Meet Brandon Hevey of Montrose Grace Place

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Hevey.

Brandon, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born and raised in Cypress, just outside of Houston, safely cocooned in a bubble of privilege and what I thought was a safe space. Shortly after coming out, I realized that wasn’t the case. About 10 or so years ago, while living in Montrose, I found out about an organization that was being formed out of a nearby church. Their goal was to provide a safe space for LGBTQ homeless and housing insecure youth in the Montrose area, where they can simply exist without fear of judgment. Fast forward ten years, Montrose Grace Place has grown leaps and bounds. I have volunteered on two different food teams over that time, have been on the Board of Directors for the last four years, and have recently stepped down from my three-year term as president. I remain on the board, now as their treasurer. I say all this as part of my story because MGP helped form me and the way I see social justice in so many different ways. I was very fortunate to have my mom and stepdad who accepted me and celebrated me for who I am, no matter what.

A rare thing in that time, even just a few years ago (2004), and an even rarer thing where I grew up. I have always wondered what I would have done if I were kicked out of my home for being who I am. Where would I go? What would I do? These are the types of things MGP youth have to worry about, except for Monday and Thursday nights when they come for youth night. I “grew up” into my adult years exploring the bar and club scene, because that’s basically all our community had. Now, I appreciate the queer-friendly, non-alcoholic spaces that used to exist for everyone, that we don’t have anymore. I’m working on bringing that back, which was inspired by MGP. What it will look like, I’m not entirely sure. In the meantime, my husband and I live in a historic neighborhood just south of the city with our cats and dogs. I teach high school English at a nearby high school with a high percentage of economically disadvantaged students. I love what I do, the kids I work with, and the fact that I’m able to help them. I never thought my teaching world and MGP would cross, but in the four years I’ve taught, I’ve seen a few of my students later that day, seeking help and safety at Montrose Grace Place. This has shown me that even though we have grown as a society by leaps and bounds, we still have a way to go. Our queer kids need us, the queer community needs us. We can never forget our privileges, and we must strive to break society’s racial and socioeconomic barriers as well, as much as we can.

Has it been a smooth road?
Some of the struggles have been money, education, healthcare, housing, shelter. All things usually deemed necessary for survival. At one point or another, I’ve known what it is to have to find places that give out groceries for free, to seek government assistance for healthcare and other needs, to not know how long the place I lived in would let me stay, or how I’d pay the thousands of dollars needed for a degree in today’s grossly inflated higher education system. One of my earliest wake-up calls, before I ever was involved with MGP, was being fired from a job for being gay, which is still legal in Texas, by the way. My boss straight up told me that’s why her boss was making her fire me. I was crushed. I had been riding on a high of figuring out the student loan process and going to school, finding myself and being authentic to who I was on the inside, and forming new connections in the small college town I lived in at the time. I didn’t know how I was going to get over it. Looking back, my reaction was probably a bit dramatic, but at the time, that job really meant something to me. It was in an office where I had my own desk and computer. I was able to react with people all day, and I thought I had the support of my coworkers and bosses to be my authentic self. When I was told that day would be my last day there, I didn’t know what to do. Being a white, cisgender man in our society affords so many privileges that had shielded me from discrimination up until that point. My glass bubble was shattered and I was broken. Every bad thing about being gay and all the things I was told were wrong with me were essentially reinforced, putting me back at square one. Depression set in, and at 19 (I’m now 32), I experienced my first bout of depression with no health insurance, no job, no will to go to school, and a friend circle that was now non-existent, as many of my friends were coworkers. There were other struggles leading to the comfortable, fortunate lives my husband and I enjoy today, and that drives us to help others achieve the same, however, we can.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Well, I feel like I’ve covered MGP pretty well, but another thing I’m working on is that safe queer space that isn’t a bar. I don’t quite know what that will look like yet, but I know it will be in the Montrose area (I hope), that it will be a space for and by the community, and it will borrow from the cafes, bookstores, and community centers we used to have and now miss. We didn’t know what we had here in Montrose until it was gone. Let’s bring that back. I have a partner in this, but it’s all in the initial, planning stages, but it’s exciting and promising. I guess the only thing I can say is to stay tuned, and we’ll keep you updated on it.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
My business partner and I are learning how to be small business people ourselves. Thanks to some amazing small business owners in the community, we’re off to a fantastic start. Initially, we thought we’d get a good amount of push back from other business owners because we would be seen as competition, but that could not be further from the truth. It seems Houston has a great, interdependent, collaborative small business community that wants to work together to see everyone succeed. I guess my biggest piece of advice is to get as much advice from them and others that you can. Take from it what you think will work for you, and leave what you think won’t. Do your research, take your time, think about more than profits but also about longevity and how you’re going to sustain your venture. Integrate into the community you’d like to serve, and consult with them on what they want, what they’d want it to look like, and how they think it should go about starting.

Contact Info:

• Email: brandonhevey@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/brandonlouis
• Twitter: twitter.com/brandonhevey

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