Welcome to Our Home Page !

Are you over 40 and gay? Be honest now! Are you looking for people who share your interests?

If so, Mature Friends is for you! Our active, fun-loving group of over 200 members meets regularly to share common interests such as hiking, cooking, playing bridge or pinochle, dining out, going to theater, and traveling (both locally and internationally).

Congratulations! You are visitor number:

 

Who Are We?

We are you . . . or who you will eventually be — gay and lesbian individuals and couples over 40. To join up, all you have to do is pay nominal yearly dues and show up at any of our events. Membership is confidential! We do not share our membership list with any other organizations or individuals, period.

Formed in 1989, Mature Friends has grown into a large nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonsectarian organization with influence throughout the local gay community and even beyond. Leveraging the group’s vitality and size, members can participate in a variety of activities and find a network already in place for supporting the community at large.

Paying Our Dues

Groups our size naturally incur operating expenses, and Mature Friends is no exception. To rent the Ballard Odd Fellows Hall and to cover other expenses, members pay annual dues, which cover the period of July 1 through June 30 of the following year.

Members pay their dues on July 1 every year. Of course, the dues are prorated for those who join in mid-year.

 

How to Join

Why not join us today and get in on the fun? Call or write to ask any questions or to request a membership form or print the form from this site.

Come on, meet some new friends and join in on the fun! A good place to start is with our next potluck, at the Ballard Odd Fellows Hall.

To find out the date of our next potluck or any other activity, check out the date in the current newsletter.

Hey, by the way, first-time guests at the potluck don’t need to bring anything!

Disclaimer

Mature Friends, its officers, directors, and members, hereinafter known as The Club, may assist members to arrange travel, outings, meals, and other activities. The Club assumes no responsibility for any loss, injury or expense incurred by members’ participation in these activities, and cannot be held liable for any acts of commission, or omission, on behalf of any vendors that may be involved. Participants should take measures to protect their investments and participation in group activities.

 

Where We Meet

Our main meeting place is centrally located in downtown Ballard at the Odd Fellows Hall. All of our potlucks take place here, as well as the bridge club, the pinochle club, and the weekly exercise group. When you arrive, go upstairs. If there are no stairs, then you’re at the wrong place! Check out the address below, and click the link for a map.

Odd Fellows Hall (Homebase)

Ballard Odd Fellows Hall
1706 N.W. Market Street
Seattle, Washington 98107

  

Other activities meet elsewhere, and sometimes their meeting place changes from month to month. To find up-to-date locations for each activity, see the Upcoming Events section of the current newsletter. Click this button:

 

When We Eat

Like any army of people, we at Mature Friends travel on our stomach. Practically every time we get together, we eat. To accomplish this feat, we offer four regular activities centered around food. Each activity consists of either dining in or dining out. Actually, there are more than four, but the others are informal, such as the lunch out after exercise class on Wednesdays.

Dining In

Dining Out
Monthly Potluck Bimonthly Lunches
Dinner for Six Monthly Dinner

Dining In

Although there are only two dining in activities per month, they are major lynch pins that hold us together and allow us to share our culinary arts with other members of the group.

Monthly Potluck

On the last Friday of each month, members at large get together for a potluck dinner in Ballard. This event is the brick and mortar of Mature Friends, allowing members to keep in touch regularly and to welcome prospective members.

For information about the potluck for this month, click the following button:

But the potluck is more than just dinner — it’s a social and educational event. Beginning at 6:30 with appetizers, we socialize while sampling each other’s culinary creations. At around 7:30, the main course is served, with several dishes for each course — salad, main, and vegetable. Then sometimes a guest speaker gives a short program, which can vary from art displays to presentations from other gay groups to tales of adventure abroad. After the program, it’s time for dessert, coffee, and more socializing.

Normally, the potluck is held at our homebase in Ballard.

But two months out of the year we do something different:

Dinner for Six

For those who want to open their homes to a small group of Mature Friends who love to cook and entertain, you can join the Dinner for Six. This activity consists of a pool of gourmets and novices who share a love of cooking and entertaining. The pool is divided into couples (either real partners or just friends who double-up). Each couple takes an evening during a month to cook a dinner for the other two couples. When the group has rotated three times, the pool of members is shuffled into different groups of six people.

But you do not have to be a four-star chef to join the Dinner for Six. All you need is a desire to share your favorite foods with a fun-loving group who appreciates all kinds of meals.

Dining Out

If you enjoy eating out with a lively group of restaurant afficiandos, then by all means join our Knife and Fork Club for our lunches and dinners out.

Click the button for this month’s schedule:

Lunches Out

Twice a month, as many of us as possible get together for lunch at a local restaurant. Lately, the location has been alternating between Charlie's for the first lunch and the Rosebud Restaurant for the second lunch. Both restaurants are conveniently located on Capitol Hill. These lunches are purely social and allow members to touch base with each other in a gay-friendly atmosphere.

Dinner Out

In addition to the lunches, once a month the group meets for dinner out. For variety, the specific restaurant will change from time to time. Lately, we’ve been meeting at the 125th Street Grill, which offers a varied menu, high in quality. The 125th Street Grill, like any other restaurant we choose, offers a full bar, separate checks, and easy access.

 

What We Do

Never letting moss grow underfoot, Mature Friends is an active group. From simply playing bridge or pinochle to travel abroad to competing and winning medals in the Gay Games every four years, you’ll surely find an activity to entice you. Remember that large groups have the clout to negotiate lower rates on any kind of activity, from theater tickets to trips overseas. This clout leaves you with more money for shopping, dining in fancy restaurants, or splurging on anything else that appeals to you. And you get the added advantage of enjoying these activities with a ready-made group of people who share your interests.

The following list describes the activities we currently engage in. If you don’t see anything that appeals to you, don’t get discouraged. You can always start a new activity. The list just keeps growing. So, come on, check us out!

Activities

  
Discussing Books Seeing Shows
Investing Funds Walking and Hiking
Getting Healthy Taking Trips
Playing Bridge  
Playing Pinochle  

 

Discussing Books

What have you been reading lately?

If you like to read contemporary fiction and non-fiction, we have just the club for you! One of the newest in Mature Friends’ pantheon of activities, the book club gives members an opportunity to read and discuss a book every month. We aim to choose books that receive critical acclaim, often because they have won a literary or journalistic prize or simply because they are “best sellers” and people are talking about them. Since quite a few of these noteworthy books now include gay and lesbian themes, we often read such books. Although we don’t promise that every book will be a gem, we take the attitude that we can learn something from any book.

We meet monthly in the early evening and in a member’s home where we share some cookies and coffee, spend a little time getting to know each other, and settle down to discuss the book. There is a lot of thoughtful discussion, and you will have a good time joining in. This isn’t the graduate level seminar you would find at a University, but if you like reading and want to share ideas with others in a spirit of conviviality, this is for you.

Look for the announcement in the newsletter identifying the book and the meeting place. All the books we read are in paperback and most of the books come from the Seattle Public Library’s special collection for book clubs.

Some of the books we have read are:

So, what are you waiting for? Sign up for this month’s book today! Be sure to check the newsletter for current information.

Investing Funds

So, you don’t know a small cap from a large cap or a Mariner’s baseball cap? Come join our investment club and learn while you earn. Meeting once a month, those who want to leverage their savings by investing with a group have the chance to get ahead through consensus and judicious investments. Not only can you add to your portfolio with this club, but you can also learn more about wise financial planning. Meetings are sometimes conducted over dinner at a local cafe, which gives you the chance to hone your fiduciary skills while you tantalize your pallet.

 

Getting Healthy

Forget Jenny Craig! Join Mature Friends, exercise free of charge, and meet others who like to keep active. Every Wednesday morning a group of varying abilities meets at the Ballard Odd Fellows Hall for an hour of stretching, bending, and moving. Total cost is only $5.00 per person per month, to help pay for supplies and rent for the hall.

After the class, those who didn’t get enough movement head off for a brisk walk around Green Lake, and then off to . . . what else? — lunch at a nearby restaurant.

The exercise group is coordinated by Len Tritsch, a retired teacher and coach. Len just finished taking a group of us to Sydney, Australia, where we competed in the Gay Games VI. In fact, Len was in charge of the entire Team Seattle track and field group at the Games. Thanks to Len’s dedicated coaching and our desire to do our best, our track team won more medals than any other team at the Games. We’re all looking forward to competing in Gay Games VII, which will be held in Montreal, Canada, in 2006.

 

Playing Bridge

Not for card sharks only, members who are interested in testing their skills meet every Wednesday at the Odd Fellows Hall in Ballard. Not exactly tournament bridge or cutthroat, this activity is for anyone no matter the level of skill, from beginner to pro. The purpose is to relax and have some fun at the card table. Like the pinochle group, there is a slight fee collected to off-set the rental of the hall.

 

Playing Pinochle

Join other members for some pinochle fun. The group meets on the first and third Wednesdays at the Odd Fellows Hall in Ballard. Depending upon the number of participants, you can play from three handed to five handed games. You don't have to be an expert, we'll teach you how to play. Like the bridge group, there is a slight fee collected to off-set the rental of the hall.

 

Seeing Shows

It’s show time, folks! With lower group rates, it’s easy and cheaper to see local professional and college productions around the town. So . . . Lights! Camera! Action! — Whoa! CUT! CUT! CUT!!! Not that kind of show (although it’s been done!). What we’re really talking about here is something with a higher brow — live theater, opera, concerts, and of course, performances of the various gay and Lesbian choruses.

But in addition to our formal outings as a group, many members get together informally on short notice for impromptu outings of two to six persons. Something similar took place while we were touring Europe a couple years ago with a beautiful concert in Vienna. Can you imagine? Enticing, eh?

For our upcoming plans, see the blurb in the latest newsletter.

 

Walking and Hiking

If structured exercise isn’t for you, or if you’d just like to explore the local area on foot, you can always join us for our monthly hike. Hiking in natural areas outdoors, whether mountains, seashore, or desert, refreshes the spirit and the body. In our walking and hiking activities, we focus on places with moderate length and elevation. In summer and fall, we sometimes take longer hikes out of town, while in the rainy season, we lean toward local hikes and walks.

All hikes are day hikes. If we go out of town and you share a ride, expect to chip in a few dollars to the driver for gas.

So, keep an eye on the newsletter to see announcements of this healthy, invigorating activity. And then come and join us! Take in some fresh air while sharing the pleasure of seeing nature with friends. Warning! The enjoyment may become addictive.

 

Taking Trips

Mature Friends loves to travel. We have made trips to Europe, Quebec, Mexico, and other areas of interest to the membership. Our goal is to travel to a minimum of three destinations per year. Here's the break-down:

In the past, we have visited wineries by bus, toured foreign sites by bus, and taken cruises to far away lands. All at a cost that is bargain priced!

We are just back from a superb cruise to Mexico and a December getaway to Las Vegas. In 2006, traveled to Greece and Turkey.

Currently, we have booked a South American cruise for 2007. Sound exciting? Watch for future trip details in the newsletter.

 

Who Runs Us

To coordinate a big group with a number of activities, you need careful organization and leadership. Mature Friends has both. During the June potluck each year, we elect a 8-person board of directors from the membership at large, and this board elects officers from its membership. Meeting monthly, the board and officers manage the affairs of the organization. Board members and officers can serve up to two years consecutively.

How the Board Is Organized

The board, in turn, is split into committees, headed by board members. Each committee is responsible for a specific group activity or event. All members are encouraged to serve on the board or on a committee, in line with their interests.

As mentioned earlier, Mature Friends publishes a monthly newsletter to inform the membership of upcoming events and to convey additional information of general interest. In the newsletter, you’ll find a calendar of the current month’s events so that you can see at a glance what’s going on when. Although board members write the main content of the newsletter, Mature Friends encourages everyone to submit an article now and then.

 

How to Contact Us

If you have any questions or would like further details about any specific events or about Mature Friends in general, please contact us either by regular mail or e-mail:

 

What’s Related

On this page, you’ll find links to other gay and Lesbian web sites.

 

What’s Up?

Keep your eye on this section for news of past and upcoming events, as well as any news pertinent to our group.

Upcoming Trips for This Year

Do you have the wander-lust? If so, check out our upcoming trips, always at group rates!

Latest Travel Information

Past Trips

To get an idea of what traveling with Mature Friends is like, here’s a sample of blasts from the past. Check them out and see what you’ ve missed or (for those of you on these trips) re-live what you experienced!

Cruise around the Horn

In February 2007, we began our most recent trip with a flight down to Rio De Janaeiro, where we caught our ship and sailed around Cape Horn. During the entire cruise, we saw wonderments that you've only heard about or seen on TV.

So, come on along. Take the cruise with us vicariously. Check out the full story.

Cruise to Italy and the Western Mediterranean

In October 2004, we took off on an extraordinary voyage to Italy and the Western Mediterranean. Whether your interest was in the glory of the ancient world or the beauty and artwork of the present, this trip satisfied every desire.

But don’ t take our word for it. Check out the full story.

Cruise to Greece and the Eastern Mediterranean

On April 28, 2006, 34 Mature Friends took off for the adventure of a lifetime in Greece, Turkey, and the Mediterranean Sea. If you missed this adventure, be sure to check out the full story

— Ray V.

 

— Curt Johnson, Webmaster
— Gordon Lovell, Assistant Webmaster