RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - A man who found solace in the Black Hills of South Dakota when he came out as gay while in college plans to move back to the region to open a counseling and retreat center for other LGBTQ families.
Joe Barb is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit LGBTQ+ Family Connections Center, which he hopes to locate near Custer or Keystone. He’s currently trying to raise money for the center.
“It’s a beautiful area. … I want a retreat-like lodge environment, a place where families can let their guard down,” he said.
Barb’s desire to aid other families stems partly from his experiences with his son, Jaden, 12, and husband, Lambert Miller. Barb was a single father for eight years before marrying Miller, who has two adult daughters and five grandchildren, the Rapid City Journal reported.
“I got married and there were things for my son to adjust to. He was in a two-parent household with two dads. He didn’t know how to respond to a society that wasn’t (inclusive),” he said.
Counseling sessions helped equip Jaden to handle questions and people’s views about his family, which was his biggest struggle, Barb said.
Barb lived in Rapid City, Custer and Keystone for about 30 years before moving to West Virginia to be near family.
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