Venture Out and Into Community

Car packed to the brim with hiking gear, sleeping bags, and trail mix, I drove through rolling misty hills and trees, the rain hitting harder as we headed north. My best friend, Max, and I, took the week off from our work on the New England coast and headed to Vermont to attend the long-awaited volunteer summit for The Venture Out Project(Se abre en una nueva ventana) (which, in our excitement, we planned on our calendars before they even accepted our applications). We looked forward to unplugging from our busy lives to immerse ourselves outside with queer folks looking to do the same.  

We rolled up to Basecamp, passing trees, wooden signs, pride flags, and cabins. Taking in our surroundings and scouting out a tent site, we heard a voice call out from the rain.  

“Hey, it’s Andy and Max!”  

The friendliest of faces greeted us, beaming, despite the fact they were soaked to the bone from running around camp to orient volunteers. We were enthusiastically welcomed by TVOP staff, setting us up with our gear, pointing out where to set up our tent, and suggesting we attend a session of yoga before we all gathered for the welcome circle. 

Max and I swiftly pitched our tent, successfully keeping everything dry, and put together our cozy tent setup. We giddily talked about the week ahead, excited to meet the team and our volunteer cohort. Even through the harsh rain, the staff’s delight and warm welcome lifted our spirits. 

We congregated for our first welcome circle under a large tent, sheltered from the rain, to introduce ourselves. I learned that my volunteer cohort flew in from all over the country: Arizona, California, Oregon, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Maine, and more. We started off playing ice breaker games, laughing and running around the tent. Once we settled down, the team prepped us for what to expect for the week ahead—workshops, group hikes, and for most of us, two days of Wilderness First Aid training—and let us go for the night. After a long day of traveling, getting settled, and meeting new people, you would think we would all want to hit the sack. But of course, as the sun set and the rain broke, we eagerly started a bonfire and spent the night sharing stories, listening intently to each other’s tales, as if everyone had their own personal spotlight.  

We connected to each other right away, as if we had known each other for longer than this summit. By intentionally entering an all-queer space, we hit the ground running with mutual understanding. Often, in spaces that aren’t explicitly queer, you have to play the high-stakes game of “Are they like me? Can I share myself with them?” Without this barrier, we bonded right away. This group of people all lead such rich, interesting lives, and all of us were equally fascinated by each other. Others came to volunteer with their friends too, like Max and I, but no one had any trouble branching out from who they knew. 

In one circle, we went around to share what we wanted out of the summit experience. Some of us, very practically, wanted to learn about others’ program ideas and how to bring them to fruition. Others were excited to meet new people from different places. Most of all, we all seemed to really need a getaway in a safe place with good people. Like many people at the summit, I’m a busy person. I love my full-time job, I have a couple of side gigs to keep the bills paid, and I make art. It’s easy to lose yourself when you fixate too much on productivity. The summit totally removed us out of our daily contexts. With no cell service, and workshops that required our complete attention, I lost the compulsion to check my phone. In a world where we are constantly obligated to be connected, it felt liberating to know myself outside of my responsibilities and be present in newfound community. 

The main goal of our time here was to learn the skills we needed as volunteer leaders for future community events in our own local communities. The TVOP summit taught us not only how to foster a community of support, inclusion, and kindness at these future outings, but also how to plan these excursions. On the last day of the summit, the rain let up to reveal the perfect sunny spring weather. Our full cohort hit Hogback Mountain to put what we’d learned into practice. We caught some curious looks from a couple of hikers in the parking lot, probably wondering where this bunch of people gearing up with daypacks and maps came from, but with our confidence and solidarity, it was like water off a duck’s back. 

 We split into groups, taking on different roles, like leaders and sweeps. Just like we would with people in our future programs, we checked in with each other as we made our way through the woods, asked for consent to take photos, took breaks at every trail intersection, and sent warnings down the line about the trail ahead (“Careful, it’s muddy up here!”). We pointed out ticks on each other and tested raising our hands above our heads to draw the gnats away from our faces—which, actually sort of, worked. 

We made our way back down the trail to head back to camp—but of course, when in Vermont, we had to commemorate our hard work with maple creemees! We sprawled outside, enjoying the mountains with an air of celebration—to celebrate being outside, and being together. 

At the start of the summit, we arrived at Basecamp with excitement, optimism, and some uncertainty. Like many adventures, the first step was to show up, which we all agreed was brave enough on its own. Our work at the summit required vulnerability and authenticity to build community with these complete strangers first in order to nurture our communities back home. 

The near week-long summit felt like a pocket dimension, separate from our realities. I took in the mountain air, bird calls, restorative meals, enriching training sessions, dips in the creek, campfire chats, and pride flags billowing in the wind with a twinge of bittersweetness, knowing I would soon return to the “real world.” But, we reminded each other, this is the real world. We are all here, seeking the same thing. We can cultivate the freedom, security, and love we experienced together by taking what we learned here to our communities. 

Max and I left the summit happy, tired, and excited for our journeys ahead. We brainstormed new ideas and how to bring them to life, ready to plant our seeds of care, bravery, and authenticity back home.