LGBT Center of Raleigh

What is SEARCH?
S.E.A.R.CH. stands for Safe Environment for the Acceptance of Rainbow Children.

A dual-purpose group where:

1.) Rainbow Children (gender-expansive, kindergarten-5th graders), can all congregate for nonjudgmental, free play in a safe environment, and
2.) parents/caregivers can gather for support and educational dialogue about the gender spectrum, and the issues we face raising these children.

Who are "Rainbow Children?"

The term "Rainbow Children" describes any child of elementary school age (typically kindergarten-5th grade) who does not conform to stereotypical gender norms. This can include children who are gender non-conforming, gender creative, gender fluid, or transgender. They are typically not sexually identifying yet.

This is a recurring event of a dual-purpose group where:

• Rainbow Children (School age: Kindergarten-5th graders) can all congregate for nonjudgmental, free play in a safe environment, and
• Parents/caregivers can gather for support and educational dialogue about the gender spectrum, and the issues we face raising these children.
• While we welcome supportive family members (parent/caregiver or older sibling), we do ask that you respect the age limit for the children in this group. For safety reasons, it is not a good idea to have toddlers and preschoolers playing together with much larger and older kids, like 10-year-olds.
• This group is open to all elementary school aged children (K-5th) who fall under the non-binary gender spectrum "rainbow," whether they are mildly gender non-conforming, or openly transgender, and their supportive parents and/or caregivers.

In addition to giving children a safe place to play, they will also have the opportunity to meet, and hopefully form lasting friendships with kids who are like them.

• We encourage every child to bring their favorite toy(s), most especially those things that maybe they don't get to enjoy playing with among their cisgender peers. It is probably a good idea to bring something they wouldn't mind sharing with one another. My son will most likely bring his large trunk of princess costumes and dresses :-)
• Please bring a light snack if your child will need one. The LGBT Center can provide cups, and there is a water cooler in our meeting room.

There is a Facebook group for S.E.A.R.CH. (Anyone who submits a Facebook group request will be asked to complete a brief screening questionnaire. If you refer a friend, please tell them to check their Facebook inbox under "filtered requests.")