Add this year’s annual Hetrick-Martin Institute’s ‘Schools Out’ Benefit to your July Calendar! The event supporting LGBTQIA+ youth will takes place on Saturday, July 15th in Water Mill. The Hetrick-Martin Institute believes all young people, regardless of sexual orientation or identity, deserve a safe and supportive environment in which to achieve their full potential and this benefit helps the institute do so.

Details below…

The annual benefit raises money to ensure that Hetrick-Martin Institute’s young people have the resources they need through the summer months when schools are closed, and resources are scarce. Ira Rogers, the Director of Individual Giving at HMI, says that last year the annual benefit raised “$350,000 which was a record year! We are shooting for more this year.”  The youth who become a member at HMI have access to all of their resources including;

-Emergency Services: Food, Pantry (clothing toiletries, laundry), Showers, etc.

-Counseling & Case Management:  Group and Individual Connection to Services

-Health & Wellness

-Academic Enrichment & Job Readiness

The Benefit begins with cocktails that will be served from 5:30-7:30pm followed by a VIP’ ‘Best of The Hamptons Dinner’ featuring courses from some of the most loved restaurants on the East End including Duryea’s Lobster Cobb Salad, Steak by STK, assorted side dishes from ALMOND restaurant, and desserts from Kerber’s Farm among others.

The Hetrick-Martin Institute has been serving the LGBTQ+ youth for decades. In 1979, life partners and educators on gay and lesbian issues, Dr. Emery Hetrick, a psychiatrist, and Dr. Damien Martin, a professor at New York University, created what was then called the Institute for the Protection of Lesbian and Gay Youth (IPLGY) to assist this group of young people who desperately needed support. In 1988, the organization was renamed Hetrick-Martin Institute in honor of its founders and their lifelong commitment to service which continues today.

For more information regarding the Hetrick-Martin Institute or to buy tickets to the Annual ‘Schools Out’ Benefit, click HERE.

To donate to HMI click HERE.

Images: Andrew Werner

Written by Nicole Vawter