Mid Hudson Times Oct. 24 2018 | Page 2

2 Mid Hudson Times, Wednesday, October 24, 2018 IN THIS ISSUE Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 City of Newburgh.. . . . . . . . . . . 26 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Crossword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Letters to the Editor. . . . . . . . . . 10 Meadow Hill. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Town of Newburgh. . . . . . . . . . . 27 Newburgh Heritage. . . . . . . . . . . 10 New Windsor.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Police Blotter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Service Directory. . . . . . . . . . . 39 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 PUBLIC AGENDA WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 24 Town of New Windsor Planning Board, 7 p.m. Town Hall, 555 Union Ave. City of Newburgh Police Community Relations and Review Board, 7 p.m. Mullins Community Center. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 27 Newburgh Enlarged City School District Town Hall meeting, 10 a.m. Board of Education Auditorium, 124 Grand St., Newburgh. Topics that will be discussed are: General safety measures, Technology, Social Emotional Learning (SEL) roles and impact, Advisory Leadership Emergency Response Team (ALERT) meetings, School Resource Monitors, Metal detectors. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1 Newburgh Enlarged City School District Town Hall meeting, 6:30 a.m. Board of Education Auditorium, 124 Grand St., Newburgh. Advisory Council, 6:30 p.m., HOW TO REACH US OFFICE: 300 Stony Brook Court Newburgh, NY 12550 PHONE: [phone], FAX: [phone] Emails may be directed to the following : ADVERTISING [email protected] CALENDAR SUBMISSIONS [email protected] TO REACH THE EDITOR [email protected] FOR THE SPORTS DEPARTMENT [email protected] PUBLIC NOTICES [email protected] WEBSITE www.timescommunitypapers.com The Mid Hudson Times (USPS 000-5947) is a weekly newspaper published every Wednesday at Newburgh, NY 12550, with offices at 300 Stony Brook Court, Newburgh, NY Single copy: $1 at newsstand. By mail in Orange, Ulster or Sullivan Counties: $40 annually, $44 out of county. Periodicals permit at Newburgh, NY POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Mid Hudson Times, 300 Stony Brook Court, Newburgh, NY 12550. FACES OF NEWBURGH Embracing a life outside the social norms By KATELYN CORDERO [email protected] A young woman walks into a party on Halloween, dressed from head to toe in an Egyptian Pharaoh costume. She looks and feels immaculate. The music is playing and the lights shine down on her as she dances without a care in the world. She has never felt so free, alive and accepted. This was Phoenix Gayle’s first night out as a transgender woman. She went to a safe place with her cousin and embraced her femininity releasing all the tension from the years of pleasing others and trying to blend in. “This was the first time I went out comfortable in my own skin,” said Gayle. “It was everything, the lights, the music, I was engaging with different people and finally found myself in a safe place with like minded people and allies. I finally allowed myself to be free.” As a kid Gayle always felt like “the other”, she understood that she wasn’t like the other boys but felt this was something she had to keep inside. Growing up in the City of Newburgh being gay was not something people talked about in Gayle’s community. “In the black community it’s not the best to be the other,” said Gayle. “Being gay was bad, it was a sin. Growing up I was tired of being depressed all the time, having this thing of not being me and trying to be everything everyone else wanted me to be.” Gayle spent a majority of her life trying to please everyone else in her life by attempting to fit in and be who she thought her friends and family expected her to be. She was a member of a church where being gay was a sin. She found comfort in the very place that held her back from embracing her true self. “It was something I ran to as a way of coping with being different,” said Gayle. “I did praise and worship and it was a big part of my life. I found myself, but I stopped going a few years before I transitioned. I think that was part of the reason I waited so long to come out.” When Gayle decided to come out, she knew it was going to be hard. To her surprise many people in her life accepted her all the same. Coming out to her father was one of the most difficult moments for Gayle. She had no idea how he was going to respond. “My dad was from the hood,” said Gayle. “He was a tough guy, and his For Phoenix Gayle making the transition was everything, she finally felt like she was who she was meant to be after all these years. religious studies didn’t agree with homosexuality. When I came out to him I wasn’t seeking for his approval but I wanted him to know.” Her father accepted her the way many of her friends and family did. Some of her coming out encounters did not go as well as her immediate family. “I just said if you’re going to be in my life than you’re going to have to accept me for who I am,” said Gayle. At 24 years old after doing research and talking with some friends in the LGBTQ community she realized that it was time for her to embrace who she is and make her transition. She takes hormone therapy that gives her the body she needs. “I’m going through hormone therapy to make my physical match my inner,” said Gayle. “Down the line I plan to get surgeries. Everyone goes through a unique journey. Mine is different from every other transgender person.” For Gayle making the transition was everything, she finally felt like she was who she was meant to be after all these years. “I felt my femininity, my womanhood,” said Gayle. “I knew this was who I was meant to be. You just feel good regardless if people agree with you.” Today Gayle works for the Newburgh LGBTQ Center as a community planner. She helps to educate people on the LGBTQ community and assists members of the community. “[I tell people to] stop seeking acceptance and start accepting yourself, because that’s what you deserve,” said Gayle. “Know that by coming out you will gain more than you will lose, I promise you that.”