Get Out! GAY Magazine – Issue 372 – June 20, 2018

BY DANIEL MARANDOLA
CHELSEA BAR
PROUDLY SUPPORTS
THE COMMUNITY YEAR ROUND
REBAR is defined
as a structural bar that
gives strength to concrete.
REBAR Chelsea has made
it their mission to be the
neighborhood bar that gives
strength to the LGBTQ
community. From early on
they brought the community
together to raise money for
those in need through various
creative fundraisers, events and
shows.
Shortly after opening in
2017 REBAR hosted several
teams from Broadway Bares:
Broadway Cares/Equity
Fights Aids. Then in late
summer REBAR partnered
with two other Chelsea
businesses, BARBA Men’s
Grooming and Antonio
Cedeno Presents, to host
the La Isla Bonita to benefit
those affected by Hurricane
Maria. The community effort,
featuring some of nightlife’s
biggest name drag queens
and performers, all of whom
donated their time and talent,
raised over $10,000, which
was matched by APPLE, and
brought the total to $20,000.
Owner Franco DiLuzio notes,
“It’s great to see how the gay
community came together,
both business professionals and
nightlife personalities for such
an amazing cause.”
Shortly thereafter, Sherry
Pie and I approached
REBAR with a new concept
for a Monday night show.
MARQUEE MONDAY debuted
in October 2017, Sherry and
I wanted the show to not
only be entertaining but also
to give back. The owners of
REBAR loved the idea that
the audience tips from the
last number of each show
would be used to raise money
for a different charity each
month. I am incredibly proud
to share that, since October,
we’ve raised over $9,000 for
LGBTQ organizations such
as SAGE, Ali Forney Center,
Callen Lorde, Voices 4
Chechnya, RFTCA, and
AIDS Walk. We even used
the month of December to
not only raise money for the
Ali Forney Center but to also
do a weekly coat drive,
In May 2018, Sherry Pie started
hosting a recurring event, LOVE
LAB, which raises money for
the Research Foundation to
Cure Aids (RFTCA). LOVE LAB
is a dating game and bachelor
auction hosted by Sherry, with
DJ Matty Glitterati. Sherry
added “we raised $1000 at
Marquee and $2000 at the
event, where a bachelor is
auctioned for a date sponsored
by local business such as ELMO,
MNSTR Cycle and TRIAD
Theater.”
It’s not just entertainment
and events that are part of
REBARS approach. They
also offered their space to
many great causes, hosting
a calendar launch to support
Rainbow Railroad, an LGBTQ
editorial photo shoot, featuring
transsexual women of color,
and most recently they hosted
VIVA GLAM, an event with
MAC Cosmetics to raise funds
for AIDS Walk.
I am incredibly proud of the
work we do at REBAR. Pairing
the help of the community
and others in nightlife, REBAR,
brings generous patrons and
important causes together
and has raised over $30,000
for different charities and
organizations. As we approach
PRIDE, a time to come together
to celebrate our wonderful
LGBTQ community and all the
beauty within it, it is important
to remember that we mustn’t
forget about our community
the other 11 months of the
year. While honoring those who
have struggled to help get us
through this fight, we should
also set an ongoing platform
for love and support for the
community as REBAR has done
this past year. Imagine if all of
the parties in NYC did just one
song a night for a charity, like
Sherry and I do at REBAR, how
much we could be giving back
as a nightlife community. As
Tina Burner famously says, “We
Are Stronger As A Community
Than We Are As A Nation.”
MARQUEE MONDAYS
8p - midnight each week.
Hosts Daniel Marandola,
Sherry Pie and DJ Eugene
Edo.
REBAR - 225 W 19th St
(between 7&8th Avenues)