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 Voices Stories
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...
“I Should Call The Police Right Now!” Homophobic Doctor Shames Gay Teen.
Hi. My name’s Chris Tanner and I’m from Duarte, California. When I was 15, me and my friend David, we used to hang out in front of the high school, in front of Duarte High, and...
“These Are Incredible Women.” Lesbian’s Bout With Cancer Opens Mother’s Eyes.
I’m Simone Federman and I’m from Buffalo, New York. My father was a professor, experimental fiction writer, and he was very comfortable with the fact that we were incredibly cl...
Lesbian Shares Details Of Sons’ Births. “I Want The Information To Be Disseminated Out Into The World.”
Hi. I am Tara Clancy. I’m from Queens, New York. So with my first kid, it was like very – it was very straightforward. Shauna, my boy’s other mom, and I at the time went to t...
Trans Woman Shares Her Journey To Authenticity. “It’s A Fantastic Life When You Could Be The Person You’ve Always Been Inside.”
My name is Gennifer Herley. I’m from Seaford, New York. I met my ex-wife when I was 19 and she was 17. We were dating for several years and she lived at home and I lived at home,...
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 ...
Gay Man Reconciles His Spirituality With His Sexuality. “My Religious Life Is As Much A Part Of My Identity As My Queer Life.”
Hi, my name is Nick Donias. I’m from Fort Worth, Texas. Growing up in Texas, I was the youngest of four children and we grew up in what people call the bad part of town. And I fo...
“I’m Your Granddaughter Now.” Trans Woman Reveals Her Authentic Self To Grandmother.
I’m Robyn Sheopersad and I’m from Queens, New York. In 1996, my mother died of a car accident. I had no parental figure really around because my father went into a depression a...
Gay Life In Philadelphia From The 1940s To Today.
1947: Meeting Other Gays in High School: “It Was Something I Wanted To Be A Part Of.” My life actually started in early September of 1947. That was when I started my first day...
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 And Coming Of Age In 1970s New York City.
1960s: A Trip To The Met Was “The First Time I Remember Any Attraction For Men.” I first became aware of being attracted to men when growing up in the mid-sixties, when I was ...
