Arts & Entertainment
Historic Va. lesbian bar to be turned into a dog park
The venue shut its doors on Oct. 31


(Photo by Ted Eytan; courtesy Flickr)
Hershee Bar, one of the oldest lesbian bars in the country located in Norfolk, Va., shut its doors on Oct. 31 for the final time much to the dismay of its patrons. Last week, it was announced at a Norfolk City Council meeting that the bar would be demolished in favor of a dog park.
The Washington Post reports the announcement was an emotional one. Council members had voted to purchase Hershee Bar’s four-building lot in Feburary. The area was purchased for $1.5 million. Activists who had been lobbying council members and Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander to not destroy the bar had not been told of plans for the space until the council meeting.
“There’s this sacred spot filled with 35 years of history,And dogs are literally going to be s—-ing on it,” Kathleen Casey, a professor at Virginia Wesleyan University, told the Washington Post.
Some town residents say a dog park is redundant given there are already three dog parks within three miles of the bar’s location.
Hershee Action Coalition, a group that had fought to save Hershee Bar, member Sarah Hustead says the longtime bar can’t compare to a dog park.
“Two, I think we have enough dog parks. But we don’t have anything else like the Hershee bar,” she told the Washington Post.
Norfolk City Councilwoman Andria McClellan wrote in a Facebook post that she was blindsided by the decision.
“For the record, I don’t support paying $1.5M for a dog park,” McClellan penned. “I had not heard of these plans before they were presented this week and I don’t agree with this direction at all.”
However, Jackie Rochelle, a member of the Five Tasks Point Force which works toward restructuring the area around Hershee Bar, told the Washington Post the dog park was “an accumulation of years of planning.”
Books
A boy-meets-boy, family-mess story with heat
New book offers a stunning, satisfying love story

‘When the Harvest Comes’
By Denne Michele Norris
c.2025, Random House
$28/304 pages
Happy is the bride the sun shines on.
Of all the clichés that exist about weddings, that’s the one that seems to make you smile the most. Just invoking good weather and bright sunshine feels like a cosmic blessing on the newlyweds and their future. It’s a happy omen for bride and groom or, as in the new book “When the Harvest Comes” by Denne Michele Norris, for groom and groom.

Davis Freeman never thought he could love or be loved like this.
He was wildly, wholeheartedly, mind-and-soul smitten with Everett Caldwell, and life was everything that Davis ever wanted. He was a successful symphony musician in New York. They had an apartment they enjoyed and friends they cherished. Now it was their wedding day, a day Davis had planned with the man he adored, the details almost down to the stitches in their attire. He’d even purchased a gorgeous wedding gown that he’d never risk wearing.
He knew that Everett’s family loved him a lot, but Davis didn’t dare tickle the fates with a white dress on their big day. Everett’s dad, just like Davis’s own father, had considerable reservations about his son marrying another man – although Everett’s father seemed to have come to terms with his son’s bisexuality. Davis’s father, whom Davis called the Reverend, never would. Years ago, father and son had a falling-out that destroyed any chance of peace between Davis and his dad; in fact, the door slammed shut to any reconciliation.
But Davis tried not to think about that. Not on his wedding day. Not, unbeknownst to him, as the Reverend was rushing toward the wedding venue, uninvited but not unrepentant. Not when there was an accident and the Reverend was killed, miles away and during the nuptials.
Davis didn’t know that, of course, as he was marrying the love of his life. Neither did Everett, who had familial problems of his own, including homophobic family members who tried (but failed) to pretend otherwise.
Happy is the groom the sun shines on. But when the storm comes, it can be impossible to remain sunny.
What can be said about “When the Harvest Comes?” It’s a romance with a bit of ghost-pepper-like heat that’s not there for the mere sake of titillation. It’s filled with drama, intrigue, hate, characters you want to just slap, and some in bad need of a hug.
In short, this book is quite stunning.
Author Denne Michele Norris offers a love story that’s everything you want in this genre, including partners you genuinely want to get to know, in situations that are real. This is done by putting readers inside the characters’ minds, letting Davis and Everett themselves explain why they acted as they did, mistakes and all. Don’t be surprised if you have to read the last few pages twice to best enjoy how things end. You won’t be sorry.
If you want a complicated, boy-meets-boy, family-mess kind of book with occasional heat, “When the Harvest Comes” is your book. Truly, this novel shines.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.

The Victory Fund held its National Champagne Brunch at the Ritz-Carlton on Sunday, April 27. Speakers included Tim Gunn, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Gov. Wes Moore (D-Md.), Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.).
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Music & Concerts
Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’
Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.

Singer Tom Goss will bring his “Bear Friends Furever Tour” to D.C. on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Among the songs he will perform will be “Bear Soup,” the fourth installment in his beloved bear song anthology series. Following fan favorites like “Bears,” “Round in All the Right Places,” and “Nerdy Bear,” this high-energy, bass-thumping banger celebrates body positivity, joyful indulgence, and the vibrant spirit of the bear subculture.
For more details, visit Tom Goss’s website.
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