I'm From Driftwood
The stories on I’m From Driftwood send a simple but powerful message to LGBTQIA+ people everywhere: You are not alone. I’m From Driftwood combats isolation and creates empathy to build a more understanding and accepting world. These are our stories, told in our own voices.
Latest Coming Out Stories
Why I Identify As “Queer.”
My name is Jaime-Jin Lewis and I’m from Charlottesville, Virginia. My whole life I feel like I’ve been an “other”, from being an Asian American, being female, being a trans...
Coming Out as an Undocumented Immigrant and Coming Out as a Queer Man.
My name is Carlos, Padilla, and I’m from Seattle, Washington. I was originally born in Guadalajara, Jadisco, Mexico, and I immigrated into the United States at the age of 2. For ...
Rosa’s Journey From “All Gays Should Go To Hell” to Loving Her Lesbian Daughters.
I’m Rosa Manriquez and I’m from Los Angeles. When people ask me what I am, if I’m LGBTQA, what am I, I tell people I’m neither. I don’t identify by my sexuality, I’m a ...
Bisexual Struggles With Perception of Being Straight.
As a child, Faith Cheltenham thought she was gay. As she grew older, though, she became aware that her attraction was much broader than to just one gender or identity. Faith explai...
I’m From Rhome, TX.
Sunny was my first true love. She was half Native American with sparkling eyes and curly sun-kissed hair. The first day of 3rd grade I saw her and fell hard. I would go out of my w...
I’m From Columbus, OH.
I attempted to come out of the closet the for the first time at eleven. I knew that I was a gay at a very young age and my parents should have as well because I danced around in my...
I’m From San Diego, CA.
´Why are you home?” she asked. “I need to talk to you.” And then came the tears. “You´re gay” she said. I confirmed her thoughts. We sat by the fireplace talking about ...
I’m From Richmond, KY.
I didn’t think monogamy was possible. I’ve been engaged twice to men who never had a chance. Since middle school, I dated guys. I loved the attention and reveled in the stares....
I’m From Arizona.
Never in my life had it ever once entered my mind that I could be anything other than straight. Straight was the default. Everyone was straight in Arizona, or so it seemed to me fo...
Coming Out To Wife And Kids Strengthens Man’s Family.
At the age of 19, Rick Clemons came out of the closet. After soon realizing it wasn’t the right time for him, he went back into the closet for 19 more years. Rick explains: I was...
I’m From Little Rock, AR.
I have always known I was a lesbian. I remember being in fourth grade, and thinking, “Wait…but she’s a girl…and I’m a girl. But I like her.” At the time it was a really...
I’m From Axminster, Devon, England
On November 6th, 2011, I arrived back at the local railway station at the end of my trip to Charleston, South Carolina, jet lagged and exhausted. That day was going to be the turni...
