Below, check out top events happening in the next few days. Use buttons for more extensive regional and themed calendars, and to look farther ahead.
Coming Up in Iowa
Saddle King Show • Des Moines Mar 23, 10:00 pm. Enjoy drag kings and male-presenting drag performers every fourth Sunday at The Blazing Saddle, the Midwest's oldest LGBTQ+ bar."Always a double, Never A cover!"- Workout Meetups • Marshalltown Mar 26, 5:00 pm.
Gather with Marshalltown LGBTQ+ for weekly walks.
- Living With HIV: The Power of Testing and Treatment • Muscatine Mar 27, 12:00 pm. Dr. Matthew McKinney, a family medicine practitioner, and longtime HIV awareness advocate Tami Haught will lead a panel of testimony about advancements in HIV testing and treatment. Registration required here.
- 5th annual Central Iowa Trans Lives Festival • Des Moines Mar 29, 10:00 am. Enjoy arts and crafts, food trucks, live music. dance, drag, comedy, nonprofit resources and more at this all-ages event coordianted by the Queer and Transgender Group of the First Unitarian Church of Des Moines.
- Make a Pine Needle Tray • Iowa City Mar 29, 10:00 am.
This new class from fiber artist Marilyn Moore is already a hit. You'll use embroidery along with pine needles and "swirling wheat, wheat, and fern stitches" to create a tiny tray. Class registration of $156 includes all materials, one-on-one instruction, and large-screen demos; sign up here or call 319-338-1566.
- Workout Meetups • Marshalltown Apr 2, 5:00 pm.
Gather with Marshalltown LGBTQ+ for weekly walks.
- Senior Day at Figge Art Museum • Davenport Apr 3, 10:00 am.
If you're at least 60 years old, you can enjoy Figge Art Museum at no cost every first Thursday. You also receive 10 percent off of Figge's store items. Sponsored by Jane Magnusson and Oak Street Health.
Coming Up in Illinois
- Let's Talk About Menstrual Health • Edwardsville Mar 24, 2:00 pm. Sarah Pringle, a mother, midwife, and nurse practitioner, will lead this discussion of menstrual health in a supportive way. Snacks provided; pre-register here.
- An Evening With Jasmine Babers-Gunn • Rock Island Mar 25, 6:00 pm. Rock Island native Jasmine Babers-Gunn is founder of Her Voice Media (Love Girls Magazine) and is an expert at leveraging story-telling "to drive cultural conversations and brand engagement." She'll offer her guidance at this special event.
- "Heartstopper" Book Discussion • Peoria Mar 26, 6:00 pm. Enjoy a discussion of "Heartstopper," the gay coming-of-age novel that became a television series. Hot chocolate provided! For ages 13 to 18.
- Comedy Open Mic • Rock Island Mar 26, 7:00 pm.
Try your hand at stand-up comedy, and enjoy Quad City comedians James Draper, Kassandra Johnson, and Chris Starman, at this adults-only, BYOB event. Admission is $5.
- Mugs & Musings • East Peoria Mar 27, 10:00 am.
Gather to talk, think and connect, with membership coordinator Regina Stanley.
- LATE: A Love Story Performance and Dialogue Circle • Glen Ellyn Mar 27, 2:00 pm. Meet Rachelle Zola, the 76-year-old woman who walked 825 miles from Chicago to Montgomery, Ala., last year, and engaged in a hunger strike in support of reparations. Through a one-woman performance, she'll share the stories of 10 people in "a raw and honest exploration of truths discovered late in life." This free event is suggested for those 16 and older.
