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 Sexuality Stories
Competing on Legendary and Megan Thee Stallion’s Praise Inspire Queer Man to Build Texas Ballroom Scene
My name is Antonio Padron. I’m from San Antonio, Texas. And when I was 16, I was in my living room watching TV. I was watching MTV and there was a dance show on there. It&...
LGBTQIA+ Texans Find Belonging at Texas Latino Pride
I am Juan Contreras. I’m from Dallas, Texas. So the first person I came out to was my cousin. You know, he was more… he was out. He asked me if I wanted to go to this...
Gay Son Brings Mom to His Ball… and She Ends Up Competing
I’m Ryan Thompson. I’m from Houston, Texas. And in high school, I was out in school, but not out to my mom. A couple of years later, I’m in college, first win...
Coming Out as Gender Expansive to Family
I’m Andrew Knips. I’m from St. Paul, Minnesota. I grew up in the ’90s and early 2000s and in a really, really loving, caring home. My parents provided me wit...
San Antonio Rallies Around Drag Queen After Cancer Diagnosis
I’m Kristi Waters. I am from Corpus Christi, Texas, and I am a drag queen. Started in Corpus doing drag and I kind of flourished more over here in San Antonio. Around th...
A Gay Man’s Journey From Self-Loathing to Self-Acceptance
I am Harrison David Eppright, and I’m from Austin, Texas. About 1960… I’ll say 1968, I came across an article in Time Magazine. I was 13 years old, came acro...
Hymn Leads Queer Christian to Come Out to His Parents
My name is Dr. Marlon Johnson. I am from Sumter, South Carolina. When I was finishing up the first year of my time in grad school, I was learning to become a professional coun...
How One Poetry Slam Led to a Queer Movement
My name is Crush. I’m from Dallas. I grew up in a fairly intensely religious household and did not see queerness anywhere around me. I eventually got to high school wher...
HIV Diagnosis Leads to Hope, Healing, & Purpose
Hey, I’m Chris and I’m from Memphis, Tennessee. I kind of always realized that I was a little bit different. You know, in school I was always called gay before I e...
Music, Pride, and Perseverance: Leading a Queer Marching Band During the AIDS Epidemic
Hi, my name is Sam Gindin and I’m from Brooklyn. One of the memories I have, which definitely turned my life around, was when I went to a local party. And I went there w...
He Went to a Rally… and Met His Future Husband
My name is Larry Picard. I’m from Holyoke, Massachusetts. So I met my first, well, my only girlfriend when I was 19 years old, and I was a singing waiter and she was a s...
School District Tried to Erase LGBTQIA+ Families–And Failed
So I’m Peggy Gillespie and I’m living in North Hampton, Massachusetts. Back in 1993, I was a mom of a three-year-old multiracial child. In preschool, my kid was gr...
