Where to find your community: LGBTQ+ centers, groups and food
LGBTQ+ centers in every borough: groups for adults and immigrants, computers, food, sports and centers for older adults.
QARAVAN is not part of these centers: we list them to help you find your people.
Start here
- Free computers and food at Brooklyn Community Pride Center: the Cyber Center during opening hours and a food pantry on the third Thursday of the month.
- Choose a center in your borough.
- Groups at The LGBTQ+ Center need a short registration; no insurance needed; groups are in English and Spanish.
Choose a center near you
There are LGBTQ+ centers in every borough: check what the nearest one offers and when it is open.
Find out what language the group meets in
Groups at The LGBTQ+ Center are in English and Spanish, for LGBTQ+ adults 18 and older. If English is still hard for you, ask staff whether a group will work for you.
Complete the brief registration
Before your first group at The LGBTQ+ Center, fill in the short registration on the Social Groups page at gaycenter.org. Staff ask about your interests and match you with a group. No insurance needed. Groups are led by trained facilitators; they are not treatment or therapy.
Keep the group cycles in mind
Groups meet in fall and spring cycles, and registration opens before each one. If a cycle has started, ask anyway: the center will help you join if it can.
Come without any pressure to speak
No one will push you to share more than you're ready to: you can listen and take part as you like. You can sign up for several groups at once.
Look in on QARAVAN events too
QARAVAN is a community of LGBTQ+ immigrants, asylum seekers and allies, with events and a group chat. Schedule at qaravan.org.
LGBTQ+ centers by borough
| Where | What it offers | Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The LGBTQ+ Center | Manhattan, 208 W 13 St | Groups for LGBTQ+ adults 18 and older, free help for immigrants, anonymous HIV tests, 12-step meetings (for people with addiction), a café, a library, a bookstore | Building: Mon–Sat 8 am–10 pm, Sun 8 am–8 pm |
| Brooklyn Community Pride Center | Brooklyn, 1561 Bedford Avenue, Crown Heights | Computers and work booths, support groups, sports, art, a monthly food pantry | Mon–Thu 12–5 pm |
| Destination Tomorrow | Bronx, 452 E 149th St, 3rd floor | HIV tests, housing referrals, support groups, including for trans women and transmasculine people; walk-in | Mon–Fri 10 am–6 pm, last visitor at 5 pm |
| Pride Center of Staten Island | Staten Island, 66 Willow Ave, Suite 202 | Support groups, mental health care, case management, HIV prevention, youth 13–24, a program for people 50 and older | Wed 10 am–6 pm, Thu 10 am–8 pm, Fri–Sat 10 am–6 pm |
| Queens Community House (QCH), Generation Q and the Queens Center for Gay Seniors | Queens: Forest Hills (youth 13–21) and Jackson Heights (older adults) | A youth center in Forest Hills; in Jackson Heights, a center for older LGBTQ+ adults with meals, activities and free transportation | Generation Q: Tue–Fri 3–7 pm; senior center: Mon–Fri 10 am–4:30 pm |
| SAGE centers (for older LGBTQ+ adults) | Manhattan (two centers), Brooklyn and the Bronx | Meals, activities, case management, computer labs; open to all regardless of orientation or gender identity | Mon–Fri; hours vary by center |
The LGBTQ+ Center
A center in Manhattan: groups, The Bureau Cafe, the Pat Parker/Vito Russo Library, The Bureau queer bookstore, 12-step meetings. Free help for immigrants and anonymous HIV and STI tests.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center (BCPC)
By its own account, the only LGBTQ+ center in Brooklyn; it is in Crown Heights, inside the Major Owens Community Center. Programs: arts and culture, civic engagement, immigrant help, mental health, sports and fitness, support groups, services for trans and gender-nonconforming people. Most programs are free, the center says.
Destination Tomorrow
An LGBTQ+ center in the Bronx: HIV tests, housing referrals, support groups for trans women and transmasculine people (assigned female at birth and living as men or closer to male), diversity training for organizations. Walk in; last visitor at 5 pm.
Pride Center of Staten Island
An LGBTQ+ center on Staten Island: support groups, behavioral health care, case management, HIV prevention, legal resources. Programs: Youth Services (ages 13–24) and Golden Rainbow (50 and older).
Queens Center for Gay Seniors
A Queens Community House (QCH) program for older LGBTQ+ adults in Jackson Heights, at the Jewish Center for Jackson Heights, Mon–Fri 10 am–4:30 pm. Low-cost breakfasts and lunches, free transportation both ways, art and writing classes, exercise (yoga, Zumba, chair aerobics). Free: English classes (ESOL), immigrant help, housing help and eviction prevention. Questions: info@qchnyc.org.
LGBTQ+ Immigrants United
A group for LGBTQ+ immigrants; online in the third week of the month.
Journeys
A peer support group about coming out: members share experience and learn what helps. A prior intake is required. Online in the fourth week of the month.
Thriving Together
A group for LGBTQ+ people living with HIV.
Good Grief
A group for people who are grieving, Wednesday evenings.
Other groups in the cycle
The cycle also has Stories, Harmonies and Voices for trans and nonbinary people, and LGBTQ+ Wellness. All of the center's groups are in English or Spanish; there are none in Russian.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Love Wins Pantry
A food pantry on the third Thursday of the month, open to all.
Metropolitan Community Church of New York (MCCNY), Sylvia Rivera Food Pantry
A client-choice food pantry at the MCCNY church, open to all. Snack bags Tuesday to Friday, and a community dinner at 5:30 pm on the last Tuesday of the month, also open to all.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Cyber Center
Free
Computers and soundproof booths for remote work. Free, first come first served, during center hours.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, LGBTQ+ Mental Health Support Group on Zoom
A mental health support group for adults 18 and older on Zoom, by registration.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Basketball Open Gym
Open basketball gym; registration required.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, Queer Martial Arts
Martial arts for queer people.
Brooklyn Community Pride Center, SMART Recovery
A SMART Recovery group: an approach to overcoming addiction that the organization describes as evidence-informed.
The LGBTQ+ Center, 12-step meetings
12-step mutual aid meetings; days and times are in the schedule at gaycenter.org.
SAGE, how to join the centers
SAGE is a national organization working with older LGBTQ+ adults since 1978; its New York centers are operated by SAGEServes. Everyone is welcome regardless of orientation or gender identity, as long as you respect others. To join, fill in the Register for a Center form on the website.
Edie Windsor SAGE Center
A center in Manhattan: dinner Mon–Fri 4:45–6 pm, computer lab (CyberCenter) noon–7 pm.
SAGE Center Brooklyn at Stonewall House
A center in Brooklyn at Stonewall House. Computer lab (CyberCenter) Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 11 am–noon.
SAGE Center Harlem
A center in Harlem: lunch Mon–Fri 12:30–1:30 pm, Grab n' Go meals Tuesdays and Fridays 1–2 pm, computer lab (CyberCenter) 10 am–5 pm.
SAGE Center Bronx at Crotona Pride House
A center in the Bronx at Crotona Pride House: lunch Mon–Fri 12:30–2 pm, computer lab (CyberCenter) 10 am–4 pm.
- LGBTQ+
- Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other people.
- Peer-led group
- A group where members support each other; it is not treatment by a doctor or therapist.
- Hybrid
- Some meetings in person, some online, on Zoom or another app.
- Walk-in
- You can come without an appointment. Still, check the hours.
- Food pantry
- A place that gives out food. At a client-choice pantry you pick what to take.
- Case management
- A staff member helps you make a plan and find services: housing, health care, documents.
- 12-step
- A mutual aid program for people with addiction, where members share experience at meetings.
- SAGE
- A national organization working with older LGBTQ+ adults since 1978; SAGEServes is its service arm.
This is general information, not legal advice: QARAVAN has no lawyers. QARAVAN does not help anyone enter the US and cannot arrange visas, invitations, sponsorship or evacuation. For your own case, talk to a licensed immigration attorney or a representative accredited by the U.S. Department of Justice.