Those who live the longest are truly lucky, but there is an unfortunate stigma in our culture that aging is an unwelcomed part of life. This way of thinking is ageism and it is also found with the LGBT community. With age comes a wealth of knowledge and experiences, but those attributes are often overlooked and with that, their rights are as well. The inequality for LGBT adults is compounded by the biases for our community as a whole. The following are particular challenges for the aging LGBT community:

• Social Security pays survivor benefits to widows and widowers but not to surviving same-sex partners of those we lose.

• Unmarried partners in lifelong relationships are not eligible for spousal benefits, which can allow them to earn half their partners’ benefit when it larger than his or her own.

• Medicaid regulations protect the assets and homes of only “married” spouses when the other spouse enters a nursing home or long-term care facility.

• Tax laws and other regulations of 401(k)’s and pensions discriminate against same-sex partners, costing the surviving partner in a same-sex relationship.

• Even the most basic rights such as hospital visitation or the right to die in the same nursing home are regularly denied same-sex partners.

• Many LGBT elders experience social isolation and ageism within the LGBT community itself.

Triangle Foundation offers a variety of community events that promote the visibility of diversity within the LGBT community, including the aging members of our family. Elders within our community come from all over our state (even some neighboring states as well) to be free and enjoy being openly LGBT with other members of the community.

As we build on our community, we also restructure society with our Department of Policy. We advocate and lobby for change so that LGBT elders receive all of the amenities that every other human being receives in this state. Our Department of Victim Services insures that individuals and their partners are provided with equal treatment in care facilities and in hospitals. The list of inequalities is our tasks at hand. It is a community effort and we are leading the way. Be a Volunteer! The majority of our volunteers are older adults who donate their time and resources to ensure that life is not as trying for younger generations and to help better the way of life for current LGBT older adults.