by Parker Haines

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, Mi...

by Jason Pesick

My name’s Jason Pesick. I’m from West Bloomfield, Michigan. Growing up in West Bloomfield was – it was actually a pretty great place to grow up. It was comfortable, it was a...

by Jim Darby

1950s: Sailor Spends A Night In Jail After Gay Bar Is Raided. In 1952, I received what we call the SSS, Selected Service System envelope. Every young man who got one of those, of...

by David R. Matteson

“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 count1950: “That Was The First Time I’d Had Sex With Another Guy.” When I was 12, which would have been about 1950, I made my trip to my grandparents’ farm. Each of my brother1960’s: Man Has Sex Dream About His Male Psychiatrist And Then Tells Him About It. My PhD program at Boston University was in a mixture of psychology and pastoral counseling. T1973: Man’s First Visit To Gay Bar Results In Life-Changing Experience. In 1973, I was – I had finished about five years of teaching at a small liberal arts college in southeComing Out As Bisexual In The 1970’s. In the mid seventies, I took a faculty friend with me to a trip to Gestalt Institute in Cleveland. On the way back, I realized how much I Bisexual Husband And His Wife Renegotiate Relationship. When my wife and I were married, I assumed I was heterosexual. And it wasn’t till many years later that I realized I wasBisexual Man Reflects On His Open Marriage, Wife, And Long-Term Relationship With A Man. Sandy and I had been married since 1962. I had worked out a bisexual agreement when I rea...

by Brook Umbrell

My name is Brook Umbrell and I’m from Toledo, Ohio. In 2014, I decided that was going to be my Summer of Yes. A good friend of mine was doing a queer calendar at the time. She&#...

by Vernon Magsino

Hi, I’m Vernon Magsino and I’m from Chicago. I was 15 years old and I was in my sophomore year of high school. I went to a Catholic Jesuit high school. It was one morning, I w...

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...

by Jean-Claire Fitschen

I’m Jean-Claire Fitschen. I’m from Chicago, Illinois. When I was a baby, I had a mommy and a daddy and a Bernie. Bernie met my parents at the University of Chicago when they w...