Yellow Rose Drag Show aims to raise money for The Trevor Project

The Oregon State University chapter of Delta Lambda Phi is partnering with the national philanthropy called The Trevor Project, which offers a LGBTQ+ suicide prevention and crisis intervention hotline, as well as a resource hub that has saved countless lives.

“The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13-24,” a statement from the project’s website said.

The Trevor Project was founded in 1998, four years after the movie “Trevor” came out. The organization was started by James Lecense, Peggy Rajski and Randy Stone when they realized that youth around the world were lacking a supportive message about their place in society.

In addition to a 24-hour crisis and suicide prevention helpline, The Trevor Project provides an online chat room, internships through Palette Fund and various school workshops, according to the website. These services are specifically designed to introduce young leaders to the LGBTQ+ movement, help them build community and become empowered.

“The Trevor Project is for those who have trouble coming out, are unsafe at home and feel like they don’t have a voice,” Chris Hands, an alpha class member for the chapter, said. “It’s personally saved my life, among so many others and its such an honor to work with such a great organization.”

The Yellow Rose Drag Show, hosted by the OSU chapter of Delta Lambda Phi, is a fundraiser for The Trevor Project. The show will be premiering for its second year on Thursday, March 1 at 8 p.m. in the Memorial Union Ballroom and will consist predominantly of drag performers from the surrounding community.

Hands said planning the overall event has been a lot of work.

“Running a philanthropy is like running a wedding. Without teamwork, we couldn’t do it,” Hands said.

Last year, the event raised three times their collections goal, Hands said.

“Last year we won the title of Ward of Excellent Fundraising for raising $2000 or more for DLP’s philanthropy for fundraising because we had such a great show,” Hands said.

This year, the 11 members of DLP are looking to raise and surpass the fundraising goal of $500 for The Trevor Project event.

The Trevor Project is an important foundation because it’s giving a voice to young people and gives them the chance to seek support outside of their normal lives, Hands said.

“There are very few schools like OSU that promote this level of inclusivity and actually mean it, but we’ve been nothing but welcomed,” Hands said.

Hands said the ultimate goal of this annual philanthropy is to make their presence known and make a difference in their community.

“Drag is all about breaking rules or breaking norms,” Hands said. “DLP is not your average frat, so we don’t wanna have an average philanthropy.”

The vice president of DLP, Nolan Gunter, is a first year student studying computer science and environmental economics and policy. Gunter discovered DLP at a first of the year orientation fair put on by OSU.

The Yellow Rose Drag Show is open to everyone, and performers and audiences alike are encouraged to be boldly themselves, Gunter said.

“There are more aspects to drag than drag queens. We invite kings and everyone else as well, it doesn’t just have to be feminine, it’s for everyone,” Gunter said.

By making it free and accessible, Gunter’s goal is to make the event available to everyone whether they love drag or are curious to see what it is about.

“When you see the show finally happen and coming together you just have this big moment and sigh of relief because we did it,” Gunter said.

Individuals can support the Yellow Rose Drag Show and The Trevor Project by donating electronically to a GoFundMe page from DLP at gofundme.com/yellowrose2018 or by bringing cash tips to support performers at the show. The winner of the show will be crowned based on the amount of tips they receive from audience members.

Admission to the event is free and tickets are available at the Student Experience Center front desk.