Local

Virginia same-sex marriage lawsuit certified as class action

Case brought by two lesbian couples from Shenandoah Valley

Published

12 years ago

January 31, 2014

Michael K. Lavers

Victoria Kidd and Christy Berghoff of Winchester, Va. (Photo courtesy of the ACLU)

A federal judge on Friday certified a lawsuit that two lesbian couples from the Shenandoah Valley filed against Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban as a class action.

Judge Michael F. Urbanski of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Harrisonburg ruled any same-sex couple in the commonwealth who is not married or legally exchanged vows in another jurisdiction can join the women’s lawsuit.

The American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Virginia last August challenged the state’s constitutional amendment that defines marriage as between a man and a woman on behalf of Christy Berghoff and Victoria Kidd of Winchester and Joanne Harris and Jessica Duff in Staunton.

Berghoff and Kidd, who have been together for more than nine years and are raising their young daughter, married in D.C. in 2011. Harris and Duff, who have also been together for nearly a decade and are raising a 4-year-old son, tried to apply for a marriage license in Staunton Circuit Court last July.

“It’s about protecting our family,” said Kidd during a meeting she and other LGBT Virginians attended with state Sen. Jill Holtzman Vogel (R-Fauquier County)’s staffers in Richmond on Jan. 28 that coincided with Equality Virginia’s annual lobby day. “Right now we are separated from so many protections that are enjoyed by other families and we fundamentally don’t feel that the state should be defining family for us.”

Oral arguments in a second lawsuit that two same-sex couples – Timothy Bostic and Tony London of Norfolk and Carol Schall and Mary Townley of Richmond – filed against the commonwealth’s marriage amendment last year will take place in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Norfolk on Tuesday.

Urbanski excluded the plaintiffs in the Bostic case from the class action lawsuit.

“We want to be clear that we’re fighting for families across the state,” said Claire Guthrie Gastañaga, executive director of the ACLU of Virginia. “This marriage ban affects families in a number of different ways by denying them the many protections that come with marriage. It’s important that our case address the many ways that families are hurt by our discriminatory laws.”

Attorney General Mark Herring last week announced he will not defend the marriage amendment that Virginia voters in 2006 approved by a 57-43 percent margin.

A Virginia House of Delegates committee on Jan. 24 approved a bill state Dels. Bob Marshall (R-Prince William County) and Todd Gilbert (R-Shenandoah County) introduced that would allow any state lawmaker to defend a law if the governor and attorney general decline to do so. Pat Mullins, chair of the Republican Party of Virginia, is among those who have said Herring should resign if he refuses to defend the state’s gay nuptials ban.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe on Jan. 27 said he would not appoint a special counsel to defend the marriage amendment after Marshall and 29 other state lawmakers asked him to do so.

Herring’s spokesperson, Michael Kelly, referred the Washington Blade to the attorney general’s previous comments on the state’s same-sex marriage ban when asked about Urbanski’s order.

“This is a key issue that the [U.S.] Supreme Court is going to have to decide,” Herring told the Blade during a Jan. 23 interview. “If the facts were presented to the Supreme Court, they would strike it down. And it’s important that Virginia be on the right side of history and on the right side of the law.”

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Baltimore

Popular Mount Vernon gay bar Leon’s to temporarily close after owner’s death

Ron Singer passed away on July 7

Published

2 days ago

July 17, 2026

Baltimore Banner

Leon’s Backroom Bar in Mount Vernon. (Photo by Jessica Gallagher for the Baltimore Banner)

By WESLEY CASE | Leon’s Backroom, Baltimore’s oldest gay bar, temporarily shut down after service on Wednesday night, according to a post on the business’s Instagram page.

The announcement comes a little more than a week after the death of the Mount Vernon bar’s owner, Ron Singer, who died at 66 on July 7.

The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

Local

Comings & Goings

New garden center offers array of products in Rehoboth

Published

2 days ago

July 17, 2026

Peter Rosenstein

Bay Laurel Home & Garden is located just outside Rehoboth on Route 1.

The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].

Congratulations to Stuart Ortel and Scott Marker, and Dave Lyons and Rick Hardy, on the recent opening of their garden center on Route 1 in Rehoboth Beach, in the former Farmer Girl site. It is called Bay Laurel Home and Garden and debuted earlier this year. The four owners are all well known to the denizens of Rehoboth Beach.

Stuart and Scott have been active members of the Rehoboth Beach community since 1999. Stuart is a landscape architect, and has established relationships with many local folks in the building and landscape industry. When this opportunity for Bay Laurel Home & Garden presented itself, and they had the perfect team of people in place, he and Scott were committed to making it a reality. So, when Scott and Stuart introduced this opportunity to create a new garden center to Dave and Rick, they embraced the chance to cultivate a business where beautiful plants, inspiring home and garden products, and outstanding customer service come together. Dave and Rick knew about owning a business in Rehoboth as they previously owned Coho’s Market, where they discovered firsthand the value of serving their community, and the rewards of running a locally owned business.

The garden center launched with a refreshed brand identity, updated merchandising, and expanded product lines, all designed to create an inspiring and welcoming environment for your home. Bay Laurel Home & Garden offers a beautifully appointed garden center and curated home and gift shop.

The new center features a full nursery with annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, and seasonal selections; a garden center offering pottery, fountains, and garden ornamentation, and essential tools and garden supplies. It has a garden shop featuring unique indoor/outdoor furnishings and accessories, and a gift shop featuring botanical and coastal style items for home and entertaining.

Rehoboth Beach

Celebrate Pride in Rehoboth Beach this weekend

‘A vital space for community, healing, and connection’

Published

4 days ago

July 15, 2026

Thomas Weaverling

Rehoboth’s Pride festivities kick off Friday. (Washington Blade file photo by Daniel Truitt)

Pride in Rehoboth Beach is kicking off this week on Friday, July 17, with events happening throughout the weekend.

“Rehoboth Beach Pride is more than a festival — it is a vital space for community, healing, and connection,” said David Mariner, director of Sussex Pride, which organizes many of the events.

The weekend will begin with the Grand Opening & Community Preview from 1-4 p.m. on Friday, July 17, celebrating the opening of Novus Medical Services and the new Sussex Pride Community Center.

This will be followed by an Interfaith Pride Service at 6 p.m. at the Metropolitan Community Church Rehoboth to gather for healing and the affirmation of queer spirituality with Rev. Carla Christopher, chair of Sussex Pride Faith.

Members of the community are then invited to head over to join the Rehoboth Beach Bears at the Pines to have dinner, mingle, and give back to local initiatives.

End the first night of Pride in Rehoboth at Diego’s Bar & Nightclub with music by DJ Joey P from 9 p.m.-1 a.m.

Rehoboth Beach Pride Festival will take place on Saturday, July 18, 2026, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. inside the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. A full list of events is available at rehobothbeachpride.org.

Roxy Overbrooke will host on the main stage as live performances take place throughout the day, featuring music from DJ MK and Tribe 9 Entertainment.

The festival will include educational workshops, community meetups, and a raffle dedicated to raising funds for unhoused LGBTQ+ youth across Delaware.

Feature workshops include panels discussing topics such as unhoused LGBTQ+ youth in Delaware, the needs of trans and non-binary youth, as well as the increase in HIV and syphilis diagnoses amid federal budget cuts, in a panel moderated by Blade Editor Kevin Naff.

Saturday night will also feature an evening comedy and entertainment show at the Convention Center presented by the Gay Women of Rehoboth. Performers will include comedians Suzanne Westen h oefer and Karen Mills as well as musician Kristen Merlin. Tickets are available at gaywomenofrehoboth.org.

The Rehoboth Beach Pride Ride will take place at 10 a.m. on Sunday, July 19, hosted by the Dykes on Bikes Rehoboth Beach Women’s Motorcycle Club, starting at Lefty’s.

Goolee’s Drag Brunch will also take place on Sunday from 12-2 p.m at Goolee’s Grille. This is a family-friendly event hosted by Regina Cox and Ruby, featuring Aurora Sterling, Michelle Leigh Sterling, Scarlet St. Cartier, and Joanna Blue. Tickets can be purchased online.

Pride in Rehoboth will conclude at 2 p.m. with the official Rehoboth Beach Pride Closing Party at Aqua Bar & Grill, celebrating the venue’s landmark 20th anniversary with DJ Biff until 7 p.m.

Due to an influx of visitors for the summer season, those coming from out-of-town are encouraged to use the Park & Ride.