by Sheila Bligen

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 fourLate 1950s: Neighborhood Crush: “She Was The Sexiest Thing I Had Ever Seen.” Okay, so in the late fifties, we – the big migration – so we moved from the Lower East Side t1960s: First Kiss With Another Girl Was “The Kiss Of Life.” So I’m 17. I’m living in Spanish Harlem and I’m venturing out to Harlem at this point. So Diane becomes one “I Learned How A Broken Heart Actually Feels.” So now I’m 17. I’m a senior in high school. I start to venture out. So I’ve become friends with Diane. Her house was a coFalling In Love, Breaking Up, And Reuniting: “Every Day Was The Best, Best, Best, Best Day Ever.” From my twenties into my thirties, I’m dealing with men and I’m living mOn Being Called An “Elder”: “I’m A Human Being. I’m Sheila. End Of Story.” I’m 67. And if I have to be put in put in a box, I embrace the term queer. But, I don’t...

by Gloria Allen

“What Was It Like? Stories by LGBTQ Elders” is a new program by I’m From Driftwood, in partnership with Comcast, the nation’s largest cable provider, and SAGE, the countGrowing Up On A Farm In Kentucky: “I Didn’t Know Anything About Being Different.” I was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky. We lived on a farm and we all lived together. It wasLate 1950’s: “If It Wasn’t For These Women, I Wouldn’t Be Here Today.” It was the late fifties when we got to Chicago. These amazing women, the three women – my motherSexual Assault in the Early 1960’s: “Why Did I Have To Be Treated Like That?” I went to high school here. Englewood High School, I remember going to Englewood. In 1962, I reAfter Friend’s Murder, “I Became Aware And Scared For Myself.” In 1962, I remember, I had dropped out of high school but I went back to finish it up. So I graduated in 1965.Leaving An Abusive Relationship In The Late 1970’s: “I Got Smart. And I Got Tired.” In the late seventies, I’d say ‘76 or ‘77, I had been single since 1967 up until thFounding A Charm School In The 2010’s: “Social Graces Carry You A Long Way.” Since I’ve gotten older, my life has changed a lot. At the age of 67, I was still in the commu“Life Is Beautiful. And For Me, It Has Been Quite A Whirlwind.” Today, my life has really changed for me. Although I’m 72 years old, it’s never too late. I feel good about...

by Stefanie Clark

“What Was It Like? Stories by LGBTQ Elders” is a new program by I’m From Driftwood, in partnership with Comcast, the nation’s largest cable provider, and SAGE, the countDressing Up In Mother’s Clothes As A Child: “I Knew I Could Be The Woman That I Wanted To Be.” I was born in 1943. I was the younger son in a Catholic family – I had an ol1950’s: “I Had To Be The Man Of The Family… And I Think I’m A Girl.” I ended up going to the seminary, as something a good catholic boy always does, especially the secon1960’s: Coming Out To Wife “Left An Elephant In The Room For The Next 44 Years.” So it’s June 1966. I’m just finishing up college at Seattle University. I just got my fi1980’s: Dominatrix Inspires Trans Woman To Become Comfortable In Her Own Skin. It was August 1989. I got a call out of the blue – a search firm wanted me to come to Chicago anAfter Wife’s Death in 2012, Trans Woman Seizes Opportunity To Come Out To Family. I can remember July 20, 2012 like it was yesterday. My wife had been sick with cancer for over Trans Woman’s Life Changed After Finding A Mentor. I needed acceptance as a human being. Not male, not female, not trans. I just needed acceptance and a friend that could guide “I’ve Been Helped By So Many People On My Journey To Womanhood.” Looking back at all those people that have helped me get to where I am today, I’m just so thankful for whaTrans Woman Finds Companionship Late In Life. “I laugh harder now than I have in twenty years.” I had lived with a woman for 44 years and then had to live alone for six. And t...