minneapolis, Schreiber says. Over the past 10 years, Gay for Good Twin Cities has grown to become one of the biggest Gay for Good chapters in the country.

“Our Gay for Good is always, constantly, doing the most events, turning away people. We have the largest leadership group,” Schreiber says. “I mean, there’s something about Minnesota and the willingness to volunteer here.”

In 2015, Gay for Good Twin Cities had 190 volunteers and put in 701 hours, according to Schaecher. In 2016, they had 245 volunteers and put in 765 hours. In 2024, they had 451 volunteers and 1,200 hours.

In addition to increasing its volunteer hours, G4GTC has also increased its reputation, to a point where nonprofits seek out its volunteers rather than the other way around. They’ve now worked with 71 different nonprofit partners, according to Schaecher.

“Well, we’ve definitely become more visible,” Schaecher says. “We’ve become an organization that other nonprofits look to for assistance. Not a week goes by where we don’t get requests from nonprofits to help them on upcoming events.”

Schreiber continues: “The first year or two, we were kind of scrambling to find people who needed help, and now we have more than enough people coming to us for help.”

Gay for Good Twin Cities volunteers aren’t only connecting with local nonprofits, though; they’re also connecting with each other. Most events are followed by some sort of socializing, often a lunch after a morning spent volunteering, according to Schaecher.

Those connections can grow into lifelong friendships. One of Schaecher and Schreiber’s fellow chapter leaders joins them not only at chapter leadership meetings but also at their whiskey club.

Another couple at that first North Minneapolis park cleanup had their wedding scheduled for September 26 — the same day as Schaecher and Schreiber.  That instant connection led them to dinner together and eventually to a fully-fledged friendship. Half of that couple is Janine Vesper, now the national treasurer for Gay for Good.

Along with developing friendships, Schaecher and Schreiber hope to aid in the continuing development of Gay for Good Twin Cities.

“Something we’ve been talking about is getting out of the Twin Cities and volunteering, maybe in St. Cloud or Stillwater, just to get out of the Twin Cities to get more visibility,” Schreiber says.

“The whole idea is to get involved, meet new friends and make a difference,” Schaecher adds, making clear what Gay for Good Twin Cities wants to be seen for.

They’d like to have more volunteer opportunities than any other chapter, Schaecher says, at least two or three every month. They wouldn’t mind someone pitching in to keep their volunteers’ bellies full, either.

“I think a long-term goal is to have some corporate sponsorship,” Schaecher says. “We’d definitely like to partner with someone that could donate water to our group, you know, a case of water while we’re doing volunteer projects, or snacks, as simple as that. We would love for someone to partner up with us.”

But, for the most part, they’re content to keep the good thing they have going.

“But as far as long-term goals,” Schaecher begins.

“I say just keep on doing what we’re doing!” Schrieber finishes. “And grow it bigger!”

For an organization like Gay for Good Twin Cities, where the mission is as easily endorsable as “get involved, meet new friends and make a difference,” it doesn’t need to be more complicated than that.

To stay up-to-date with Gay for Good Twin Cities’ event schedule and find more information on how to get involved, visit their website, gayforgood.org/twincities/.