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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 Elders Stories

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Lesbian Couple In Hospital Humorously Experience “Being Seen First and Foremost In Terms of Your Difference.”

by Vera Whisman

Lesbian Couple In Hospital Humorously Experience “Being Seen First and Foremost In Terms of Your Difference.”

My name is Vera Whisman, I’m from Tulsa, Oklahoma. But this story doesn’t happen in Tulsa, Oklahoma. My partner and I decided in the 90s, when a lot of lesbians were doing this...

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“Ian McKellen Would Be Proud” Of Teacher Coming Out To Students On The First Day Of Class.

by Adam Sandel

“Ian McKellen Would Be Proud” Of Teacher Coming Out To Students On The First Day Of Class.

My name is Adam Sandel and I’m originally from Hopkins, Minnesota. When I moved to San Francisco in 2001 when I was officially coming out as a gay man, I didn’t know anyone but...

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Dad Comes Out To Kids With Hilarious–And Inspiring–Results.

by Brian Hartigan

Dad Comes Out To Kids With Hilarious–And Inspiring–Results.

My name is Brian Hartigan, I’m from Staten Island, New York. I came out late in my life, about 30 years old. And reason being is I had gotten married and I had children. I had co...

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Two Stories Capture Twenty Two Years of LGBTQ Progress.

by Lynn Currie

Two Stories Capture Twenty Two Years of LGBTQ Progress.

I’m Lynn Currie. I’m from Austin, Texas. Growing up my dad was in the military, so we kind of moved all around. And ended up finishing up high school in a little town called Br...

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Arrested For Being Gay At 14 Years Old. “It Was Police Entrapment.”

by Harold Kooden

Arrested For Being Gay At 14 Years Old. “It Was Police Entrapment.”

My name is Harold Kooden, and I was born in Chicago. We moved to California, North Hollywood, California. At about eleven, I discovered quite accidentally in one of the johns in th...

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After Near-Fatal Bout With Weight Loss, Gay Son Chooses Happiness Over Father’s Approval.

by Richard Fox

After Near-Fatal Bout With Weight Loss, Gay Son Chooses Happiness Over Father’s Approval.

My name is Richard Fox and I’m from Queens, New York. I, in my adolescence, had gained some weight as a kid, say from my second grade to high school I basically progressively bec...

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Man’s Wife Encourages Him To Have Sexual Experience With Another Man.
Man’s Wife Encourages Him To Have Sexual Experience With Another Man.

I was born in London, England in 1951, and I’ve lived in Germany and Holland. I moved to Italy, Tuscany in 1976. I suppose by the age of 12, that was a rather important moment in...

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“You Have To Leave.” Facing Discrimination In A Hospital At The Height of the AIDS Crisis.

by Doug Rice

“You Have To Leave.” Facing Discrimination In A Hospital At The Height of the AIDS Crisis.

I’m Doug Rice, I’m from Rochester, New York. Robert and I met in 1983 at a record store I was working at. He came in as a customer and I’d just gone to a Talking Heads concer...

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Video Games Help Trans Woman Embrace Identity

by Nicole Modjeski

Video Games Help Trans Woman Embrace Identity

I am Nicole Modjeski and I’m from Jackson, Mississippi. My mother was a single parent mom and we lived in the Spring Ridge Road Mobile Estates which is basically a trailer park. ...

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“Be Happy. The Gay Brotherhood Demands This Of You.”

by Dave White

“Be Happy. The Gay Brotherhood Demands This Of You.”

My name is Dave White, I’m a writer and I live in Los Angeles. I grew up in southeastern New Mexico. When I was 17 years old in 1982 my family was living in a little town called ...

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“I Really Wish You Were My Real Father.” A Dream-Come-True Adoption Story.

by Larry Bennett

“I Really Wish You Were My Real Father.” A Dream-Come-True Adoption Story.

My name is Larry Bennett and I’m from Washington, DC. I think the reason I got involved with the Big Brothers was in spite of the AIDS crisis was my love of children and my desir...

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“I Was Very, Very Happy That Stonewall Had Happened.”

by Perry Brass

“I Was Very, Very Happy That Stonewall Had Happened.”

My name is Perry Brass, I’m originally from Savannah, Georgia. I realized I was gay, certainly by the time I was 15. And at that point I went through a real crisis. And like a lo...

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