November 6, 1949 – July 14, 1988
Longtime Lansing resident Joseph Martin “Joe” Courter graduated from John H. Gabriels High School and served in the U.S. Air Force from 1968 to 1981. Following his military service, Courter worked for General Telephone Company and, for the last two years of his life, resided in Alma. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 38.
Alma Morning Sun, July 21, 1988
October 14, 1949 – August 6, 1994
Taylor resident Larry Thomas Gaynier taught high school English and communications in Brownstown Charter Township for 22 years. A member of the Association of Suburban People in the early 1980s, Gaynier later served on the boards of Affirmations and the Metropolitan Community Church of Detroit. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 44.
Detroit Free Press, August 9, 1994
May 30, 1949 – November 21, 2010
Roger Stanley Reisdorf graduated from Redford Union High School and earned his B.S. from Ferris State University. He held positions with Grandview Nursing Home, McWilliams Credit Reports, and the Detroit Transportation Corporation. In the early 1990s, Reisdorf became active with Affirmations, later served on the board of directors, and helped raise more than $5 million for its new building.
June 6, 1949 – January 9, 1990
Michael Phelan grew up in St. Clair Shores and graduated from Lakeview High School. During the 1970s, he performed female impersonation as Whitney Blake at various Detroit bars and won titles for Miss Todd’s, Miss Bookie’s, and Miss Michigan before moving to California. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 40.
April 28, 1949 – November 7, 1990
Michael Murray earned a Bachelor’s in theology at Loyola University of Chicago and oversaw religious education at two Catholic parishes and at the Michigan School for the Deaf in the mid-1970s. Murray was a founding member of Dignity/Flint and portrayed Jesus in productions of Godspell with the Flint Community Players in 1977 and 1984. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 41.
Indianapolis Star, November 12, 1990
Flint Journal, December 11, 1990
April 15, 1949 – April 26, 2010
A board member of Affirmations in the early 1990s, Kathryn Leta Wright of Lathrup Village earned her D.O. from the Michigan State University School of Osteopathic Medicine. In her position with the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, she founded the Horizons Project in 1994 targeting the needs of HIV-positive and at-risk youth. Wright was survived by her life partner Susan Brooks and daughter Jordan.
April 29, 1949 – January 25, 2018
A native of Warren, Ohio, Rev. Senia Taipale attended Wittenberg University and earned her Master of Divinity degree from Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, Ohio. After moving to Michigan, she became Director of Pastoral Care at Sparrow Hospital in 1992, a position she held for 18 years. She and Jo Hartwell, her life partner of 31 years, were married in December 2015.
October 21, 1949 – May 28, 2007
Born in Detroit, Kathye Jo Langstaff of Dexter attended Belleville High School and went on to work with developmentally disabled adults. An avid sports fan, Langstaff played third-base on several Ann Arbor area lesbian softball teams and later served as base coach.
Lesbian Connection September/October 2007
July 18, 1949 – August 9, 2006
Detroit native Colleen Annette Regan was valedictorian of the class of 1967 at McKenzie High School and went on to earn her B.A. and M.A. in education from the University of Maryland. She left teaching to pursue a 20-year career as a Certified Public Accountant, retiring in 2003. Regan and her partner Kathe Kirkbride resided in New Mexico.
Lesbian Connection, November/December 2006
June 25, 1949 – December 5, 2011
Margaret Ellen “Maggie” Mendoskin was born in Flint and was a member of Holy Rosary Catholic Church. Mendoskin earned her cosmetology license in 1970 and worked as a hairstylist in the Flint area for more than three decades. She and her partner Melinda Rea shared a home in Genesee Township and were later buried together.
Michigan LGBTQ Remember 