Owner of America's second-oldest lesbian bar, Babes of Carytown, has died

Vicky Hester, owner of the Richmond, Virginia, lesbian bar Babes of Carytown, has died.

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Hester died Tuesday, surrounded by loved ones, according to an Instagram post from the bar, which was the second-oldest lesbian bar in the U.S. Details of a celebration of life will be announced later.

“Please continue to join her family, friends, and staff at Babes of Carytown in remembering her tenacity for life and love for people,” the post reads. “Keep those she loved in your thoughts, as we begin to navigate life without her. She will truly be missed.”

Babes opened in 1987 as a steakhouse, but it soon became a gathering spot for lesbians and eventually the LGBTQ+ community in general, RVA Magazine noted in an article published in April. The bar held a 47^th anniversary party April 3.

“It’s always been about pride and community and a place to not only come together but struggle together,” Hester told the magazine of the bar’s role in Richmond. It has attracted “a crowd that wants to celebrate diversity, show love and gratitude, and enjoy a fun place to dance.”

Longtime customer Carol Anderson started coming to Babe’s to teach line dancing after meeting Hester at the local Metropolitan Community Church. Hester held a cover-free dance instruction event as a benefit for MCC’s food pantry. “If I can say I’m proud of anything, I’m proud of that,” Anderson told RVA.

Babes has also been popular with LGBTQ+ sports leagues, several patrons said. And while it is often considered a lesbian bar, it’s actually a “friendly dive bar that spans the entire LGBTQ community,” gay man Brandon Stumpt told the magazine.

Babes nearly closed several times, RVA reports, partly because of anti-LGBTQ+ laws in Virginia, but Hester persisted. She was one of the “brave people” of Richmond’s LGBTQ+ community, Del McWhorter, Anderson’s wife, said in the article.

Related: Virginia’s capital city takes the spotlight as a surprisingly diverse Southern LGBTQ+ travel haven

Upon Hester’s death, James Millner, director of Virginia Pride, gave this statement to Richmond’s CBS affiliate, WTVR: "We are heartbroken to learn of the passing of Vicky Hester, owner of Babes of Carytown and a pillar of Richmond’s LGBTQ community. She leaves behind a legacy that will live on for generations to come.

"For decades, as owner of Babes, Vicky opened her doors and her heart to support and uplift the LGBTQ community she loved so dearly. She understood that queer spaces are sacred — not just as places to socialize, but as centers of community.

"Our hearts are with Vicky’s family, especially her wife Ashley, and the entire team at Babes. We share in their grief with deep gratitude for all Vicky gave to Richmond. Let us honor her legacy by building the kind of community she so deeply believed in."