In the current issue of Just Out, home décor celebs Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams discuss how comfort is more critical now than ever before.

The designers, busy promoting their latest how-to book, The Comfortable Home: How to Invest in Your Nest and Live Well For Less, were recently in Portland to mark the re-opening of their “signature” store with a party that featured the sound stylings of Lady Bunny—while benefiting Q Center. Various raffles that night brought in over $1,000 cash for Q Center, in addition to 10 percent of purchases from February 11-25.

In addition to his design efforts with Williams, Gold edited the 2008 book, Crisis: 40 Stories Revealing the Personal, Social, and Religious Pain and Trauma of Growing Up Gay in America, available in hardcover now and as an e-book come April. Below, a few of his thoughts that didn’t fit in print.

JO: The book has been out for a while now. What has been the reaction?
Mitchell Gold: This has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. We know the book has truly done what we had hoped, which is to change the hearts and minds of the many good people out there who may not have realized the struggle a gay teen faces growing up and the harm unacceptance, even unintentionally, causes. It has made people think differently, and in many cases, act differently because of what they learned from our contributors, who so bravely shared such a difficult time in their lives. We know this from the many letters and emails we receive, the comments on our website, and the many people who have come to our events across the country. In fact I recently got a letter from an 81-year-old woman whose friend gave her a copy of Crisis and who realized how even her inactions all these years had been harmful—she told me it just proves it’s never to late to learn, which was so good to hear.

More, after the jump…

JO: Are there any stories in particular that you connected with?
MG: Some stories are special to me personally, of course, like actor Richard Chamberlain’s because he was my first crush and later in life, when I worked at Bloomingdale’s in New York, was one of the first people I saw living openly with his partner, which gave me such hope. And other stories because they are by my some of my heroes, like Rev. Gene Robinson, the first openly gay Episcopal bishop, and Rodney Powell, civil rights leader and medical doctor, who said growing up black in the 1940s was easy compared to growing up with his “secret.” And then there are the stories that keep me committed to my advocacy work, no matter how challenging, like those of the two moms, Mary Lou Wallner and Elke Kennedy, who lost their gay children, and Jared Horsford, one of the nicest young people you’ll ever meet, who went through so much to try to change who he was so he wouldn’t lose his family, church, and community and finally was able to be himself.

JO: What’s been the most powerful thing you’ve discovered in compiling these stories?
MG: There has been so many things, but key is that if you let people know the harm being caused, so many will want to help you—and these stories do that in a way people can understand. In fact, we’ve been encouraging people to buy the book as a gift for those in their lives who need help understanding. It is a great way to start a conversation with those you love. Send them the book as a gift, and ask them, as a gift to you, to read it and discuss it with you….

JO: What reaction have you received from the “traditional” religious community, in light of your foundation of Faith in America? Has the organization, and the book as an extension, affected any shift in perspectives?
MG: This is an area where the book has had a big impact. It has led to some conversations that would otherwise probably not have taken place. Especially important is the section on why homosexuality is not a sin. The book features two religious leaders who address this in two very different yet compelling ways. Last week, we had an event with one of them, Rev. Stephen Shoemaker, at Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C., a 2,900-member church that is fully welcoming of LGBT people. About 250 residents came to hear about Crisis and its message about the immense harm caused to LGBT youth by a society that tells them their God rejects and condemns them. Rev. Shoemaker said it was one of the proudest moments of his life. The event was in conjunction with two wonderful organizations, Campus Pride and Time Out Youth.