House tour makes the season gay
by Charmaine Smith
12-08-2006

The Gay Holiday House Tour

• Sunday, Dec. 10
• Begins at 3849 McDonald Ave., Tower Grove Heights
• $30 ticket includes 1 p.m. tour, 5 p.m. cocktail reception
• $75 ticket also includes 11:30 a.m. brunch
• 314-534-1111, 314-721-8116

St. Louis city dwellers are as interesting as the neighborhoods they inhabit. Many of the historically rich — and architecturally diverse — neighborhoods host house tours, allowing all St. Louisans to get a closer look at the past, and view the present interpretations of homes built in the 19th and 20th centuries. Although many of the homes featured on these tours are those of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community members, until last year there was no holiday tour which featured only the homes of gays and lesbians.

In 2005, a local non-profit organization, Discovering Options, hosted the first annual Gay Holiday House Tour, featuring 12 St. Louis homes and ending with a cocktail reception with Miss Gay Missouri as the mistress of ceremonies.

While Discovering Options is not a GLBT organization, it recognizes that this community has a strong history of revitalizing and restoring neighborhoods — and increasing property values. Discovering Options is interested in connecting with citizens who believe in the city and all of its residents. The idea behind the tour is to celebrate each other and the homes, have some fun and benefit an organization that creates and delivers research-based substance abuse prevention, after-school programs for at-risk children in the city of St. Louis.

This year, the second annual Gay Holiday House Tour, also called the Gingerbread Tour, features 10 homes in both St. Louis city and county on Sunday, Dec. 10.

“We are excited to be on this year’s home tour and have great respect for the work of Discovering Options,” says Jan Hoffman, owner of one of the featured homes. “The programs they deliver impact us all by creating opportunities for children most likely to fail academically or socially to learn skills that increase their likelihood for success.”

The address of the first house is printed on the ticket, and ticket holders will pick up their tour book at the first house or at the brunch. Tour books include home addresses, a brief synopsis of each home and a map of the area. A few tickets will be available for purchase at the door of the first home, but it’s better to buy them ahead.

“We expect a great turnout this year and are encouraging people to purchase their tickets soon,” says event chair Robyn Goerss.

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