From renters to residents, day trippers to the winter warriors- the people that inhabit Cherry Grove are what makes our hamlet so special. The parties and fundraisers, the committees and community shows, the house parties and adventures on the beach are what helped elevate our town from a fishing village to one of the most fashionable queer destinations in the world.
Our "Community Profiles" are a tribute to all those that have made their mark on the history of Cherry Grove.
Many of the profiles are taken from the Cherry Grove Honors, which recognized individuals for their contributions to the Grove community. Each honoree was interviewed (and researched) by the talented Joyce Yaeger, who wrote the these profiles that were read when the awards were given each year.
Archives volunteer Brian Clark has also interviewed some fascinating Cherry Grove residents, who share jewels of historic information about their time living their best life in Fire Island.
This collection of profiles posted is only the start of an ongoing project that we hope others will join in, by sharing their stories, to be preserved as part of Cherry Grove history.
Arthur C Cohen, Brian Clark & Troy Files, Jim Fallon, Eddie Fraser, Gina Garan, Audrey Hartmann,
Richard "Bella" Iorio, Donald LaBohn, Robert "rose" Levine, Gerri Losquadro, Marty Mann & Carson McCullers,
Maggie McCorkle, Lois McIntosh, Roland Michele, Natalia Danesi Murray & Janet Flanner, Sue Panzer,
Peg Ryan & Ceejay Rosen, Richard Schack, Joe Scialo, Ruth "Peter" Worth
ADD YOUR COMMUNITY PROFILE
While our volunteers have begun the process of documenting as many Grovers as we can, we encourage all community members to submit their own profiles or a profile of someone they want to be included in this chronicle of queer creatives and their allies, that were the trailblazing people who built the safe haven that we have today.
If you are interested in adding to the Community Profiles, please email our Chair Person Troy Files (contact@cgarchives.org).
Over the past few years CGAC has made an effort to capture the characters and chronicles of Cherry Grove by filming interviews. We have setup recording sessions in many different locations and conducted "open interviews" at our annual Archives Show.
Some interviews have been used in our documentary films and exhibitions, but all are filmed in the spirit of preserving our community's colorful history for future generations.