September 17, 1962 – March 23, 2014
Kathryn Elizabeth Norris graduated from Charlotte High School, studied management science at the University of Maryland, served in the U.S. Army from 1983 to 1987, and from 1988 to 2006 operated several Mancino’s outlets in Lansing. She later moved to Chicago, where she came to share her life with her partner Vivian Shelton.
August 12, 1972 – October 13, 2002
Born in Southfield, Brian Thomas Scholz resided in Warren and was employed at several Detroit area bars, including Pronto, Karma, Club Inuendo, and Male Box. He took part in the Metro Detroit Softball League and donated time to numerous causes, including the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project, Steppin’ Out, and annual pride celebrations.
November 16, 1953 – November 16, 2004
Michael Sweazey of Canton and formerly of Garden City began bartending at Gigi’s in Detroit in the mid-1970s and was one of six employees to inherit ownership of the bar after the death of Tony Garneau. For many years he worked as Gigi’s show director and performed female impersonation under the name Vanessa LaSalle. Sweazey was survived by his life partner of 28 years Steven McAfee.
July 19, 1949 – May 6, 2013
Juanita Crider of Grand Rapids and formerly of Riverdale, enjoyed movies and loved animals. She was preceded in death by her life partner Judy Thomas.
November 14, 1964 – July 14, 1994
Shelby Township resident Roy Vance Warren was born in Grosse Pointe and attended the Michigan School for the Deaf in Flint. Warren served as president of the Detroit Sign Theater and was involved in other deaf organizations. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 29.
May 28, 1882 – July 1, 1928
A 1905 graduate of the University of Michigan, Avery Hopwood went on to enjoy a celebrated career as a playwright, once having four plays staged on Broadway simultaneously. With friend Carl Van Vechten, Hopwood experienced the homosexual underworld of New York in the 1910s and ‘20s. Much of his estate was bequeathed to fund annual literary awards for UM students.
Michigan Daily, July 3, 1928
September 21, 1951 – August 9, 2016
Janet Thering played varsity basketball while a student at Sacred Heart Academy in Mt. Pleasant, graduated from Aquinas College, and taught physical education in the Grand Rapids Schools for 20 years. A founder of the Grand Rapids Women’s Chorus, Thering attended every Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival from 1976 to 2015. She and her wife Ruth Allerton were together 16 years.
February 2, 1936 – January 24, 2015
Patricia Margaret Wootton worked in health care at Zieger Osteopathic Hospital in Detroit. In retirement, she participated in the Western Wayne County Senior Olympics, medaling in golf. Wootton and her life partner Patricia Fair shared a home together in Garden City.
August 7, 1947 – February 3, 2002
Originally from Waterford, Harry “Kitty” Kevorkian became involved in the Gay Liberation Front in Ann Arbor during in the early 1970s. He, took part in numerous protests, once crashing an event donned in skag drag at the home of the president of the University of Michigan. Kevorkian was a candidate for the city’s mayor in 1974 and later headed the bus union during a 42-day walkout.
May 27, 1960 – December 31, 2005
Marcia Patrick grew up in Drayton Plains, graduated from the University of Michigan, and later worked as a paralegal for a Southfield law firm. Patrick and her partner Jan Pierce were longtime participants in Metro Detroit’s LGBTQ community, joining in Affirmations golf outings and supporting the Triangle Foundation.
Michigan LGBTQ Remember 