Best Party for a Cause
Texas Bear Round-up (TBRU)
March 12-15, 2026, TBRU.org.
The Dallas Bears organization has cultivated its annual bear circuit event into something magnificent for North Texas. It is now one of if not THE largest bear events on the dang continent, and every spring the Dallas Bears somehow manage to outdo themselves with a bigger and better TBRU. With almost a week of a furry influx of travelers coming from near and far, as well as fans from North Texas’ own bear community — not to mention the other “animals” (like otters, maybe, or wolves or puppies) and all the admirers of all kinds of fuzzy men, the numbers in attendance and registration are practically as large as the population of a small city.
The best part, though is that proceeds from the entire event go toward a group of nonprofit organizations all with deep ties to the LGBTQ community. These guys party with paws and for the cause.
— Rich Lopez
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Best Local Nonprofit
Resource Center
5750 Cedar Springs Road, Dallas
214-521-5124, MyResourceCenter.org
For more than four decades, Resource Center has been providing services, advocacy, healthcare, housing and more to those in the LGBTQ community who need it the most. The Center’s biggest news of over the last year was the opening its senior housing facilities, Oak Lawn Place, last summer. Located in Oak Lawn, the residential facility is an 84-unit, affirming campus that provides affordable housing for queer adults 55 and older.
While Resource Center offers a number of services that can help people meet their needs, it also hosts a number of social groups for people looking to meet like-minded folks and build support systems. In short, Resource Center is one amazing spot for, well, all your queer resources.
— Rich Lopez
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Best Local Community Role Model
The Rev. Dr. Neil Thomas
Best Local Influencer
Mike Hendrix
It takes a special kind of person to exude both passion and compassion at the same time, to call for radical action while at the same time remaining calm and even soothing. The Rev. Dr. Neil Thomas, senior pastor at Cathedral of Hope UCC Church is that special kind of person. Since answering the call in June 2015 to become Cathedral of Hope’s senior pastor, Thomas has remained a steadfast figure in the LGBTQ community of North Texas, and a sought-after speaker and leader in international conversations around the intersectionality of faith, color, gender identity and sexual orientation. Whether standing in the pulpit to deliver a sermon on honoring, loving and protecting the members of the drag community or standing on a rally stage to inspire a crowd of protesters to make a stand — Thomas embodies the spirit of what a true leader and a true role model should be.
While Mike Hendrix can’t claim as long a history of activism and advocacy as his partner, Rev. Thomas, Hendrix has, time and again, proven his dedication to and passion for his work as an activist, as a lobbyist at the Texas State Capitol and, as of last year, as publisher of the Austin-focused magazine Leslie. And since moving to DFW to live with his partner, Hendrix has worked diligently to mark his place in his new home and make a positive impact for his community.
Together, Thomas and Hendrix are able to bolster each other’s strengths and shore up each other’s weaknesses, creating a power couple to emulate.
— Tammye Nash
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Best Newcomer
Arya Jealous
Instagram: @AryaJealousDrag
Arya Jealous has been voted best newcomer to the Dallas drag scene for 2025. Self-described as an “androgynous genderf*ck alien showsquirrel,” Arya leaves quite an impression on all who watch her perform. She was the runner-up in season 6 of Sue Ellen’s The Queer Off in 2023 with a style that combines both traditionally masculine and traditionally feminine elements to give her performance a unique flair.
Arya is also very involved with the community, participating and leading at the queer coffee shop Union and Dallas Social Queer Organization. She hosts a sober drag tea party on the last Sunday of every month at Union featuring rotating guests. Starting in April, Arya will also be hosting a show at Sue Ellen’s called Genderf*ck, which promises to be a night of gender play and fun.
— Melissa Whitler
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EDITORS CHOICE
Artist: Joey Chabolla
That guy
JoeyChabolla.wixsite.com
Joey Chabolla’s artwork — which has been seen at the Dallas Eagle, Latino Cultural Center and the Texas Bear Round-Up vendor market — celebrates the male body, often focusing on diverse and beefier physiques. His delicate lines and shading create erotic perspectives, showcasing sexy, muscley, bearded and furry men.
While some pieces are explicit, others are more suggestive, allowing the viewer’s imagination to fill in the details.
Chabolla’s work extends beyond queer sensuality; he also incorporates Latin sensibilities and design art, and he takes on commissioned drawings. Notably, he’s the artist behind the Dallas Eagle logo and part of Salon Naturale, which hosts “Drink and Draw” at the club.
— Rich Lopez
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EDITORS CHOICE
Best Museum: Dallas Holocaust and Human
Rights Museum
Remembering the past, forging the future
The Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum was founded by survivors of the Holocaust, but it is unique among such venues in that it is also a museum of human rights in general. Not only do the DHHRM exhibits give an immersive history of the events leading up to and through the genocide, the exhibits continue, chronicling the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights following World War II.
That includes LGBTQ rights. The story of the rights of gays and lesbians, bisexuals and transgender men and women is told through local stories.
When Mica England was denied a position with the Dallas Police Department in the late 1980s because she was a lesbian, she filed a lawsuit against the city. (The application at the time asked whether the applicant was gay or lesbian.) Although England won her lawsuit, forcing DPD to hire qualified gays and lesbians to serve, she herself was never hired by the department. DHHRM includes an exhibit highlighting her story.
Then there’s an exhibit telling the story of Beau and Major, a gay couple who were arrested after they applied for a marriage license and refused to leave the Dallas County Records Building when their application was denied.
Within a couple of years of their arrest, same-sex marriage was legalized by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. Beau and Major returned to the Dallas County Records Building, and this time, rather than enduring than another all-day ordeal that ended with their arrest, they applied, and their application for a marriage license was approved within minutes.
The museum continues to tell the stories of the struggle for human rights through its speakers series and special exhibits. The current special exhibit centers on building almost 5,000 schools for Black children living across the Jim Crow South.
Past exhibits included Rise Up: Stonewall and the LGBTQ Rights Movement that was accompanied by speakers from the LGBTQ community.
Because of their commitment to telling the stories of the LGBTQ community, we recognize the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum with our Editor’s Choice Award for Best Museum.
— David Taffet
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Best Local Nonprofit
Resource Center
5750 Cedar Springs Road, Dallas
214-521-5124
MyResourceCenter.org
Best Local Community Role Model
The Rev. Dr. Neil Thomas, Cathedral of Hope
5910 Cedar Springs Road, Dallas
214-351-1901
CathedralofHope.com
Best Local Influencer
Mike Hendrix
Instagram: @MikeHendrixHD
Best Local Community Ally
Denise Lee
DeniseLeeOnstage.com
Best Art Gallery
Craighead Green Gallery
167 Parkhouse St., Dallas
214- 855-0779
CraigheadGreen.com
Best Local Museum
Dallas Museum of Art
1717 N. Harwood St., Dallas
DMA.org
Best Local LGBTQ Sports Organization
Born Sports League
BornSportsLeague.com
Best Hidden Gem
Hidden Door
5025 Bowser Ave., Dallas
214-526-0620
HiddenDoorBar.com
Best Local Artist
Robbie Conover
Instagram: @RobbArtist