Tag Archives: Gay history

Reflections on Lois’s 90th!

Posted on May 14, 2026 by Kevin Allen | Leave a comment

{This photo essay is by Marlene Patricia, a photographer and friend of the History Project. Thanks, Marlene, for these words and images! – Kevin}

When Calgary’s LGBTQ icon, Lois Szabo, celebrated her 90th birthday, the vibe of Club Carousel was felt throughout the evening. Partiers enjoyed a sharing community atmosphere, entertainment, dancing, and great food, all without the fear of being raided by the cops.

The venue was bursting with over 200 of Lois’ people, including her children, grandchildren, older sister Ina, longtime friends, and community members from the Rainbow Elders, to the Women in the Wind Motorcycle Club that Lois rode with.

After an endless buffet supper organized by her daughter Karen, tributes were made by Kevin Allen, Lois’ sister, Ina, and Donna from the Rainbow Elders. Folks were treated with performances by Drag Royalty, choirs and singers, all expertly emceed by the pink-tuxedoed James Demers.

After singing Happy Birthday to Lois, 90 candles were blown out, and the cakes were cut. Chairs were cleared away and then the DJs spun a variety of classic Gay bar tunes that had youth, and the young at heart, smiling and grooving like the good old days. Even Lois got up to sway for a bit. A slideshow rotated photos of Lois’ life throughout the dance. A great time was had by all!

Donations and proceeds from the bar were donated to Camp Fyrefly and Stepping Stones.

Enjoy these photos from the event.

—Marlene

The lovely bartenders dressed in Circa 1936 outfits

Lois’ sister Ina, who turned 93 a few days earlier

Two of Lois’ grandchildren, Christy and Sean welcomed the guests

Lois’ friends – they sure put on a hilarious skit

The candles are lit – Happy Birthday Lois!

Canadian Independent Bookstore Day

Posted on April 23, 2026 by Kevin Allen | Leave a comment

Saturday, April 25th, is when to flock to your local independent bookstore for special treats, giveaways and contests. You could also win a $1000 gift certificate from a qualifying store.

Browsing the bookshelves, talking to informed staff, and bumping into people you know are all good reasons to shop in indie bookstores. {Note: social snacking is good for our health!} The stores have online shops as well, so there is no need to support foreign corporate behemoths.

Just this week, we attended an event with Victoria-based queer poet John Barton. He was reading from his new poetry collection, Compulsory Figures, at Shelf Life Books.

John told me: “I grew up in Calgary’s northwest, when the city limits began rapidly to push outwards in the 1960s. The expansive view westward to the foothills and mountains–and the Bow River linking them to me—was my first, most consequential landscape, against which all others in my writing, both physical and psychic, are measured.”

*John’s Calgary childhood is explored in this new collection*

Independent bookstores were important to local and national queer history, too—think Little Sisters in Vancouver and Glad Day in Toronto. In Calgary, the former Books N’ Books and A Woman’s Place Bookstore were both critical to gay community information and organizing in the 70s and 80s.

*The former feminist bookstore at 1412 Centre Street South was torn down for redevelopment*.

We genuinely appreciate independent bookstores and are decidedly grateful to the three that have sold so many copies of Our Past Matters: Pages on Kensington and Shelf Life Books in Calgary, and Polar Peak Books in Fernie. Thank you!

{KA}

Kootenay Gay History Project

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Kevin Allen | 2 comments

Readers of the Calgary Gay History Project might be interested to know that Kevin Allen has launched a new research initiative: the Kootenay Gay History Project, which explores queer history in rural South-Eastern British Columbia. The goal is practical: to preserve local history and make it available through a website, archival and display materials, and eventually, a book.

The project, commissioned by the Fernie Pride Society, is collecting stories, records, and local research about 2SLGBTQ+ people in communities across the region. Rural queer history sometimes stumps historians; it is more hidden and less networked than urban queer history, but Kevin relishes the challenge and has a local connection.

For 20 years, Kevin has had two homes, one in Calgary and one in Fernie {because he married an East Kootenay guy}! He says that starting the Kootenay queer history initiative has been an intriguing counterfoil to the Calgary project. In fact, many Rocky Mountain queers decamped for the cities of Calgary and Vancouver to seek a larger gay community, only to return to their hometowns in later life. Consequently, the two History Projects inform each other and highlight how queer mobility affected rural activism.

And Calgarians went to the Rockies, too! Perhaps you participated in the annual Fruit Float weekend down the Slocan River in the 80s. Or did you attend the Nelson-based lesbian performance festival Sappho Sez in the 90s? Do you have a queer Kootenay connection you’d like to share? Email us at kootenaygayhistory@gmail.com or see our Instagram page @kootenaygayhistory.

During a West Kootenay research trip, we were given a direct-action sticker from the early 70s by Michael Wicks, founder of the Nelson Queer Archive. The sticker was produced by the Canadian Gay Activists Alliance (Vancouver), one of Canada’s earliest Gay Liberation organizations.

*Original Direct Action Sticker from the early 1970s*

Michael said the stickers were put on telephone poles for fun and consciousness-raising on Davie Street in Vancouver. Another version had: “SMILE if you’re GAY” with the same Cheshire Cat. Well, we’re stuck on history.

Happy Spring!🌞

{KA}