PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — There are about one million LGBTQ+ veterans in the U.S.

Despite such a high number, some say it can be hard to a place to talk about their military experiences. 

What You Need To Know

  • LGBTQ Veterans Coffee Connections meets the second Thursday of the month

  • Meetings give veterans a chance to talk about their experiences and resources available to them

  • Dave Mapp has been attending for more than a year and said attending meetings is liberating

That's part of the reason LGBTQ Veterans Coffee Connections started. 

Dave Mapp joined the Marines in 1975 and proudly remembers his service, but as part of the LGBTQ+ community, he said it wasn’t a time he and others could share their identity. 

Fast-forward nearly 50 years later, he’s found a group where he speaks with other veterans who share a similar identity. 

“Each time the group meets, somebody new is coming in, or we’re asking about someone who we haven’t seen in a while,” he said. “So there’s an element of support that wouldn’t be there any other way.” 

Hosted at multiple locations in Tampa Bay, Mapp has attended meetings for around a year-and-a-half. 

Mapp said it’s a small group with new members coming to almost every monthly meeting.

“It’s the only space that I have to let loose with other veterans,” he said. “I am free to share my experience. I’m also free to listen to other experiences from other vets and know that I’m not the crazy person in the room.” 

It’s hearing the perspectives of other veterans like him that Mapp values. 

From those who served decades ago like him, to others who recently left the military, each of their stories gives Mapp something to think about. 

“I was listening to the guy, and I wasn’t able to relate to any of it, but yet I was jealous because I wish I had had that experience,” he said. “This was a resource I needed 40 years ago. It wasn’t here.” 

Now that it is, Mapp hopes others hear about his experience and take the opportunity to stop by.