June is Pride Month, and we’re so excited to be celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community all month long. Today, we’re sharing a letter from Kaylynn Schwamb, an instructor at barre3 Frankfort Avenue, in Louisville, Kentucky, who went from being an ally to the LGBTQIA+ community to a member herself. We were so inspired by her courage, confidence, and commitment to authenticity, and we know you will be, too.
For more ways to celebrate Pride Month with us, check out our free, donation-based class series, shop our first-ever Pride Collection in the B3 Shop, and tune into the barre3 Instagram and the B3 Magazine all month long.
June is my favorite month for a variety of reasons: sunshine, day drinking, my birthday, and, most importantly, PRIDE! I’ve been a member of the LGBTQIA+ family for as long as I can remember. I grew up with an openly gay older brother who taught me how important it is to be 100% authentically myself. I have always taken this message to heart and loved celebrating Pride with him, but I used to think I was just an ally. It wasn’t until I was about 23 that I started to openly identify as a bisexual woman.
I have been “out” to my close friends and family for a few years now, but I consider my coming-out story the navigation of a serious relationship with a woman after a history of dating men. The hardest part of being bi is always the assumption that I’m straight, and coming out over and over again to coworkers, friends, and peers. I used to be hesitant to correct people when they ask if I have a boyfriend, but I’ve been learning to be comfortable in my skin and own my sexuality—because hell yeah, I’m proud of it!!!
I cannot even begin to put into words how much being a barre3 instructor and a part of this community has helped me build my confidence! Having a safe space where I can always be my authentic self has been a lifesaver when I see a glimpse of the inequality my LGBTQIA+ family has to face. Barre3 is my sanctuary. I’m forever grateful to work for a company that values and accepts the truest version of me.
There is no doubt in my mind that the positives of being queer far out way the hardships. In the past two years, I have fallen madly in love with the woman of my dreams and she makes the hard days and difficult questions totally worth it. I truly can’t picture my life with anyone else.
My hope is that my story can be a lesson to being true to yourself, so I can pass on the messaging that my brother taught me.
Happy pride to our incredible barre3 community!
Xo,
Kaylynn Schwamb
Do you have a Pride story to share? We would love to hear from you! Email us anytime at dei@barre3.com.
