As some LGBTQ resources dwindle nationally, in Modesto they’re expanding
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- CalPride Stanislaus opened a second Modesto site to meet rising service demand.
- New discreet location offers laundry, kitchen access, peer support and transport.
- CalPride expanded amid national funding cuts, serving 15,000 across seven counties.
The LGBTQ resource center CalPride Stanislaus opened its second location Friday because of increased demand for its services.
The second location, at 111 Modesto Ave., opened during a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by community leaders and the public.
CalPride Stanislaus is part of a larger network of LGBTQ resource organizations that provide services to the community for six counties in the Central Valley. Resources include peer support, health screenings, workforce development and advocacy.
While still downtown and easily accessible, the new location is a bit more discreet. It sits at the end of a tree-lined and quiet residential street. Those who need the center’s services can enter via McHenry Avenue or from the neighborhood.
This is by design, said CalPride Executive Director Roman Scanlon. The number of people going to CalPride’s downtown location forced them to line up outside on the busy and public streets. This was an issue for several reasons.
Amid rising discrimination and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, Scanlon said there needed to be a way for community members to access their resources discreetly, if not confidentially. If someone has not come out to friends and family, is trans or even scared to leave the house, Scanlon wanted to “make sure everybody has an easy way to get here.”
“We wanted to be able to provide a safe space where they could come, not have to worry about being seen by friends, families, co-workers, next-door neighbors, anything like that,” said Scanlon. “So now we have a space that’s in a residential area, a very low volume of traffic that goes down the street. They can park in the back. Nobody sees them come in. They get that 100% confidentiality here.”
But the new location isn’t there just to serve more people, it also has new things to offer. Couches and TVs offer a space to relax. An industrial-sized fridge allows people to store food and a kitchen to cook it, if their housing situation doesn’t allow it. A washer and dryer lets them do laundry.
Two vans were also acquired for a program that transports community members to doctor appointments, secured housing, rehab and social events. The new center also has expanded space for one-on-one peer support.
Seeing resources expand in the area as diversity, inclusion and equity funding is being cut in other places means a lot to Scanlon personally. He said CalPride’s funding has actually increased.
“Going back a little bit when I grew up in Merced, there was no space like this. I was 100% alone. I had a few friends that were part of the LGBT community, but we just never talked about it out of fear,” said Scanlon. “I think about all the times in my past that I needed someone to be there for me, or I needed guidance or help to get through everything I was going through... I kept thinking, ‘God, I wish there was a place like (this) for me so I wouldn’t (have) felt so alone.’”
The ribbon-cutting event had 16 booths occupied by local resource centers that partner with CalPride. Among them were La Familia Central Valley, Golden Valley Health Centers, Turning Point Community Programs and Project Sentinel.
“Even though we’re right now in a climate of really anti-LGBT, anti-immigrants, you know, that’s not going to stop us... we’re not going to be erased,” said CalPride CEO John Aguirre.
Aguirre said CalPride’s centers served about 15,000 people in seven counties last year. CalPride Stanislaus’ first location downtown served between 3,500 and 5,000.
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 1:37 PM.
