Challenges Facing LGBTQ+ Elders

By Ashley Sterner,

Melissa Gerr

Published July 7, 2025 at 12:25 PM EDT

Pride has been officially recognized for nearly 25 years. In June 1999, President Bill Clinton declared "the anniversary of [the] Stonewall [riots] every June in America as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month". In 2011, President Barack Obama expanded the officially recognized Pride Month to include the whole LGBTQ community.

The National Resource Center for LGBTQ+ Aging says that within the next 5 years, the number of LGBTQ+ adults in America over the age of 65 is expected to reach the 7 million mark. Those elders face a number of challenges due, in part, to a lifetime of discrimination. They’re more likely to face poverty, homelessness, and have poor physical and mental health. We talk with Monte Ephraim, a retired social worker, who helped create a program for older adults at Chase Brexton.

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Ashley Sterner

Ashley Sterner is the co-host of WYPR’s On The Record. With co-host Sheilah Kast, Ashley interviews artists, scientists, community leaders, and others.

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Melissa Gerr

Melissa Gerr is a Senior Producer for On the Record. She started in public media at Twin Cities Public Television in St. Paul, Minn., where she is from, and then worked as a field producer for Oregon Public Broadcasting in Portland. She made the jump to audio-lover in Baltimore as a digital media editor at Mid-Atlantic Media and Laureate Education, Inc. and as a field producer for "Out of the Blocks." Her beat is typically the off-beat with an emphasis on science, culture and things that make you say, 'Wait, what?'

See stories by Melissa Gerr