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

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From Bi Erasure to “Flaming Bisexual”: Bi Asian Mom Learns the Value of Visibility.

by Ivy Le

From Bi Erasure to “Flaming Bisexual”: Bi Asian Mom Learns the Value of Visibility.

Hi, I’m Ivy Le from Dallas, Texas. I thought everybody was bisexual. My family immigrated from Vietnam, so I actually grew up in two really conservative cultures; Vietnamese ...

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X-Men & Real-Life Heroes Inspire Gay Man to Become a “Super Lawyer”

by Rick Anderson

X-Men & Real-Life Heroes Inspire Gay Man to Become a “Super Lawyer”

Hi, I’m Rick Anderson. I’m from Pearland, Texas. I grew up in the Clear Lake, Friendswood area in my early childhood in the eighties and nineties. And it was a communit...

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Love & Loss in Russia: How One Queer Person Drew a Valuable Lesson from Their Teenage Heartbreak.

by Irina Groushevaia

Love & Loss in Russia: How One Queer Person Drew a Valuable Lesson from Their Teenage Heartbreak.

My name is Irina Groushevaia and I’m from Moscow, Russia.  When I was 16 years old, I was living with my estranged father because my mom abandoned me, and it was a difficult...

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Gay Aunt Becomes Queer Person’s Beacon of Hope Amid Homophobic Family

by Kirsten

Gay Aunt Becomes Queer Person’s Beacon of Hope Amid Homophobic Family

My name is Kirsten and I’m from Queens, New York.  So when I was growing up, me and my aunt, my mother’s sister, were very close. There was an intensity to that closen...

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“We Can’t Be Patient Forever.” Trans Person Finds Joy & Community After Cutting Ties with Family

by SJ

“We Can’t Be Patient Forever.” Trans Person Finds Joy & Community After Cutting Ties with Family

I’m SJ. I’m from Dallas, Texas.  I grew up in a house where it wasn’t really normal for us to talk about our feelings. That was really difficult for me. As a chi...

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Choosing Authenticity: How One Lesbian Risked It All to Be Themselves & Thrived.

by Sammi Price

Choosing Authenticity: How One Lesbian Risked It All to Be Themselves & Thrived.

My name is Sammi Price and I’m from Neenah, Wisconsin.  I remember the first time that I had a crush on a girl, and it was in eighth grade in my little hometown in Wisconsin...

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Non-Binary Excellence: How One Employee’s Authenticity Served as a Model for Others.

by Will Verchereau

Non-Binary Excellence: How One Employee’s Authenticity Served as a Model for Others.

My name is Will Verchereau. I’m from Lansing, Michigan.  In May 2011, I found myself freshly graduated from Michigan State University and crying alone in my closet in my apa...

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From Heartache to Hope: How a Lesbian and Her Wife Built Their Dream Family.

by Amara Richardson

From Heartache to Hope: How a Lesbian and Her Wife Built Their Dream Family.

My name is Amara Richardson, and I’m from San Marcos, Texas.  I was 24, and my first close friend had started her family and had her first kid. And it was all new to me as n...

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Hate Hits Home: How One Queer Couple’s Lives Were Upended By the 2016 Election.

by Jovier Sanchez

Hate Hits Home: How One Queer Couple’s Lives Were Upended By the 2016 Election.

My name is Jovier Sanchez and I’m from New York, New York.  So I moved to Salem with my husband in 2015. We opened a candle store there and it was on the first floor of the&...

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Queer Man Leaves Behind Homophobic & Racist Microaggressions at Corporate Job & Thrives in the Arts

by Jeremy Rashad Brown

Queer Man Leaves Behind Homophobic & Racist Microaggressions at Corporate Job & Thrives in the Arts

Hi, I’m Jeremy Rashad Brown. I am from Waxahachie, Texas.    Seventeen years ago, I went to UT where I majored in American studies and music business. And upon graduati...

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Cheers to That! How a Dusty Bottle of Champagne Came to Represent a Father’s Love for Queer Son.

by Peter Pinto

Cheers to That! How a Dusty Bottle of Champagne Came to Represent a Father’s Love for Queer Son.

So my name is Peter Pinto. I’m from Milford, Pennsylvania.  I grew up in a very low income household. My parents were newlyweds, didn’t have a lot of money. We were on...

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“I Don’t Want You To Go.” Gay Soldier Dares to Love Amidst a Backdrop of War & Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

by João Kiser

“I Don’t Want You To Go.” Gay Soldier Dares to Love Amidst a Backdrop of War & Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

I’m João Kiser from Milledgeville, Georgia. I came out when I was 16 and then I joined the military at 21, which was something I did not want to do because of the kind of ma...

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