At Home With Fundraising Power Couple Heather and Lacie Brown-Hudson

By day, Heather Brown-Hudson raises funds for Shriners Children’s Hospital, and her wife Lacie does the same for PROMO, Missouri’s statewide LGBTQ+ public policy and advocacy organization. But what do they do in their off hours? They raise more funds — for others.

This dynamic duo is known for hosting extravagant gatherings at their West County home, where up to a hundred guests mingle by the pool and garden — all in the name of supporting local artists, entertainers, and community
causes.

When I visited their home in October, the scene was pure magic. The manicured lawns and winding neighborhood streets gave way to towering columns as the statuesque Heather greeted me in the driveway in a flowing dress. Guests were arriving with musical instruments, costumes, and handcrafted works to display and sell. Inside, the furniture had been moved aside to make room for artisan displays. The kitchen island overflowed with charcuterie, and the patio felt like an outdoor café, complete with tables overlooking a gazebo that doubled as a performance stage.

“Hosting is one of my favorite things to do,” Heather says. “Even when I lived in a 400-square-foot studio apartment in New York City, I threw parties all the time.”

The couple first met in 2017 while serving on the board of Pride St. Charles.

“Lacie was an absolute legend when it came to logistics and event management,” Heather recalls. “I asked her to be my right hand while I curated the infamous canceled TEDx event.” (Part of the event addressed suicide rates among trans people, and the university canceled it, citing lack of funding.) “Later, I secured my own TEDx license to host the event independently — a risky move, but it showed we could work under pressure. That TEDx event was the last time I saw her before COVID. Then she showed up at a backyard party in early 2021 and voilà.”

The two have very different backgrounds. While Heather hails from bustling Philadelphia, Lacie grew up near Defiance, Missouri.

“There was little to no queer community or representation where I was from,” Lacie says. “Coming from a farming family, me being part of the queer community definitely wasn’t part of the plan. Having a home where people feel comfortable bringing their full selves — friends, family, even kids — means the world to us. Creating a space I could never have imagined as a queer kid in rural Missouri still blows my mind sometimes.”

The pair’s event-planning chemistry is part of what makes their gatherings so memorable.

“Heather is more of the ‘front of the house’ personality,” Lacie says. “I prefer to handle the behind-the-scenes logistics. We’re both connectors of people, just in different ways — and that brings a beautiful mix of folks together. Through our time in the St. Louis queer community and beyond, we’ve built a great network of humans who love to come together and enjoy our space.”

After the interview, the couple sent a final thought as a joint statement: In the toughest of times, the LGBTQ+ community has always found a way to thrive and survive. Those spaces, our community spaces, have never been able to be taken from us. They cannot take our chosen family. They cannot take our community spaces. They cannot take our backyard curated queer joy.

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