Hudsonville Area Pride. You Belong Here.

by Haley Lozano

I’ve often said that moving to Hudsonville from Chicago was a culture shock. 

Throughout my life, I’ve found myself jumping around a lot, moving from place to place. The funny thing is - and I'm not sure if it’s a big fish/ small pond thing or what - in every city I’ve ever lived in, I’ve never found a place where I belong. Every day, I would put on my costume for survival - one that never quite fit, if I’m being honest; the shirts were snug in the wrong places, the skirts were always pulling, and my boobs never went with my outfit. No matter what trend I tried, which fad I followed, or style I strained, I always felt like I was hiding something, and I was trying to find it with every variation of myself. 

With the pandemic, I packed up and moved to Western Michigan (a place my mother’s side has called home since the 1800s). I didn’t know what I was going to find here, but I wanted more than anything for it to be community. After months (years) of agoraphobic isolation and thinking,

I decided to volunteer. When I started searching for opportunities, I knew I wanted to do work for the queer community because I wanted to find the queer community here in Michigan, in Ottawa County, in Hudsonville. I was seeking to help - yes, because I wanted to actively be “part of the change,” but also because I wanted to stop feeling like I was the only queer here. It turns out all I had to do was look next door: Ottawa Area Center for Pride was right there. There is a queer community here, I thought to myself. A few months later, I was struggling and needed help with food. Once again, all I had to do was look at my neighbor: Inclusive Ottawa County was there to help me. 

Ottawa Area Center for Pride and Inclusive Ottawa County are proving every day that I’m not alone, and that the community cares about me, and that I belong here. 

You are not alone. The community cares about you. You Belong Here. 

Haley Lozano is on the board of OACFP and works primarily on their social media. They live in Hudsonville with their fiancé and two cats, Jasper and Remus.