Homeward Bound Sussex: Home for the Different
When Homeward Bound Sussex held their first pop-up gathering in Franklin, attendees included HBO drag performers, activists, a teacher, a public office seeker and a mother and daughter, among others.
By Frances Ruth Harris
Ashley Kraig, recently featured on HBO’s series “We’re Here,” hails from Sussex County, NJ. She describes herself as non-binary and uses female pronouns. The series also spotlighted Bob the Drag Queen, Ashley's “drag mom,” born
and raised in Sussex County too. Now, in addition to finding a national platform, Kraig and her friend Simone Kraus have created a local niche.
“Homeward was created in late 2022 with the intention of creating a safe space and social group for anyone who has ever felt ‘different,’” Kraig said. “To the deepest corners and closets in this country, I hope you know that if you don’t have a support system at all, we’re your family now. Home, to me, is not a place but a family. Homeward, by definition simply means, 'towards home.' Aren’t we all
just trying to find a safe, inclusive, loving, home? Homeward was created
to provide it to and for any and everyone who needs it. Homeward is committed to the ideals of inclusion, support, equality, community, and social activism. Homeward is based on a personal mantra of mine: We are your family now. "
Kraig calls Simone Kraus her “incredible TransMother." Kraus is a “late stage
transitioner and a lifelong Jersey Girl,” Kraig says. They met in early 2020 and
quickly became friends.
“She taught me so much about myself that I was struggling to uncover on my own," said Kraig.
“We’re Here” celebrates the LGBTQ+ community and their transformative use of drag. Kraus forwarded an HBO scout names of seven people to interview for the show, and Kraig was one of them. She was thrilled by the week and a half of filming that culminated in a full drag show.
In late 2022, Kraig and Kraus created Homeward Sussex to be a safe space and social group for anyone who has ever felt "different." Also involved in activism, Homeward Sussex raised $1,251 for EDGE New Jersey on Jan. 6. EDGE, located in Edge, NJ, stands for "End Discrimination Gain Equality.”
Last year, she and her running mate
sponsored a concert in support of the LGBTQ community. They were then targeted by the Proud Boys.
A Homeward Sussex pop-up event at Cafe e Dolci, in Franklin, New Jersey, on Feb. 16, brought Damaris Lira to gather signatures to run for a spot on Sussex County Board of Commissioners. Laira said she is an ally of the Homeward Sussex group and hopes to use her platform to ensure a safe community for LGBTQ residents.
Last year, she and her running mate sponsored a concert in support of the LGBTQ community. They were then targeted by the Proud Boys. They worked with the Franklin Police Department and a private security company, along with several members of an advocacy group to ensure safety during the concert. They raised over $1400.00 for Planned Parenthood of Newton.
Juan Delosangrles and Patrick Hanson, who attended the Homeward Sussex
pop-up meeting, have been married for a year and a half. Hanson is a teacher in Sussex County.
Abby Provost Cason and Donna Wilks also showed up at the Homeward Bound pop-up event. Wilks is a Star Recovery Coach with the Center for
Prevention and Recovery, centerforprevention.org.
Marlene Middleton came to the pop-up event with her daughter Claire, who was featured in the HBO series, "We're Here."
Among the pop-up goers was also Jill Kubin, who wrote in an email later:
"Since moving to the Sparta area over four years ago, my partner (Sue) and
I had wanted to become involved in the local LGBTQ+ community. When we
first moved here we didn’t know anyone. But when we joined the Sparta
United Methodist Church (SUMC) we quickly became involved in its mission
work in the surrounding community.
“The first day we visited the church for a service, one of the members, Pat Schutz, approached us asking if we might be interested in starting a PFLAG (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) Chapter. We were brand new in the church and did not feel that it was the right time for us to take on such a responsibility. But that all changed four months later when our church’s rainbow flag was burned off the flagpole on the front lawn of the building. Sue and I
found the melted flag that Sunday, in January 2022, on our way into church.
“Three months later, in April 2022, the flag was burned off the flagpole
again. Prior to these two events, the flag had been stolen several times
and also torn down and thrown behind a dumpster. Each time the pride flag
was destroyed, it was replaced immediately by SUMC.
“When the community of Sparta and the surrounding towns heard about the flag burnings, many sent new pride flags and some even sent donations to buy more flags. The local police in Sparta responded right away to the burnings and have been
working with the church to solve the crimes. After the January 2022 flag
burning, Sue and I decided to start the paperwork for making an official
PFLAG chapter. Many local people, a number of them allies, joined our
planning committee and helped us launch the chapter.
“By November 2022, we were officially recognized by PFLAG National as a PFLAG chapter. PFLAG Sussex County’s first support meeting was held on February 6, 2023. We meet monthly on the first Monday of each month (unless a holiday interferes).
Meetings are held at the SUMC in room 8 at 7pm."
Homeward Sussex holds pop-in meetings and virtual meetings to support
acceptance, inclusion, connection and community.
Homeward Sussex has an active Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/homewardsussex/?multi_permalinks=1061482051286888¬if_id=1677073503687375¬if_t=group_activity&ref=notif
Their home page is homewardsussex.org