Stealth: A Transmasculine Podcast

Listen as Sean details the process he went through as he carefully considered the profressional implications of transition. He dicusses the intersectionality of race, gender identity and sexual orientation, and how he navigated the world before and after transition. Since Sean left his former career in media and became a licensed clinician, he has flourished. Be sure to check out his photography on instagram. Sean's story is full of intrigue and honest moments of self-examination. Sean provides several opportunties for us to reflect and laugh our hearts out.

Billy Lane identifies as a gay leatherman, sometimes adding ‘with a trans history”. Always a boyish/masculine person, he began his “formal" journey to manhood in 1992 and never looked back. While he lives what he calls a life of “low disclosure”, he honors and appreciates those who choose a different path. He continues to work within the gay leathermen's community for inclusion of trans men in sex spaces, clubs, and events, having competed at International Mr. Leather in 1998 as the first out trans man. He is a proud past Chairman and current member of Delta International as well as a current board member of the Leather Archives and Museum.

Jason is one of both Kai and Jackal's mentors and it was an honor to interview him.  Starting his transition in the late 60's, early 70's at the young age of 18, Jason shares the many trials and tribulations of the times.  Overcoming the messages of being sick and a freak, Jason found the love of his life, his wife of 48 years, who taught him that he was worth loving and showed him how to love himself. Jason lives a very private life and has requested that we do not use his photo. We chose this quilt to stand in Jason's image because it reminded Jackal of the Daoist Deng Ming's quote: “An ancient gnarled tree: Too fibrous for a logger's saw, Too twisted to fit a carpenter's square, Outlasts the whole forest.” Jason throughout it all has stood tall like an ancient gnarled tree.

Marty first identified as a trans man in 1993, but waited seven years to take his first shot of testosterone. He identifies as a father first and foremost and began his transition after the birth of his first child. He is now the father of four wonderful sons. He is a teacher and a storyteller. He is perfectly content to be a man in the world, but advocating for youth in the schools has drawn him into outwardly identifying as trans more and more. He dreams of building a beloved community where everyone can be appreciated for being themselves, unapologetically. In his interview, Marty shares his reasoning for using the term “Dead Name”, the joys of his Trans-Gender Reveal Party and the struggles and successes of coming out to his family.

Kai (he/him/his) is a queer transman who began transition in 1995.  Kai is one of the Stealth: Transmasculine Podcast hosts who shares his experience of coming out as trans in the mid-90's, and finding a community of brothers. Kai talks about the unanticipated issues related to disclosure that come up in both his professional and personal lives. He began transition while working at a gym where he wrote a letter to 500+ members letting them know about his transition, name change and pronouns.

Rej is a 1.5-generation Korean American, born in Seoul (S. Korea), grew up in Portland (OR) until he moved to NYC as an adult. In 2006, Rej founded Portland's first ever peer led support group (TranzGuyz) for AFAB people of trans and/or nonbinary experience. He was one of the founding organizers of KQTCON 2013, the first global conference for LGBTQ people of Korean descent in NYC. In June 2020, he started a global online monthly support group for trans and nonbinary people pursuing/undergoing bottom surgeries.

In this episode, Jude tells stories about his chance encounter with another transman who connected him with a team of providers who provided gender affirming care. Jude shares what it was like to transition in the early 1970's, to pursue higher education and to be a tireless advocate. Jude is a husband, a father, grandfather, and great grandfather. He has been a selfless and humble leader, author, and educator in the trans community. Jude shares his hopes for future generations as he reflects on the experience of aging. Jude has been surrounded by love throughout his life and after hearing his story, you'll come to love him, too.

Mitchell C Hunter is an activist leader in the Transgender (Trans*)/NonBinary (NB)/Gender Diverse and LGBQ communities. Serving on Seattle's LGBT Commission, he jointly created policy leading to Seattle's all-gender restroom law. Mitch collaborated on the SPD's model transgender policy and is featured in their mandatory training video.

Mike Hernandez is a polyamorous gay (with an exception) bear. He thinks he looks innocent, but the twinkle in his eyes gives away his impish sense of humour. He loves every bit of grey hair that he's earned. He wrote a thing or two in the past but felt that he ran out of things to say until he was delightfully invited to participate in this podcast.

Jackal is one of the hosts of the Stealth: A Transmasculine Podcast.  He grew up in the Los Angeles area and began transitioning around 1998 in the supportive Seattle community. Jackal is a passionate anti-racist and anti-oppression advocate. He identifies as a transman, FTM, nonbinary and genderqueer and also as white, working class and queer. He loves karaoke and currently lives with his dog and two cats. Jackal shares a memory of a gender nonconforming childhood classmate and his punk anarchist roots.

Willy Wilkinson, MPH is an award-winning writer, public health consultant, and cultural competency trainer who has been advocating for marginalized populations since the early days of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. He is the author of the Lambda Literary Award-winning book Born on the Edge of Race and Gender: A Voice for Cultural Competency, which illuminates trans experience from a Chinese American and mixed heritage perspective, and transforms the memoir genre into a cultural competency tool.

Spencer Bergstedt is a consultant, public speaker, educator, and author specializing in LGBTQ workplace, health care, and educational inclusion issues. Spencer has been advocating for LGBTQ people for over 30 years. His work on transgender legal issues has garnered him an international reputation for both scholarly theory and practical application. Spencer's work has impacted birth certificate and driver's license policies, youth participation in after-school activities, and self-help legal information for trans people throughout the US. His lived experience as a transman combined with his legal expertise and executive leadership roles bring a unique breadth of understanding to his clients. Spencer is an engaging presenter who fosters greater understanding on the topic of gender diversity in an open and supportive manner.

Reid Vanderburgh started his social transition in 1995, and began taking hormones in 1997. He is a retired therapist who worked with nearly 500 trans clients during the course of his career, helping them answer the question, “how do I want to live my life?” In the realm of gender identity. Reid is the author of two books, two journal articles, and numerous book chapters. He is on the board of the Portland chapter of PFLAG, a support organization for families of those who come out. In his spare time, Reid sings baritone in the Portland Gay Men's Chorus.

Ken is a west coaster with a passion for the outdoors and all things dogs. Ken's story details his process of self-discovery and risk taking as he makes decisions to embrace his gender identity and move forward with transition. Ken's voice is rich and genuine. Be sure to take a listen.

Kyle (he/him/his) is an average guy that happens to also be a transman. He's currently the director of a nonprofit, and spends his free time walking a squirrel-obsessed dog around Southwest DC, watching baseball, and planning post-pandemic travel.

A bit misanthropic. . Born a 45-year old in a kid's suit. Trying to be more of a kid as I get older. I have my moments.Easing into a more Bhuddist approach to life - with lots of goofs along the way. Getting older is not for sissies! And I'm a big sissy!

Dr. Brice D. Smith is a social entrepreneur and historian. He recently launched the historic, multi-media, all-weather walking tour app lgbt milWALKee. He also wrote Lou Sullivan: Daring to Be a Man among Men, which was published in 2017 and will be released as an audiobook narrated by Jamison Green later this year.

Jeremy (he/him/his) is a run of the mill guy that happens to be a transman. He's currently a Sr Software Engineer at a fortune 500 company. When not churning out code he likes to spend his free time going to law school and doing martial arts. He's a huge supporter of pit bulls and often donates to pit bull specific non-profits that help shelters or pit bull owners with their vet bills. He is a continuing member of ASPCA and regularly donates there too. He's a huge advocate of neutering/spaying of animals as well as being a pet dad himself to a mix of dogs(pit bulls) and cats. Would love to do some post-pandemic traveling when time permits.

Daniel began his transition in 1996 at the age of 20. A proud military brat and lifelong nomad, Daniel has lived in 3 countries, 9 states, and more than 25 homes. He and his partner of 16 years currently live in Texas, but are looking at settling down somewhere in the South in 2023. Daniel, who identifies as “just a guy,” lives a low-disclosure lifestyle. He finds that being a blind woodcarver, gardener, and overall goofball are far more integral to who he is as a person than the fact that he is FtM.

Rhodes Perry is a nationally recognized diversity, equity, and inclusion thought leader. He has two decades of leadership experience having worked at the White House, the Department of Justice, and PFLAG National. As the founder of Rhodes Perry Consulting, a LGBTQ+ diverse supplier, his team is on a mission to help leaders, visionaries, and change makers build psychological safety, trust, and belonging at work.

Jack is a first-generation Chicano, born in a small rural town in Northern California to parents from Mexico City. Jack identifies as a Trans-Man and started his transition in 2002. Jack has his law degree and has worked as a public defender for 17 years. Jack presents and educates at universities on trans-awareness, issues and on how to be an ally.

Zander Keig is an award-winning licensed clinical social worker, educator and author who served in the US Coast Guard. Zander serves as both an Advisory Board member and Senior Fellow for the Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism (FAIR), and helps develop and deliver FAIR's corporate diversity training, emotional wellness, and interpersonal growth courses. As a trans man and first-generation American of Mexican heritage with subject matter expertise in psychotherapy, social care, and mental wellness, Zander brings a unique perspective to all aspects of his work.

Ed Varga is a trans man who might be considered a trans elder, having come out as trans around 1995. He is composer and songwriter based in San Francisco, California. He has been an activist and organizer in the queer and trans communities since 1989. He has been active in the queer music world (historically known as homocore and queercore) since the early 1990's as a musician, activist and producer. He founded Homocore Minneapolis and produced shows there from 1995-2000. In 2002 he founded the Homo A Go Go festival based in Olympia and later in San Francisco. The festival presented hundreds of queer performers and drew thousands of participants from all over the world in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2009. He has worked as a live and studio audio engineer since 1995. Varga performs and releases music under the moniker Eddie and the Heartbeats. In 2020 he founded Tone Generator Studios where he is the lead composer, sound designer, orchestrator and producer. Ed lives with his partner of 15 years, Corrie Bennett and their giant, goofy dog named Octave.

Lukas is a certified counselor and experienced educator, community developer, and group facilitator, working closely with British Columbia's trans* population and their families, clinical care teams, schools and employers, providing peer support, transitional guidance and customized information sessions for nearly 20 years. He is co-founder of FTM Etc, a peer support/discussion group still going strong since 1998, and a longtime member of World Professional Association for Transgender Health. Lukas is someone who is very dear to both Kai and Jackal. He's a master storyteller and you won't be able to keep yourself from falling in love with him.

Jack O'Rion Barker has lived in the Pacific Northwest since coming to Seattle for graduate school in 1972. He began his transition in 1989. Jack is a bespoke corset maker by trade and has been a member of Seattle's leather community for more than 40 years. Now in his seventies, Jack continues to come up with ways to push a variety of envelopes.

Mac co-founded the nonprofit, “Positive Masculinity”, a project for heart-led masculine folks who want to create a transformative path for masculinity in our world. He is a radio show host of "The You Can Make A Difference Show" on Rainier Avenue Radio and in 2017 Mac ran for Seattle City Council and was the first transgender person ever to be on a ballot in Washington State. The Mayor appointed Mac as a Seattle City Commissioner in 2011 and he served until 2016. He currently serves on the Seattle Renter's Commission appointed by the City Council.

Matt Rice is a long-time transitioned (more than 30 years) non-binary trans guy. Matt began his activism in the late 1980s and early 1990s with ACT UP and Queer Nation in Chicago. Matt was involved in trans visibility activism in the early 1990s in San Francisco. Matt was a research assistant for the SF Department of Public Health on the first HIV seroprevalence study of the transgender community in San Francisco in the late 1990s.

Lorne retired from the fire department after 28 years of service. Lorne was also a professional athlete for 17 years. Lorne started to transition in 2010, had top surgery in June 2014, started T in March 2015, and had first stage bottom surgery in October 2017. His last stage or lower surgery was in March 2020. Lorne has lived a life of service and is a big brother, and friend to many trans guys.

Elliot is a 45 year old trans person living in northern California. Elliot, like many of the guests on the STP, once lived in the Pacific Northwest. He rides his bike a lot and lives with a cat named Agnes. Take a listen. Elliot is a charmer, well spoken and tender hearted.

Marcus Arana/Holy Old Man Bull is a retired Discrimination Investigator, former radio DJ, cook, carpenter, carnie, and farm worker. His ancestors are Blackfeet/Irish and Ohlone/Indigenous Mexican/ Scottish. Holy Old Man Bull is a trans masculine and Two Spirit Elder spending his time with his wife Nancy and Frank The Tank, his Labrador Retriever, puttering in his veggie garden, and subverting the dominant paradigm.

Vinnie is a trans man who transitioned in 1993 as a 24 year old. He has spent his career working in animal welfare and animal rescue and currently works for a large animal welfare nonprofit. He is originally from the east coast where he was involved in starting and running the True Spirit conference. He currently lives on the west coast with his wife and dogs and enjoys hiking and other outdoor activities.

Rocco Kayiatos is an award-winning storyteller and community builder, with a professional background in media making and marketing. He released 4 solo albums under the moniker Katastrophe and is hailed as the first openly FTM musician to release an album. Kayiatos is also one of the founding editors of Original Plumbing Magazine, the first print magazine dedicated to trans male culture. He transitioned in 2000 and has been outspoken, making media and creating space for trans men since then. He is currently the founder and executive director of The Intentional Man Project and Camp Lost Boys which recently became a 501(c)3.

Evan is a 35 year old gay trans guy who started his medical transition as a minor at the age of 17. He is a veterinarian and is currently working for the government. He previously worked in small animal general practice while also performing in home euthanasia for pets. In addition to his veterinary degree, he also has a master's degree in public health.Evan likes to spend time outdoors whenever he can and is an avid mountain biker, hiker, snowboarder, and cross country skier. He recently picked his oboe back up and has joined a queer community orchestra. Evan and his husband have lived all over the U. S. and Canada, but have settled in Seattle with their tuxedo cat named Thomas.

Trystan Reese is a queer transgender man living in Portland, Oregon with his partner and their three kids. Two of his children are adopted; he gave birth to his youngest child in 2017. He wrote a book about his experience; it's called How We Do Family. A project of Collaborate Consulting, Trans Fertility Co. is the brainchild of trans gestational parent and fertility educator Trystan Reese. After going through his own pregnancy with little access to data on trans fertility, he committed himself to building resources for trans people and their supporters.

Adrian is a trans man/ftm who transitioned on the East coast in the late 90s at 26 years of age. He moved to the pacific North West in the early 2000s and eventually settled back in his home State of California where he lives today. At the turn of the millennium, Adrian participated in a number of conferences, panels, focus groups and educational Q and A sessions relating to trans experience, health care, and trans rights primarily by happenstance. Being in the right place with activism all around him afforded him opportunities to join his with other trans voices in a time when much ground remained unbroken. He is humbled by the activists that have remained constant in our community.

Rupert is a Canadian trans man and activist of East Indian and Polish descent. In 1978, Raj started an organization for all gender divergent peoples called The Foundation for the Advancement of Canadian Transsexuals. Fact. Along with its accompanying newsletter, The Gender Review, a factual journal.His work has been recognized by several awards, as well as his inclusion in the National Portrait Collection of the Archives, Canada's LGBTQ2 plus archives.

Thomas is a 61 year old trans man who lives in the Washington DC area with his partner and their two dogs. He began his gender transition in early 2000. While he has held many professional roles, he has been in the healthcare field for the last 15 years and has been an educator and an advocate for the trans and non-binary communities. He, like many previous STP interviewees, is happy to have found this podcast and is grateful for the opportunity to talk to Kai and Jackal about his experience.

Aster is a 43 year old white queer transman. He lives on traditional Clackamas territories, Portland, OR, with his partner and 3 year old kiddo. Aster has been in queer and trans communities since his teens and has always worked toward improving access and visibility for LGBTQ+ and other marginalized people. This has included political direct action, drag, cabaret and spoken word performance, and educating healthcare providers in providing trauma-informed care for trans and gender diverse people. He currently works as a critical care registered nurse at a community hospital where he and his fellow nurses recently organized a union to better advocate for patient safety and healthcare worker protections.

Christian Gilbert is a 40 year old trans man who socially transitioned in the late '90s and medically transitioned in 2007. Post transition, Christian graduated college and entered the healthcare administration workforce where he dedicated his career to serving vulnerable populations by focusing on access to healthcare, quality improvement, business development, and health outcomes. After living and working stealth for nearly a decade in the Midwest, Christian moved to the East Coast to live as an out and visible trans man. He currently serves a manager for an organization that provides gender affirming care. Christian is on a mission to increase access to gender affirming care by reducing barriers and improving cultural competency.In his free time, Christian enjoys reading, hiking, and exploring the East Coast with his partner of 20 years and two dogs.

Sly Sarkisova (he/they) is a Toronto based queer and nonbinary trans activist, writer andpsychotherapist. He is an early trailblazer in nonbinary trans health advocacy, and is currently workingon his PhD.Sly spent his 20s in the early 2000s creating language and legitimacy for nonbinary identification inVancouver and Toronto, when no one recognized our identities. In 2009-2013, he wrote over 200 pageson his blog The Space In Between, theorizing and creating space for transmasculine folks to claimbutch/female, nonbinary, and trans identities at once to embrace identities which our communities andthe medical establishment tried to control and extinguish. For the bulk of the past two decades Sly hascreated space for our communities to heal, and to have appropriate mental health care helping usunderstand and reclaim our identities in all their forms from systems of oppression. In his privatepractice, as a Clinical Supervisor and Consultant, Sly has spent the past decade training healthcare andmental health care professionals across disciplines to see the validity, gain knowledge, skills andawareness of our diverse gender identities. His legacy of trans nonbinary activism largely goesundocumented due to the extent of erasure of his identity and perspective. He is currently pursuing aPhD in Social Work, with a focus on elevating his life's work and nonbinary trans knowledge into theAcademy. His areas of study are 1) Trans Knowledgeable Psychotherapy, and 2) Anti-Trans FascistRhetoric. Sly is a great animal, nature lover, community and chosen family cultivator. Find out moreabout his work and legacy here: https://www.slysarkisovacounselling.com/biography.

Alexander is a 41-year old Canadian transman and father from Toronto, where he currently lives with his wife, their two young children, and rescue dog. He began his transition as a teenager in the year 2000. An academic turned public servant, he holds a PhD in English and continues to contribute to Trans Studies. In his free time, he enjoys spending time outdoors hiking, canoeing, skiing and gardening, and is an avid reader. He is passionate about leadership and public service.

Jai is a 47-year-old, mixed race (Italian/Sri Lankan) man with a transgender experience. Jai medically transitioned back in 2007, had his top surgery soon after and completed bottom surgery a little over 10 years ago. Jai is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has been in the social services field for 25 years and as a Social Worker for 16 years.

Today's interview is with Lenny Zenith. Lenny Zenith is a transgender singer songwriter and has completed his first memoir. It was edited by Kelly Caldwell of Gotham Writers Group and Lambda Literary Award winner Donna Minkiewicz, who wrote Furious Romance and Growing Up Gollum. He has fronted several bands in New Orleans and New York, and has opened for internationally touring acts U2, Iggy Pop, Gang of Four, Ellen DeGeneres, and more. and the replacements, among many others. Lenny transitioned in junior high school and later attended NOCCA, the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, home to alumni such as Winton and Branford Marsalis, Harry Connick Jr., and Terrence Blanchard. Zenith came close to securing a deal with a major record label, only for the execs to get cold feet over Zenith's gender identity. Lenny has spoken on LGBT panels at the University of Michigan, the New York Public Library, and Marymount College, where he has discussed the intersection of race, class, and gender, and has read excerpts from his upcoming memoir, Before I Was Me, at Queer Memoir in New York City. He performs regularly in New York City and New Orleans, and his band wowed the audience at Austin's Gender Unbound Festival in 2019. Lenny's website: lennyzenith.com"Where is Safe" video

Shawn is a black queer trans man who uses his lived experiences to inform his intersectional approach to addressing systemic issues related to access to non biased healthcare and gender affirming surgery. Shawn is a dogged advocate, talented artist, a gifted storyteller whose style is warm and engaging. Shawn has nine years of experience as the executive director of Demboys Inc. Dem Bois Inc is a 501(c)(3) organization with the mission to provide charitable financial assistance for female to male, FTM, trans-masculine identified person(s) of color for them to obtain chest reconstruction surgery, and or genital reassignment surgery (gender-affirming surgery) to help them on their journey to live physically, and mentally authentic lives. Dem Bois Inc. exist in order to prevent the overwhelming feelings of dysphoria among trans men of color who have disproportionate access to quality healthcare and or the financial means to obtain gender-affirming surgeries. Dem Bois Inc. is run by trans men of color and their allies who understand the importance of accessing medical transition related care. If you'd like to donate to the gender affirming surgery fund, go to Dem Bois Inc.Shawn founded and hosts the Demboys Podcast. Shawn's podcast aims to serve as a platform to highlight and amplify the voices of trans men of color and share their transition stories. The Dem Bois Podcast covers other issues related to being a trans man of color, such as dating, fitness, sex, mental health, family, and other topics related to our existence. The podcast aims to amplify trans men of color voices and raise awareness of our lived experiences. Shawn and his guests share heartfelt stories about the experiences of trans men of color. Kai and Jackal are big fans of his show, and in awe of his passion and drive.

Lucas Silveira, frontman of The Cliks, now a solo artist, made history as the first openly transgender man signed by a major label with Warner Music, Tommy Boy/Silver Label in 2006. He's graced global stages alongside Cyndi Lauper, The B-52's, Debbie Harry, Tegan and Sara, The Cult, and The New York Dolls. As co-host of Vice's Shine True in 2021, he expanded into TV.http://www.thecliks.com/lucas-silveira.html

Jonathan, who grew up in London, England (as well as Saudi Arabia), transitioned when he was 16 years old in the late 2000s. As a teen, he was blessed with a supportive mum who was able to work with him to afford him gender affirming hormone treatment, and he has lived as male for most of his teens and all of his adulthood. Subject of Channel 4 documentary 'The Boy Who was Born A Girl', Jonathan's early medical and social transition was documented on national television which was later turned into a book of the same name that he co-wrote with his mum.

Patrick is a 50-ish year old, black, gay trans man. He started his medical transition in 2012 and started socially transitioning on a part-time basis around 2007 or 2008. He discovered language that allowed him to understand himself around 2005., but struggled to take the steps to begin the process for a while. Patrick is a funeral director. “So I guess you'd say that is my "expertise". I've tried to be an advocate for getting information out to the queer/trans community about pre-planning for death to ensure they are recognized/respected in death.” Patrick is interested in weightlifting/fitness/nutrition as hobbies.

Max is a 45-year-old queer man, dad and avid fossil hunter, who began transitioning in 1999. Hehas lived all over, but his longest stint thus far has been in Philadelphia, where he works as a nursepractitioner in an outpatient infectious diseases practice and specializes in caring for people livingwith HIV. He is passionate about too many things, some of which include harm reduction, queerhistory, rocks, poetry and boats.

Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware is an Assistant Professor at the School of the Arts at McMaster University. A Vanier scholar, visual artist, activist, curator and educator, Ware uses drawing and painting, installation, and performance to explore social justice frameworks and Black activist culture. His work has been shown widely across Canada in solo and group shows, and his performance works have been part of local and international festivals. He is part of the Black August Arts Residency Collective and a cofounder of Black Lives Matter-Canada. Syrus is curator of the That's So Gay show and a past co-curator of Blackness Yes!/Blockorama. In addition to penning a variety of journals and articles, Syrus is the co-editor of the best-selling “Until We Are Free: Reflections on Black Lives Matter in Canada (URP, 2020).

Carter, the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the National Black Trans Advocacy Coalition (BTAC), has played a pivotal role in advancing the rights and well-being of Black transgender individuals. As a transgender man who understands the challenges of marginalized communities firsthand, Carter established BTAC in 2011, making it the first national, Black trans-led non-profit organization.

Shawn Demmons is a queer African American trans man committed to social and racial justice. Shawn has 10+ years of experience providing community health education training, capacity building, and technical assistance to increase provider knowledge and awareness about trans people and the best practices to engage transgender communities in health care. Shawn has developed training curricula, webinars, and interactive presentations for the staff and leadership of numerous health care organizations across the U.S. In addition, he coordinated the past three convenings of the National Transgender Health Summit and led the development of a Trans 101 eLearning course for the UCSF Center of Excellence for Transgender Health website. Currently, Shawn directs an HIV capacity-building program where he works to expand the number and ability of health care professionals to provide high quality HIV care and decrease inequities that includes programming on gender-affirming care. Shawn has an undergraduate degree in Black Studies and Masters in Public Health from San Francisco State University, and is the proud papa of a 10-year old chihuahua named Cooper.

Dave is a 50 year old gay trans man who started identifying as openly queer in 1994 and as a trans man in 2001. He started his medical transition in early 2002 in Portland, OR with a few other “litter mates” but, after moving multiple times, lost that sense of connection and community with other trans men. In 2018 he joined Instagram hoping to find connections with other older trans men, and found inspiration, albeit virtually, to seek out more for himself. After being on HRT for 17 years, he finally had top surgery in 2019. Even so, he still suffered from crippling depression and alcoholism. After hitting the proverbial “rock bottom”, Dave made the choice to live in 2020. Sober ever since, Dave is now happily married and lives in his native NE Ohio. Dave works as an artist and gig worker, and is unapologetically codependent with their dog, Ruby.Instagram pages: @davenorthcoast & @davesmurals Website: davesmurals.com

Anthony (he/him) is a 48-year old transman who lives in Brooklyn, NY with his wife of 15 years and their 8-year old son. He has been part of the Queer community since the 90s. After questioning his gender identity for many years, he decided to begin his medical transition in 2013. Anthony is most proud of being a father and a husband and he enjoys cooking, horror movies and being a mentor to other transmen.

As an intersex male, DeMarco T. Lord has dedicated his life to championing the rights and well-being of marginalized communities. He is the passionate Founder and Executive Director of Advocates of the South Inc., where his leadership and unwavering commitment to activism shine. DeMarco is an activist first and an advocate second, prioritizing impactful change over recognition. Formerly a chapter leader for Black Lives Matter in San Francisco, he has tirelessly worked on the front lines of social justice. Additionally, he has been a coordinator for Transforming Organization in Atlanta—one of the oldest Transmasculine groups around—demonstrating his dedication to intersectional advocacy.