NEW YORK—A new 18-bed LGBT homeless shelter in East Greenwich Village has been named the Bea Arthur Residence after the Golden Girls star. Due to open in February 2017, the home will provide shelter and counseling for the city’s homeless gay and transgender teens.
Arthur was a lifetime supporter of LGBT rights and was a frequent contributor to the Ali Forney Center, the largest LGBT community center in the United States. Arthur, who died in 2009, bequeathed $300,000 in her will to the Ali Forney Center.
“These kids at the Ali Forney Center are literally dumped by their families because of the fact that they are lesbian, gay or transgender,” Arthur told our sister publication Next before her death. “This organization really is saving lives.”