Darnell Moore and Kiyan Williams
Editor’s Note: This story comes from our OutLoud Initiative, collecting stories of the LGBTQ community. Kiyan Williams identifies as gender nonconforming and prefers the gender-neutral pronouns “they/them,” rather than “he/him” or “she/her.” StoryCorps will use plural pronouns to refer to Kiyan in this post.
Kiyan Williams (above right) grew up in a rough neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey during the 1990s. They excelled in school and eventually left to attend Stanford.
Throughout it all, Kiyan felt isolated and knew from an early age that they weren’t like other kids.
At StoryCorps, Kiyan told their friend Darnell Moore about a time when they were 4 years old, and their family began to notice just how different Kiyan was.
Today, Kiyan works with LGBTQ youth in New York City.
Originally aired December 17, 2014, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday.
Bottom photo: Courtesy of Kiyan Williams.
Jim Harwood and Ruth Coker Burks
When the AIDS epidemic hit Arkansas in the early 1980s, Ruth Coker Burks was just a young mother in her early twenties.
She didn’t have any medical training, but she took it upon herself to care for AIDS patients who were abandoned by their families and the medical professionals who feared the disease.
Some families, though, were different.
At StoryCorps, Ruth sat down with her friend Jim Harwood, one father who stayed by his son’s side.
They remember his son, Raymond, and what the early days of the AIDS crisis were like.
Listen to Ruth’s interview with Paul Wineland, the partner of another AIDS patient she cared for during this time.
Ruth Coker Burks and Paul Wineland
Ruth Coker Burks was in her early 20s and raising a small child when the AIDS epidemic hit Arkansas, her home state.
Although she had no formal medical training, Ruth took it upon herself to care for AIDS patients who were abandoned by their families and medical professionals who feared the disease.
Ruth estimates that she has cared for nearly 1000 people since the 1980s. One of those people was Paul Wineland’s partner.
At StoryCorps Ruth told Paul about how she got started after visiting a friend at a hospital where one of the state’s early AIDS patient was dying.
Originally aired December 5, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Sandra Sowder and Marcia Sutton
Sandra Sowder (left) and Marcia Sutton (right) met in a small town outside of Huntsville, Alabama.
Over time, they fell in love. When they made their relationship public, their worlds turned upside down.
The couple sat down together at StoryCorps to talk about what happened next.
Originally aired September 21, 2014, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday.
Bryan Epps and Darnell Moore
When Darnell Moore (right) was a teenager in Camden, New Jersey, he didn’t know he was gay, but he did know he was an outcast.
It was the late 1980s and Darnell was a mild-mannered A-student in a city where kids were expected to be tough.
He told his longtime friend Bryan Epps (left) about growing up in his neighborhood—and about an incident that shaped his youth.
Originally aired August 24, 2014, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday.
Rita Fischer and Jay Fischer
Jay Fischer came out as gay to his parents back in the 1980s. Decades later, Jay came to StoryCorps with his 90-year-old mother, Rita Fischer, to talk about that conversation.
Warning: This clip features senior citizens dropping ‘f-bombs.’
Rita Fischer has walked in New York’s AIDS Walk since 1986. She has raised more than $800,000 in that time.
Originally aired July 30, 2014, on NPR’s Tell Me More.
Sue Larson and Clela Rorex
In late June 2014, county clerks in Colorado challenged a ban on same-sex marriage by issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. The state attorney general has ordered them to stop, and the case has reached the Colorado Supreme Court.
But few know that this is history repeating itself.
Back in 1975, Clela Rorex was the newly-elected County Clerk in Boulder when she began issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples.
At StoryCorps, Clela (right) told her friend, Sue Larson (left), that it started one day when two men came to her office door.
On the day this story was broadcast, the Colorado Supreme Court ordered County Clerks in the state to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
Originally aired July 18, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Photo courtesy of the Boulder Daily Camera.
Patrick Haggerty and Robin Bolland
Patrick Haggerty grew up the son of a dairy farmer in rural Washington during the 1950s.
As a teenager, Patrick (above) began to understand he was gay—something he thought he was hiding well.
But, as he told his daughter Robin (right), someone was onto him. One day, when he went to perform at a school assembly, his father, Charles Edward Haggerty, decided to have a serious talk with him.
Patrick later formed a band, Lavender Country, whose self-titled 1973 album is the first-known gay-themed album in country music history.
Click here to watch 2016 Sundance Film Festival selection “The Saint of Dry Creek”—Patrick’s story told as a StoryCorps animated short.
Originally aired June 27, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Bottom photo: Patrick Haggery in a 4-H drag show in 1959 courtesy of Paradise of Bachelors.
Cedar Lay and Patty Woods
In the late 1970s, Patty Woods (pictured above right) was a waitress at a restaurant in New York City when a customer caught her eye. They became friends and soon after, struck up a relationship.
Now, decades later, Patty lives in San Francisco. At StoryCorps, Patty told her friend Cedar Lay (pictured above left) about the lasting impact this partner left on her.
This conversation was recorded at the San Francisco StoryBooth. For more information or to make an appointment click here.
Originally aired July 2, 2014, on NPR’s Tell Me More.
Barb Maglaqui and MaCherie Dunbar
Tech Sgt. MaCherie Dunbar was deployed twice to Iraq in 2007-2008. At StoryCorps, MaCherie told her then-girlfriend, Barb Maglaqui, about one of the hardest things she had to do while overseas.
Where are they now?
MaCherie retired from the Air Force in 2014 and went on to earn her BA in Communications from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Public about her own struggle with combat-related Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder (PTSD), MaCherie has become a fierce advocate for veterans, especially around issues of healthcare.
Photo: Barb Maglaqui (left) and retired Tech Sgt. MaCherie Dunbar at their StoryCorps interview in Fairbanks, AK. Photo by Daniel Sitts for StoryCorps.
Originally aired May 23, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.