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 Black Stories
After Rejection From Family, Gender Non-Binary Person Learns To Live For Themselves. “I Am Ecstatic That I Am Me.”
My name is Parker Haines and I’m from Chicago, Illinois. When I was 22, I was sitting in a Friday’s restaurant with my mother. And I had just recently moved to Minneapolis, Min...
Gay Man Confronts Mental Illness, Addiction And His HIV Diagnosis With The Help Of Others. “I Found My Place In The Gay Community.”
So my name is Coleman Goode. I’m from Hallettsville, Texas. When I was 25 years old, I checked myself into a mental hospital because I tried to commit suicide. I, also, at that t...
Kicked Out By His Mom, Queer High School Student Uses Newfound “Alone Time” To Explore His Sexuality.
My name is Darren Mallett. I am from East Flatbush, Brooklyn. My mother and I moved from Brooklyn to Tampa, Florida to escape New York. We lived in a one bedroom apartment, so I ca...
Gay Jamaican Man Escapes Violence And Seeks Asylum In The United States.
Hi, my name is Adrian. I am from St. Ann, Jamaica. I spent most of my life growing up with my mom in Jamaica. It was pretty difficult for me because I found out at an early age tha...
Gay Man Reflects On Foster-To-Adopt Journey: “They Are Our Kids And They Were Purposely Chosen.”
I’m Gregory Yorgey-Girdy. I’m from Victoria, Texas. I moved to Philadelphia to attend law school. Once I got here, I met my husband Paul. When I met Paul, one of the things tha...
Egyptt LaBeija – Life In And Out Of The Ballroom.
1980s: Seeing Trans Women For The First Time: “I Felt Welcomed.” I grew up in a town in Long Island called Freeport. And I grew up basically in a middle-class home. My parents ...
Best Friends Come Out To Each Other – At The Same Time.
Hi. I am Brian and I’m from Lexington, Kentucky. So kind of a very quiet, shy kid from a mid-sized town, decided that I really wanted to live in New York City. And I had a passio...
HIV Diagnosis Reunites Son With Family. “That Kind Of Love Coming From Parents Who Threw Me Out Was Unexpected.”
My name is Shareef Hadid Jenkins. I am from Lancaster, Pennsylvania Growing up, I knew I was different. I knew that people sort of whispered about me. My family would – my uncle ...
Queer Woman Goes Undercover In Prison And Falls in Love.
Coming out, I was just so much more stronger. Now I rep my queerness. I’m like, “Yeah!”My name’s Angele Cooper. I’m from Los Angeles, California. When I was 25 years old, I had just got out of a really bad breakup. I was going through a lot of depression and deal...
Gay Woman Learns To Love Her Body. “I Gave Myself Permission To Redefine My Life And Who I Am.”
My name is Raven. I’m from Brooklyn, New York. My freshman year of high school, I went to a school that was pretty gay. So when I moved to North Carolina my second year, my sopho...
Falling In Love, Breaking Up, And Reuniting: “Every Day Was The Best, Best, Best, Best Day Ever.”
1950s: Experience During Naptime: “It Was An Inkling Of A Difference.” So being a native New Yorker, I started my early childhood education on the Lower East Side. I was four ...
How A Lesbian Pushed Her Mom Beyond Tolerance To Become An Advocate.
Hi. I’m Jourdan Porter. I am from Davidson, North Carolina. In tenth grade, I was living right outside Jackson, Mississippi. And it was pretty early in the school year and I had ...
