July 8, 1942 – March 11, 2019
Frankfort resident Kathleen June Blake was a native of Massachusetts and earned her Bachelor’s from the New Bedford Institute of Technology. A longtime Lansing resident, she spent much of her career in state government as an economic development officer. Blake served on the board for the Lesbian Connection and was survived by her partner Julann McFarlane.
Lansing State Journal, March 16, 2019
Lesbian Connection, July/August 2019
October 4, 1942 – September 26, 1987
Dean of the Wayne State University College of Lifelong Learning, Lawrence Murphy served as an institute director at Central Michigan University prior to moving to WSU. He was the author of the book Perverts by Official Order and was survived by his partner of 13 years Russell Len Griffin.
Detroit News, September 28, 1987
April 17, 1942 – October 28, 2017
A founder of the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association, Darlene Stille enjoyed a long career as an editor in the field of publishing in Chicago, first with Encyclopedia Britannica and later with World Book. Long active in Chicago’s LGBTQ business community, she and her partner of 40 years Cynthia Marquard retired to the small Michigan town of New Buffalo.
April 14, 1942 – June 26, 2010
Betsy Lou Robson of Lansing worked as a bus driver for the Capital Area Transit Authority from 1973 to 2001. Following her death, her family established a scholarship in her name for LGBT students at Lansing Community College.
November 2, 1942 – July 17, 2012
Lansing resident Judith Rogers Dill earned her doctorate in German language and literature from the University of Michigan in 1979 and at Lansing Community College and Michigan State University. She later pursued a career in information systems management and belonged to the Arts Chorale of Greater Lansing.
September 16, 1942 – June 18, 1993
Raised in Tacoma, Washington, Barry Joseph “Biejay” Brewitt served in the Army Medical Corps, attended the University of Detroit and Wayne State University, and worked for Westin Hotels. He was a founder and longtime officer in the early Detroit leather group Tribe. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 50.
Tacoma News Tribune, July 1, 1993
November 28, 1942 – February 15, 1986
A onetime store manager for Kmart, Bobby Calvert and his life partner Dan Campbell operated both Todd’s Sway Lounge and the Akron Health Club on Detroit’s East Side. Calvert also testified before city council in favor of including sexual orientation in the 1979 Omnibus Human Rights Ordinance. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 43.
