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162:, the Indiana Youth Group, The Coby Palmer Food Pantry, and The Julian Center. The group supported establishment of the Buddy Program and Buddy House, programs created to help those diagnosed with AIDS which offered assistance to meet everyday needs. They also provided funding to assist the creation of the Damien Center, a community organization established to support individuals and their families through AIDs diagnosis and death. Today, the organization focuses specifically on HIV prevention and care.
141:(GMHC), an NYC based organization dedicated to supporting those diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. After the visit, Palmer, Walsh, and Johnson decided the Bag Ladies Bus Tour's second year would be a fundraiser for GMHC and an opportunity to spread the word in Indiana about the new disease. The ladies carried extra bags to collect monetary donations which they split between local organizations and GMHC, during the event they raised $ 2,000.
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Besides the bus tour, they host other annual events around
Indianapolis, such as "Shimmering Shamrocks", "The Stockings Were Hung", Cadillac Barbie's Disco Brunch, and Loud & Proud, among others. The Ladies also make appearances at other events as well, in order to help raise money for local
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The Indy Bag Ladies collaborated in the past with other organizations like
Indiana Cares, AIDS Serves, and Indiana Still Cares. Since its founding, the Bag Ladies have fundraised over $ 1 million for the various charities they support. In 2017, The Health Foundation of Greater Indianapolis (HFGI)
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plans had been cancelled. They decided to put on their own event instead, using brown paper bags to invite participants to tour restaurants and bars in
Indianapolis by a chartered bus while dressed in drag. The first tour visited establishments such as Hunt and Chase, Talbott Street Nightclub and
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Edmond
Talucci served as the first president of the Bag Ladies organization. In the early years, the Bag Ladies would host other events as well, like cookbook sales, photo signings, and they helped organize the Garage Party which took place in a downtown Indianapolis parking garage. The Indy Bag
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The Bag Ladies focus their fundraising efforts on people living with HIV/AIDS in
Indiana, primarily donating to the Gregory Powers Direct Emergency Financial Assistance Fund (established through The Health Foundation of Greater Indianapolis) and Indiana AIDS fund. While primarily focused on
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The Indy Bag Ladies are also known for Drag Story Hour, a monthly event where drag queens read to youth in
Indianapolis. In 2023, there had been a bomb threat made against a bookstore for hosting Drag Story
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organizations. The Bag Ladies Bus Tour remains an annual event and at the end of each night, a new queen is crowned. The queen wins based on money raised and a pageant held prior to the bus tour.
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officially made the Bag Ladies part of the organization, to better align the group with HFGI, the organization to which most of their fundraising is donated.
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and carried bags of costumes in order to change periodically throughout the event. About 70 attendees attended the first outing. In 1982, while Palmer was in
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through education and advocacy. The Bag Ladies are mostly men whom dress in ostentatious outfits, also known as
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The Bag Ladies began in 1981 by Gary
Johnson, Coby Palmer, and Ed Walsh when they found out their usual
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Ladies may possibly be one of the oldest fundraising organizations for HIV/AIDS in the United States.
444:"Indianapolis bookstore temporarily closes following bomb threat against monthly drag event"
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is an activist organization that raises funds for care and treatment for individuals with
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individuals living with HIV/AIDS, the bag ladies have supported other causes like the
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Shirley's One Way. During the "Bag Lady Bus Tour" participants dressed in
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471:"Drag Against AIDS: AIDS and the Indianapolis Bag Ladies"
104:(STIs), and increase visibility and promote equality for
367:"The bearded bag lady who leads the fight against AIDS"
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297:"Indy Pride Bag Ladies Materials, CA. 1977-2015"
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394:"At a Glance - GMHC"
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398:www.gmhc.org
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428:2022-06-21
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92:(AIDS) in
55:1981-10-31
35:Parade in
33:Indy Pride
261:"History"
126:Halloween
45:Formation
309:21 June
230:"About"
178:Current
120:History
110:Indiana
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