Dear Concerned Parent:

Thank you for your interest in HATCH. Our mission is to help empower Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (GLBTQ) teens to become positive contributors to society. We do this by offering a safe environment for sexual minority youth, offering role models and peer support, and sponsoring educational and community outreach opportunities.

HATCH was founded in response to the request of a lesbian teenager at her local church for a place where gay and lesbian youth could meet, share concerns and support one another. In its first year, through word-of-mouth promotion, teens attended weekly meetings not only from the Houston area, but also from Galveston, Kingwood and Victoria. Through the years, HATCH has continued to grow in the number of teens attending, community support and requests for our outreach and education services. HATCH provides an excellent opportunity for questioning teens to explore their identity in a safe, peer-supported, environment.

We hope we can answer some of your questions and help you help your son or daughter. This site contains material that will help you better understand what it means to be GLBTQ, information about the coming out process, resources for more information, information on how HATCH youth meetings are conducted, information about Montrose Counseling Center, and resources to help you deal with your own feelings about your son or daughter being gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or questioning.

We at HATCH and Montrose Counseling Center understand how precious your child is to you. We offer a safe, supportive environment for teens that are questioning their orientation or seeking other teens like themselves for support. Should you have any questions about any of the material on this website, or need additional information, please call us at 713.529.3590.

 

PARENTS - YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS ALONE

Discovering your child is GLBT is a life changing experience. The future you foresaw for your child is now changed, perhaps drastically. This is a very real loss, and a very real grief. But with your support, your child can build a new future, maybe even a better one, certainly a more honest and open one.

PFLAG (Parent, Families and Friends of Lesbian and Gays) offers support to you and others facing the same changes. In Houston, you can call the PFLAG help line at 713.467.3524. Here is a link to their website: http://pflaghouston.org/

If you're not in Houston, PFLAG is still here to help. Here is a link to the national website: http://pflag.org/

Please remember, the child you know today is the same child you knew yesterday. You just know him/her a little better.