Update from the Home Front

Many things have transpired in my life since I last posted an article on this Web site. Sam and I have come a long way since the days of transition. It has been nearly five years now since Sam changed his name and got that first shot of testosterone. We have both grown in many ways since then.

As for me, I have not posted to this site because of my overfull life – personal, family, and community involvement have blossomed for me. Our daughter has married, and as a result I have a new son-in-law who came complete with five-year-old son who is now nine. Last December the threesome went to the Altai Republic in Southern Siberia in Russia and met our beloved little Russian princess. On July 4, 2006, they brought her home to America. She is now two, and is her Boo-boo’s darling. (We tried to get her to call me “Nana.” She kept running to the kitchen in search of yellow fruit every time we tried. Then we tried to get her to call me “Babushka” – the Russian word for grandmother. That was too difficult and came out as “Boo-boo.” The name stuck.)

My son here in Knoxville now has more than five years critical care experience in open-heart critical care and is working in a cardiac catheterization lab where he enjoys weekends off for the first time in more than seven years. He and his wife are doing well.

Sam is doing well, passes 100% of the time, dotes on our two Shih Tzus, and putters in his garage workshop making all kinds of goodies for the family.

He recycles many things turning trash into treasure for family and friends. One of his recent stellar accomplishments was a customized workbench complete with lighting and two electrical outlets for our son’s workshop. His motorcycle is the apple of his eye these days, and he is looking forward to riding it more as the weather warms up.

I have ventured out and revved up my activist engines. Over the last three years, I have added one by one the several positions I now hold. My first endeavor was to become a news writer for Out and About Newspaper. I joined the staff just before the fledgling publication celebrated its first birthday. We are a statewide “GLBT” (their order of letters, not mine) publication bringing news, features, and profiles of local people to our statewide readership of more than 35,000. We have approximately 7,000 readers in the Greater Knoxville area alone.

I began as a writer, but am now the East Tennessee Bureau Chief, coordinating a staff of eight writers and four photographers located in Knoxville and Chattanooga. The East Bureau staff members are great folks who have become a second family for me.

Then last May, I went to Nashville for the annual meeting of the Tennessee Equality Project. I was nominated and elected to their Board of Directors. TEP is a wonderful organization that has its core membership in Nashville and boasts three registered lobbyists as board members. Jenny Ford is the official lobbyist for TEP, and the woman is a powerhouse of energy and knowledge regarding the Tennessee General Assembly and owns her own lobbying firm, Government Strategies. The good people of the Tennessee Equality Project have blocked anti-LGBTQ legislation effectively on more than one occasion on issues such as adoption and foster care along with others. The only piece of oppressive law that they were unable to beat is the upcoming ballot measure that will place on referendum before the voters of Tennessee a proposal to alter our State Constitution to forbid marriage equality along with civil unions and domestic partnerships. This tripe will appear on our November 2006 ballot.

Another position I have accepted is the national Media Director post for the Transgendered Americans Veterans Association. This nationwide organization, headed by Monica Helms, noted Atlanta transgender activist, proposes to move forward with efforts toward advocating full rights for transgender veterans.

From the TAVA Web site:

The Transgender American Veterans Association (TAVA) was formed to address the growing concerns of fair and equal treatment of transgender veterans and active duty service members.  As the population of gender-different people increases, then so does the population of veterans and active duty service members who identify as such.   TAVA serves as an educational organization that will help the Veterans Administration and the Department of Defense to better understand the individuals they encounter who identify as being gender-different.  As veterans, we have also served proudly, and will continue to do so.  TAVA is here to help where we can.

As if that weren’t enough, I have for the last several months been hard at work at making a longtime dream a reality. The Greater Knoxville LGBTQ Leadership Council met in its inaugural meeting February 4, 2006. More than 30 members representing over 20 groups and organizations were present. The Leadership Council formed committees to deal with issues such as Pride and National Coming Out Day, local political issues such as the recent effort to pass an Equality Resolution before the Knoxville City Council along with garnering support from some of the community’s best professionals and seasoned activists for the task of putting together an organization that will do the work of getting our issues before the public and providing a venue for activism and advocacy in the Greater Knoxville area. We are very new, having only had two meetings at the present time. Our PR/Media Relations Committee is hard at work preparing a Web site along with efforts by the Executive Committee to arrange an online venue for donations.

Our first event will be an introductory mini-conference entitled “Meet the Family” in which local groups will table and share information along with having live microphone time to tell others about their organizations. We are fortunate to have Norris Dryer, retired Director of WUOT radio, Knoxville’s NPR affiliate, to MC this event for us. Groups are coming from as far away as Atlanta to participate, however the overwhelming majority of groups will be local.

I am short on time as always is the case these days. I just felt that I needed to update the site and let my online readers know how Sam and I are faring.

Take care and be well.