September 13, 1950 – December 19, 2011
Originally from Pine Bluff, Arkansas, Al Brewer sang at such gay Detroit clubs as Bookie’s, My Fair Lady, and the Other Side in the 1970s. He received multiple nominations for best live male vocalist from the Performers Awards of Detroit. Toward the end of his life, Brewer served as Karaoke host at the Temple Bar.
No known obituary
February 7, 1991 – January 24, 2019
Grosse Pointe Woods resident Nathan DeWayne Strickland Jr. earned his Bachelor’s in forensic psychology from Tiffin University in 2013 and his Master’s in community counseling from Oakland University in 2016. Strickland worked with LGBT Detroit and the Community Health Awareness Group, was active in Hotter Than July, and attended the First Unitarian-Universalist Church of Detroit.
February 23, 1967 – October 27, 2018
Roseville resident LaVell Williams grew up in Detroit, graduated from Cooley High School, and attended the Center for Creative Studies. From 1997 to 2010, he worked at Record Time in Roseville and Ferndale and music was central to his life. Williams was co-founder of the Detroit Sound Conservancy and volunteered with the Michigan Lesbian & Gay Film Festival, AIDS Walk Detroit, and Motor City Pride.
November 2, 1982 – December 7, 2018
Detroit native Kelly Stough, also known as Keanna Mattel, was shot and killed in an anti-trans murder on E. McNichols near Palmer Park. She attended MacKenzie High School and was active in Detroit’s ballroom scene as part of the Legendary Iconic House of Ebony. Police arrested and charged a Sterling Heights pastor for Stough’s death.
November 26, 1957 – August 31, 2003
Taylor resident Robin Enez Ware contracted HIV from her husband and passed the virus to her daughter at birth. As a social worker for AIDS Partnership, Ware targeted outreach to at-risk populations and help educate people that AIDS was not simply a gay disease, work that was highlighted in a July 1997 issue of the Detroit Free Press. She died from AIDS-related complications at age 45.
No known obituary
December 2, 1965 – May 17, 1994
Born in Detroit, James Douglas Drain served in the U.S. Army from 1984 to 1986 and was active in the organization Men of Color. He later worked as office manager for Affirmations Community Center. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 28.
August 12, 1948 – March 16, 2013
Joyce Jackson earned her B.S. in interdisciplinary studies from Wayne State and worked as a personnel manager for the City of Detroit. After relocating to Lansing, she worked as assistant administrator the Meals-on-Wheels program. Jackson was a member of Old Lesbians Organizing for Change. She was survived by her partner Jay Mitchell.
March 2, 1979 – April 11, 2018
Flint native Deuntia “Deon” Jackson earned his mortuary science degree from Gupton Jones College in Atlanta and worked as a mortician in Michigan and several other states. He performed as DJ Envi, helped establish the Safe Space drop-in center for LGBTQ youth at Wellness Services and in 2011 co-founded the Flint Gay Pride celebration. Jackson was survived by his husband Casio Flood.
April 30, 1924 – October 31, 1989
Navy veteran and 1954 University of Michigan graduate Shearon Dudley was a 36-year-old Ypsilanti resident when he was charged in November 1959 with attempting to procure gross indecency as part of an undercover police crackdown on homosexual activity at UM. Married with six children, he had a career in marine biology and later became a minister in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Obituary unknown
July 2, 1959 – May 23, 1987
Abraham “Ty” Bady grew up in Saginaw, graduated from Buena Vista High School, and attended Ferris State University before moving to San Francisco in 1982. Bady was active in the organization Black and White Men Together. He died from AIDS-related complications at age 27.
Saginaw News, May 28, 1987
Michigan LGBTQ Remember 