This has been a terrible and unprecedented year for everyone. As we shelter at home instead of preparing for the annual New Year’s Eve play party, it’s time to reach out to you with a message about the state of The Crucible, our history and what it’s going to take to make it into the future.
When Frazier started The Crucible way back in the late 1990s as a traveling road show, I’m not sure even he could have imagined the future of the club. His patient outreach to local government and hesitant DC neighbors changed the regulations over time that allowed local kink to come into the light, and our first location on Half Street was the first BDSM club many of us ever visited. Frazier was the ringmaster and boy, did he work hard to make it vibrant! Losing him in 2019 was a huge blow to the DC scene and especially to The Crucible. In January 2020 we were planning a program of expansion, inclusion and growth to build on his legacy. Ten months later, we are fighting to stay alive long enough to do it.
We made it from March through September on a combination of slim reserves and assistance. In October we reopened with reduced occupancy and individual play areas, hoping to generate the necessary funds to stay alive. We’ve been glad to see every familiar face that’s come through the door, and we thank you! Unfortunately, the reduced occupancy numbers are not nearly enough to generate the funds we need. It is time for us to ask you to help us keep the doors open.
So, how can you help? First, renew your membership. If you can give the gift of a membership to a friend, that would be great.
Second, if you have the means, please donate. We have set up a donation option from our new membership site at https://reg.the-crucible.com/donations/donate. that can also be reached from The Crucible’s main website, www.the-crucible.com. Even just $5 would be so helpful! If you visited the club once a month in the before times and are able to do so, please consider donating that amount every month until we are able to reopen at full capacity.
While a building is never as important as the community, so many of us are making it through this crisis in the hope of being able to gather again when it’s over. Please help keep Frazier’s kinky clubhouse going so we can have more of those great parties in the future and make new friends who become our Crucible family!
Sincerely, Betsy, Lizz, Mike, Sarah, Stephen, and Whittney Board of Directors of The Crucible, a 501(c)7 nonprofit run by Southwest Social Scene.
