The Source LGBT+ Center

The Source LGBT+ Center exists to provide supportive spaces within its communities for LGBTQ+ people to learn, grow, belong and thrive. Its vision is a Central Valley where all LGBTQ+ people are valued and celebrated, and its work reaches across Tulare and Kings Counties from a center in the historic Lincoln Oval in downtown Visalia.

The center itself is a hub: meeting spaces, a youth room, the Gender Affirmation Station, a lending library and a free condom bar. Client services run Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the building stays open after hours for groups. Through the Build to Belong capital campaign, The Source has purchased the building and is raising funds to renovate it, add a culturally competent health care facility and build an endowment, so the community has a permanent home.

Youth programs support the social and emotional wellness of queer and trans young people and mentor them toward leadership. The Sourcerers, an activity-based peer group for ages 12 to 17, meets the first and third Thursday of each month. Queers and Peers brings together young adults ages 18 to 26 for activities around the area, and a moderated Discord keeps everyone connected. The 12-week Leadership Academy, for ages 17 to 26, covers leadership skills, LGBTQ+ history, public speaking and advocacy. A Youth Board of LGBTQ+ and allied young people helps shape the program, and The Source LGBT+ Scholarship gives $1,500 each year toward college or vocational education. Staff also visit schools and GSA meetings.

The Transgender Program began in 2016 as the dream of Dana Galante, the parent of a trans child, and is now trans-led and run. The Transcending Gender Group meets the first and third Wednesday evenings in Visalia, Game Night is open to everyone on the first Monday, and pop-up peer support groups meet in Hanford at Kings County Behavioral Health three times a month. The Gender Affirmation Station offers free clothing, hygiene and gender-affirming items during weekday drop-in hours, and peer navigators help with name and gender marker changes and mental health referrals.

The clinic offers free, rapid HIV and STI testing with culturally competent counseling, PrEP enrollment and free safer sex supplies. The Source is the only LGBTQ+ community center ADAP enrollment site in Central California, helping uninsured and underinsured people living with HIV access medication, and its Ryan White supportive services provide case management, nutrition assistance and pharmacy access. With the Tulare County Suicide Prevention Taskforce, it connects people who lack access to care with LGBTQ+ affirming therapists, and the center hosts Rainbow AA on Saturday nights and a Crystal Meth Anonymous men's group on Tuesdays.

Since 2016 The Source has trained schools, clubs and organizations through workshops led by LGBTQ+ people with lived experience, including Safe Zone, LGBT 101, Trans 101, HIV Prevention and Safe and Supportive Schools. It also runs a lending library of nearly 2,000 titles, including the PFLAG Lending Library, and the Queer Goggles podcast. Each October The Source produces PRIDE Visalia, the region's LGBTQ+ celebration, which marks its 10th year in 2026. Volunteers help staff events, and supporters can give once, monthly or through planned gifts.