Pride Month 2025

Watch the full interview!

Hi, I’m Kasey Boston. I’m the Executive Director of the Brookline Teen Center. I’ve worked here for almost two years.
I’m also a proud member of the queer community. I have a wife and two daughters and bring that part of who I am to the work that I do here every day.

Why is LGBT representation in leadership roles, especially youth spaces, so important?
Yeah, I think it’s so important for youth to see, kind of what is possible. And I think without representation of all diversity, it’s really hard to think that you can do something and be something that you haven’t seen done.
And so I am just proud to be an out leader and to know that we exist, that people can be in leadership roles, that people can be executive directors, that people can be moms who look different than maybe the typical family looks.

Have you seen a shift in how younger generations experience and express their identities?
I’m so impressed by young people that walk through our doors and yes, I mean this shift is like — they’re so much just braver and bolder and more sure of themselves than we were, than I was.

And I’m really just impressed and I know that times have changed and I think there’s representation now and I think that there’s other outlets to help them along. But it’s still really scary, and I think that the entire shift of teenagers of acceptance, I think, and recognizing that teens that are different from themselves are cool and good and that it’s okay, I think it’s just — I’m really proud of what this generation is bringing to the table and how they treat each other.

And you know, I think they have language now to express parts of themselves that we didn’t have, and they’re using it, and so I’m just — I’m proud of them and I can’t wait to see how it even continues to grow.

And I think it’s the smallest shifts too, of our culture. Like for example my daughter Bailey, you know, in her classes now, I think when they’re working on things for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, there’s not an assumption that there’s two parents and that those parents are the same gender. And I think shifts like that are really critical and what kids are picking up on.

So I think we’re all doing a better job and it’s leading to the young people being able to understand and know themselves at a younger, better age than we did.

How has your identity influenced your leadership at the Teen Center?
You know, I think that I go back to my own teenage experience a lot. I grew up in Florida, and it definitely was not an easy place to be struggling with my sexuality and to really be thinking about coming out.

I didn’t know any gay people. I didn’t have any role models of people I could look to to really see what a future could look like if I didn’t conform to what was standard there. And so that was really scary, that was really hard, and so I think that shapes a lot of what happens here.

I mean in general we strive to be a place where all teens feel welcome and joyful and like it’s a place where they belong. I think that’s particularly important for teens who are different than the status quo.

And so I think we work really hard here to create a space — both visually, I think when you look around the Teen Center you see a lot of cues that you’re accepted here, you’re welcomed here, you’re loved here. And also we do a lot of staff trainings and we have really experienced youth workers who are here to talk to teens about what they’re going through and to pick up on those signs and to make sure that we’re checking in with teens who seem like something is off.

And I think I’m really proud of the fact that there are teens who feel comfortable here that aren’t comfortable at school or at home or in their churches or in their synagogues and who are able to raise the side of their identity at the Teen Center that currently they’re still hiding in those other places.

And so I think that’s powerful. I think we are providing a space that’s so desperately needed and a space that I needed when I was a teenager. And so I think being able to give back in that way is a huge honor.

And I think part of what makes me good at this job is that I remember what it felt like and I work really hard to make sure that people don’t go through that.

What message would you give to LGBTQ teens that may be struggling?
I think that you’re not alone in this. I think that everyone is questioning parts of their identity. Everyone is insecure about pieces of themselves whether they look like it or not or pretend like they’re not. You are not alone.

And then I think to find your community — and like obviously, come here, come to the Teen Center, but any other spaces — find your people. And I think that’s been really important for me as an adult is to surround myself with people who I know love and care about me for the exact person I am, and to leave everyone else in the dust.

And they’ll either come back around or your life will be better off without them. But know who you are, stand up for that person, and find the people that support you.

What role does the Teen Center play in the LGBT community?
Yeah, so I mean in general for our programming here, we strive for it all to be teen led. And so I think like if you are a teenager in Brookline or a parent in Brookline and you have an idea about, you know, a type of club you’d like to have here or help us expand the programming we are offering to the queer community and trans kids — please come, please bring that to us, like let’s grow in this together.

You know, the more volunteers and the more support we have, the more we can offer. And then you know, we are a big part of the annual Pride parade the high school puts on and the middle schools join. I’d love to see how we can grow that and expand that.

I know there are more people in Brookline who care about this and who would love to be out there celebrating. And so I’d love to see that grow, businesses to join, and for that to become a broader community thing that ends at the Teen Center where we can all celebrate together, just the great things that are happening here.