On Thursday, April 20, Dr. Oliva Espín will lecture on the topic “Religion and Sexual Orientation” from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at The Center.

The lecture is part of the fourth annual Women’s Lecture Series, a joint effort between The Center’s Women’s Resource Center and the San Diego State University Women’s Studies Department.

The lecture series takes place at The Center, located at 3909 Centre St. Tea and cookies will be provided.

On Thursday, May 4, Dr. Bonnie Zimmerman will lecture on the topic “From Invert to Butch: Sex, Gender and the Modern Lesbian.”

For more information about the Women’s Lecture Series, contact Claudia Lucero at (619) 692-2077 ext. 206 or e-mail clucero@thecentersd.org.

Michaelle’s Walk, Fraternity House, Inc.’s annual fund-raising stroll by the sea, is set to take place on Saturday, May 13, at Magee Park, located at 258 Beech Ave. in Carlsbad.

Registration begins at 10:00 a.m. and is followed by the coastal walk at 11:00 a.m. The complete walk is less than five miles. Serious runners are welcome, as are those looking for a leisurely stroll with a return shuttle. The walk is followed by a celebratory picnic featuring MC Laura Jane, live music from Dropjoy, a barbecue-style lunch and kids’ activities.

This year, Fraternity House has chosen the theme “Mom Says… Step It Up!” because the walk will take place during Mother’s Day weekend, a good time to “step up” commitment to caring for those with HIV/AIDS, organizers said.

Michaelle’s Walk is named after Michaelle Liddell, the first woman in San Diego to speak out about her HIV status and become an AIDS activist, and like many women who struggle with HIV/AIDS, she was a mother.

Fraternity House, Inc. operates San Diego County’s only licensed residential care facilities for people with AIDS – Fraternity House in Escondido and Michaelle House in Vista. The homes provide 24-hour personal care, assistance with activities of daily living, supervision of complex medication regimens, nutritious home-cooked meals, transportation, activities and emotional support. All services are coordinated with care and understanding, in order to meet the goal of providing residents with the highest quality of life possible.

For more information, contact development manager Abby Schwartz at (760) 736-0292 ext. 103 or e-mail alsfraternityhouse@prodigy.net.

The Center’s April LGBT Community Coalition Breakfast, which takes place Friday, April 21, from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. at The Center, will feature San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne as its guest speaker.

“We are so pleased to have an opportunity to hear directly from Police Chief William Lansdowne,” said AJ Davis, The Center’s public policy director. “We look forward to learning about the challenges Chief Lansdowne faces in his position, as well as his law enforcement priorities for our city.”

The Community Coalition Breakfast takes place on the third Friday of each month. Its mission is to bring together fair-minded individuals to network, educate and discuss the diverse issues of concern to GLBT and allied neighbors and citizens of San Diego.

A full breakfast is available for a $10 donation; coffee and tea are complimentary. RSVPs are not required. ASL interpretation will be provided upon request. Requests must be sent to Davis at adavis@thecentersd.org at least seven working days before the event.

The Community Coalition Breakfast is sponsored by Wells Fargo and the Gay & Lesbian Times. The Center is located at 3909 Centre St. in Hillcrest. Call (619) 692-2077 for more information.

San Diego psychotherapist Michael Kimmel and Escondido psychotherapist Tarra Judson Stariell will offer a workshop entitled, “The Other Side of Grief” on Saturday, April 22. The workshop takes place from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at 1767 Grand Ave. in Pacific Beach.

The workshop aims to be both experiential and didactic: participants will have opportunities to release long-held grief, create a ritual for loved ones who have died, and heal from what Kimmel calls, “unmourned grief,” especially important for those in the GLBT community who lived through and repeated AIDS-related deaths in the ’80s and ’90s, he said.

“Even though grief is hardly a glamorous topic, I think it’s an important one. Grief is one of the best transformational tools there is,” said Kimmel, who writes the Gay & Lesbian Times’ “Life Beyond Therapy” column. “About 20 years ago, I started volunteering as a grief support person for the Names Project. The Names Project trained me to assist people in their grief; their grief was a wakeup call to me.”

For six years, Kimmel was a volunteer grief counselor for people with terminal illnesses, their families and loved ones at The Hay Ride, Louise Hay’s weekly West Hollywood support meeting for people with AIDS, cancer and other chronic illnesses.

“Over the years, I watched hundreds of people, mostly gay men with AIDS – get sick, approach death and die. I routinely went to five to six memorial services a month,” he said. “At The Hay Ride I would often talk with the lovers, parents and families of the deceased. … I knew it was helping me and I hoped I was helpful to them.”

The workshop is open to the general public and to MFTs and LCSWs (CEUs are available for this event). Suggested admission to the workshop is $25. Proceeds from this workshop benefit the San Diego Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis, official sponsors of this event. For more information, call (619) 582-0771 or e-mail beyondtherapy@cox.net or tarra@cox.net.

The Center’s Dr. Michael Majeski will present a workshop, entitled “Parenting Pre-Teens and Adolescents” on Wednesday, April 19, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at The Center, located at 3909 Centre St. The workshop is the April installment of The Center and San Diego Family Matters’ “Positive Parenting” series.

“The goal of these informative and interactive workshops is to provide LGBT parents with enhanced skills to manage a range of parenting issues,” said Marci Bair, executive director of Family Matters. “As a growing number of LGBT people are parenting or considering parenthood, we are proud to partner with The Center to make these free workshops available for our community.”

“Certainly the pre-teen and adolescent years are challenging, both for youth and particularly for their parents,” Majeski said. “This workshop will be an opportunity to discuss strategies for parents to help successfully navigate a time in their children’s lives that can often be incredibly challenging.”

There is no cost to attend, and all workshops are open to the public. No advance registration is required, and childcare will be provided. For more information, call (619) 260-6380 ext. 116 or e-mail info@sdfamilymatters.org or mmajeski@thecentersd.org.

San Diego Men’s Chorus marks its 20th anniversary with “20/20 Reflections,” a concert celebrating 20 years of song, on Saturday, April 22, at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 23, at 7:00 p.m. Performances will take place in the newly renovated Stephen & Mary Birch North Park Theatre, located at 2891 University Ave. in North Park.

Featuring music by Pablo Casals and Fats Waller, as well as songs from Into the Woods, Rent and Avenue Q, concert highlights will include Randol Bass’ “Gloria” with orchestra, and selections from the landmark requiem for AIDS victims, “When We No Longer Touch.”

The SDMC small ensemble returns to the stage, and the SDMC drummers are back. San Diego Men’s Chorus alums and a group from the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles will join SDMC on stage. The concert will also feature a multimedia overview of the history of the San Diego Men’s Chorus.

Tickets range from $20 to $50. For tickets, call the box office at (619) 239-8836 or visit www.e-ticketsnow.com.

The next San Diego PFLAG meeting will take place at 7:00 p.m. at the First Unitarian Universalist Church, located at 4190 Front St. in Hillcrest.

The meeting will consist of support groups followed by a cookie social and a presentation by UCSD Antiviral Research Center education manager Jack Degan, who will give an overview of HIV treatment today, current research directions and the signs and symptoms of acute HIV infection.

Call (619) 579-7640 for more information.

Bring five valid e-mail addresses to the Gay & Lesbian Times office and receive admission for two to the Tuesday, April 18, pre-screening of Kinky Boots, Julian Jarrold’s new film based on the true story of a shoe-factory owner (Joel Edgerton), who faces the impending shutdown of the factory until he has a chance encounter with a flamboyant transvestite cabaret star (Chiwetel Ejiofor), whose desire for stylish, kinky boots provides hope for the factory and its employees.

The Gay & Lesbian Times is located at 1730 Monroe Ave. in University Heights Call (619) 331-7119 for more information.