BQC Affinity Groups
Affinity Groups are a wonderful way to connect with the community based on common interests or shared identities. They are facilitated by a team of volunteer leaders, are free, and meet monthly or more often. Some groups meet in the BQC Center and some in other spaces around town.
Whether you’re looking for creative community, social opportunities, or shared identity, there’s something for you.
Unless otherwise noted below, registration is not required to attend affinity group meetings; just show up!
If you have questions and would like to learn more, please email us at: info@bellinghamqueercollective.org
But wait…there’s more! Several new Affinity Groups will be added this fall so be sure to check this page regularly. You can also stay in the loop by signing up for our monthly newsletter!
Get to know our Affinity Groups
Book Club: A Year of Queer Books
Schedule:
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About the Group:
Our LGBTQ+ Book Club dives into queer stories across genres- from fiction to memoir to graphic novels. Whether you’re an avid reader or just book-curious, come enjoy good conversation and new perspectives in a welcoming space. Finishing the book is not a requirement!
Visit the Year of Queer Books page for the list of all the books this year and the meeting dates. Come to one or all!
Chronic and Iconic
Schedule:
1st Sundays | 3:00 - 5:00pm
Location:
Hybrid Meeting
Online:
Meeting link coming soon
In Person:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This is a group for people with chronic pain and chronic illness to seek and find support and connect with other people experiencing similar symptoms and diagnoses.
This includes but is CERTAINLY not limited to: fibromyalgia, POTS, EDS and other connective tissue diseases, ME/CFS, chronic back pain, sciatica, degenerative disc disease, lupus, MS, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, Crohn's, IBS, and many more.
In this online support group and the affiliated in-person, hybrid, and other online groups, it is a safe space to talk about ALL the things we deal with and are concerned about... not just the things that are suitable for "polite conversation."
Crafty Queer Friends
Schedule:
2nd Thursdays | 6:00 - 8:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
We are a group of queer people who like to share our crafts; knitting, crocheting, drawing, coloring, pixel art, or whatever you want to bring along. We're here to share stories and experiences, ask questions or just hang out.
Embodied Expression for Queer Liberation
Schedule:
3rd Tuesdays | 6:00 - 8:00pm
NEW GROUP! First meeting is November 18, 2025
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
Embodied Expression for Queer Liberation is a bi-monthly workshop series to illuminate how art and movement healing practices can be woven with our body’s ecology so we may become our fullest selves in all our queerness. The workshop is a lightly facilitated and loosely structured creative space for folx to explore movement, artistic expression, somatics, and how they are inherently connected.
fIber Arts AND Crafts Group
Schedule:
4th Tuesdays | 5:00 - 7:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
Join our lively crafting group on the 3rd Tuesday of each month from 5–7 PM. Bring your knitting, embroidery, collage, or any other project. There’s room for all kinds of creativity. This is a fun and relaxed way to meet fellow queer crafters, chat, and unwind with fiber and friends.
Flinta Night
Schedule:
3rd Tuesdays | 5:00 - 8:00pm
LOCATION:
L&L Libations
1107 N State St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This affinity space centers women, lesbians, intersex, nonbinary, trans, and agender people; those often pushed to the margins in patriarchal spaces. Rooted in the FLINTA* framework from German queer culture, this gathering creates room for deep connection, healing, and joy without the presence of cis men. Come be in community with others who share your experiences and values.
Knit and Craft Group
SCHEDULE:
3rd Wednesdays | 5:30 - 7:30pm
Location:
Northwest Yarns
206 W Magnolia St,
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
Gather with the queer fiber community at Northwest Yarns every 3rd Wednesday from 5:30–7:30 PM. Bring a project or browse the shop to get inspired. With large tables and a cozy seating area, it’s the perfect setting to connect with others who love creating by hand.
Late Bloomers
Schedule:
2nd Tuesdays | 6:00 - 8:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St,
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This social group is for LGBTQ+ adults who are coming out or exploring new identities later in life. We talk about the joys and challenges of embracing our authentic selves and connect with others navigating similar paths. This is a volunteer-led space for making friends and learning about local queer resources- not a clinical support group. All identities welcome.
Mind and Body Wellness Circle
Schedule:
1st Thursdays | 6:00 - 8:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St,
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This group is designed for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC individuals and allies who are curious about or committed to enhancing their well-being through mind-body practices. Whether you're new to the wellness space, just learning to meditate, or you're an experienced energy worker or yoga enthusiast, this space is for you. Together, we'll explore tools for nervous system regulation, emotional resilience, movement and strength training, energy work, and intuitive development. Each session is grounded in science, community, and lived experience. Each session will vary in theme and approach, ranging from group discussions and guided practices (like meditation, wellness techniques, or mindful movement) to educational talks on the nervous system and stress management, all within a supportive and trauma-informed container.
Mindfulness-based Queer Resilience: 8-week course
The BQC is excited to announce that we have received a grant from the Trust for the Meditation Process to provide a free Mindfulness-based Queer Resilience 8-week course to help the community strengthen inner and outer resources during this time of increasing minority stress.
Registration is required.
Schedule:
Sunday, September 28 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, October 5 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, October 12 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, October 19 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, October 26 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, November 9 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, November 16 | 9:00 am - 4:30 pm
Sunday, November 30 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, December 7 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Sunday, December 14 | 5:30 - 8:00 pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St,
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this COURSE:
This is a scientifically-based program called Mindfulness-based Queer Resilience. It centers the queer experience of minority stress and offers practices to reduce chronic stress in our lives in this challenging time. Benefits of course participation may include improved positive self-concept, emotional control, stress-reduction (Iberlin and Ruyle, 2017); reduction in inflammation, loneliness, chronic pain, (Kabat-Zinn, 2013); and lowered risk or reduced severity of hypertension, heart disease, cancer, addictive behaviors, obesity, and gastro-intestinal disorders (Wholly, 2024).
The course is free of charge, 8-weeks long, and in person at the Bellingham Queer Collective community center. There is room for twenty people to attend in person. Participants Weekly sessions last 2.5-hours. The course includes a group orientation meeting prior to the course, an individual meeting, and a 7.5-hour Day of Mindfulness Retreat that happens in addition to the 8 classes. Participants commit to daily sitting and/or moving meditation practice and weekly written exercises in addition to class attendance. Overall, it is a weekly time commitment of ten hours.
Ready to sign up?
Register here as soon as possible, as spaces are limited.
Queer Dance
Schedule:
1st Wednesdays | 6:00 - 8:00pm
NEW GROUP! First meeting is scheduled for November 5, 2025
Location:
Bellingham Senior Activity Center
315 Halleck Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This group is designed to provide a fun, safe, affirming, and empowering space for members of the queer community to move their bodies through dance. Various genres and class offerings ranging from ballet and modern to belly dance and line dance will be offered on a rotating basis, giving community members the opportunity to try various styles. Whether you have dance experience or are curious about being introduced to a new practice of motion, all are encouraged to attend! Queer dance aims to provide an inclusive, low-stress environment for queer and trans bodies to move, express, and find joy. Food is not allowed in the space we will be using, but please bring water to keep yourself hydrated.
Questions? Please contact Addison at addison@bellinghamqueercollective.org.
Queer Latiné Society
Schedule:
4th Saturdays | 12:00 - 2:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St,
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
A bilingual (English/Español) space for Latiné LGBTQ+ folks to connect, celebrate cultura, and support one another. We gather around the shared experiences of queerness and Latinidad, embracing joy, community, and mutual care.
Queer Qigong
Schedule:
1st Wednesdays | 6:00 - 7:30pm
NEW GROUP! First meeting is scheduled for November 5, 2025
Location:
Bellingham Senior Activity Center
315 Halleck Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
Energy. Breath. Belonging.
Join us for a gentle, affirming practice of Qigong (气功). Rooted in ancient Chinese energy movement and breath, this space welcomes you exactly as you are.
✨ No experience needed
✨ All bodies and abilities welcome
✨ Come to move, breathe, and reconnect
Queer Qigong is a gentle, grounding movement class designed to support nervous system regulation, embodied resilience, and connection to self and community—especially for queer, trans, and gender-expansive folks. The class is facilitated by Moon Weiss, L.Ac., (they/them) a mixed-Chinese queer practitioner blending their knowledge of East Asian Medicine, somatic healing, and community care. We will explore slow, intentional movement, breath awareness, and meditative stillness to help cultivate qi (vital energy), clear stagnation, and restore balance in the body and spirit. No prior experience is needed—come as you are. Movements can be adapted to all bodies and abilities. Together, we’ll create an affirming space to move, breathe, and remember ourselves as part of the living world. This class is trauma-informed, body-neutral, and offered with deep respect for the Daoist traditions it draws from, while centering the unique needs and wisdom of the LGBTQIA+ community. Bring water, comfortable clothing, and your breath.
Queer Women’s Group
Schedule:
3rd Saturdays | 12:00 - 2:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This social group is for LGBTQ+ women and anyone who feels at home in a more femme-centered space. Together, we share stories, build friendships, and envision the future of our group. We warmly welcome women, lesbians, intersex, nonbinary, trans, agender folks, and others who align with our values of kindness, inclusion, and respect.
Queer Writes!
Schedule:
1st Wednesdays | 6:00 - 8:00 pm
3rd Sundays | 9:00 - 11:00 am
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
BQC Queer Writes meets for a quiet, focused writing space using something similar to the Shut Up & Write! model. Bring any writing project you’re working on- whether it’s journaling, poetry, fiction, or beyond. We start with a short discussion, write quietly for 90 minutes, and wrap up with an optional debrief. Share your work if you like, or just enjoy writing in community. This group meets two times a month.
Rainbow Elders
Schedule:
Visibility Lunch
First Wednesdays | 11:30am
Coffee Talk
Second and Fourth Wednesdays | 2:00pm
Discussion Group
Third Wednesdays | 3:15pm
Location:
Bellingham Senior Activity Center
315 Halleck Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
A gathering space for LGBTQ+ people ages 50 and up to build friendships, share stories, and celebrate our experiences. Come connect with others who’ve lived through generations of queer history and continue to thrive in community.
Come as a guest for the first three visits, and then membership to the BSAC is needed (scholarships available). Daily hot lunch program free to 65+!
Rainbow Refugees
Schedule:
4th Sundays | 3:00 - 5:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This is a group for Rainbow Refugees, 2SLGBTQIA+ people who have moved here from red areas. We will discuss things like being new to Bellingham, dealing with moving/starting over, survivor’s guilt, and getting used to being in a safer area.
Sacred Misfits
Schedule:
3rd Sundays | 12:00 - 2:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
BQC Sacred Misfits: Spirituality on the Margins is a peer-led group for anyone interested in exploring spiritual practices outside of dominant religious frameworks. We center queer, trans, and other marginalized voices while creating space for self-inquiry, sacred play, and community connection. We gather to study divination, explore our weird spiritual selves, encourage stepping outside the mainstream, and find community beyond the binary, the dogma, and the gatekeeping. All genders, paths, and vibes welcome. No specific beliefs or experience required—just openness and respect.
Tabletop RPG Group
Schedule:
2nd Wednesdays | 5:30 - 8:30pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
We seek to build queer community together through collaborative storytelling. We meet once a month to play tabletop roleplaying games. All skill levels welcome! Most meetings, we play Dungeons & Dragons (2025 edition). When there’s high turnout and someone willing to run a second game, we split into groups.
To learn more, please visit the Tabletop RPG Affinity Group’s Google document.
Trans Survival Political Education
Schedule:
1st Saturdays | 12:00 - 2:00pm
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
Trans Survival Political Education seeks to collectively understand our world by reading, watching, and discussing poignant and relevant media in a safe group setting. The group ultimately decides on what we are learning about, because that's how we know it will be relevant to our lives. If you're interested in engaging with ideas and others in a safe space, we hope to see you there!
Transfemme discussion
Schedule:
4th Tuesdays | 7:00 - 8:30pm
NEW GROUP! First meeting is October 28th, 2025
Location:
BQC Center
310 W Champion St
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This group is a welcoming and affirming social group created specifically for transfeminine people to connect, share experiences, and build community in a supportive environment. Open to anyone who identifies with transfeminine experiences—including trans women, transfeminine nonbinary people, and those exploring gender—this group offers a space for casual conversation, mutual support, creative expression, and friendship. Whether you're looking to meet others with similar identities, talk about gender journeys, or just hang out in a space where you feel seen and celebrated, BQC Transfemme group is here for you.
Trans Masc / Nonbinary Meetup
Schedule:
2nd Fridays | 5:00 - 7:00pm
Location:
Horseshoe Cafe
113 E Holly Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
About this group:
This group is for transmasc and nonbinary folks seeking connection, conversation, and camaraderie. We gather in a relaxed, identity-affirming space to share experiences and build community. Whether you're new to this journey or well along your path, you are welcome here.
Interested in Starting an Affinity Group?
Affinity Groups are a wonderful way to connect with the community based on common interests or shared identities. They are facilitated by a team of volunteer leaders, are free, and meet monthly. Some groups meet in the BQC Center and some in other spaces around town.
Applications are due by July 31, 2025 for new groups starting in September. New groups will be considered again in October.
See what time slots are available labeled “Future affinity group”.
BQC Affinity Group Calendar
See when/where your favorite affinity group is meeting next! You can even add events to your personal calendar, so you’ll never lose track.
We want to hear from you!
Our affinity group program is expanding and we would love your input! Please share your experiences here on our Affinity Group Community Survey. Your feedback helps us to better serve the community.