March 12, 1925 – January 11, 1980
Duane Andrew VanderYacht attended Holland Public Schools, graduated from Hope College, and lived most of his life in Holland before moving to Muskegon. He worked as a salesman, janitor, and later in life was self-employed as a consultant. During the 1950s, VanderYacht was a subscriber to ONE magazine.
Muskegon Chronicle, January 14, 1980
December 31, 1950 – October 26, 2011
Saginaw resident Lenore Simon was born in Chicago and earned her JD from Creighton University Law School in Omaha. Nebraska. In addition to practicing law as an attorney and mediator for more than 20 years, Simon co-founded a queer theater company Center in Monterey, California in the early 1990s and later continued the troupe in Las Vegas. She and her partner Connie Hoffman were married in 2009.
Lesbian Connection, March/April 2012
January 26, 1949 – June 16, 2009
A native of Tennessee, Judith Cantor earned degrees in business and accounting. She and her life partner of 30 years Kathe Rauche resided in the Research Triangle of North Carolina, where they were active in the local LGBTQ community. As a teenager, Cantor attended Interlochen Center for the Arts High School in northern lower Michigan.
November 14, 1975 – January 6, 2014
Christopher Neumann of Birmingham grew up in Grosse Pointe, attended Grosse Pointe High School, and attended the University of Michigan. He was vice president of the Detroit public relations firm Weber Shandwick. Nuemann and his life partner Todd Lloyd lost their lives in a single-engine plane crash.
February 27, 1962 – January 6, 2014
Birmingham resident Todd Glenn Lloyd was born in Mount Pleasant and graduated from Clare High School. He owned and operated the rental company Chair Covers & Linens in Madison Heights. Lloyd and his partner of 10 years Christopher Neumann perished in a single-engine plane crash.
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 5, 1940 – August 13, 2018
Karen Sundberg of Taylor was born in Marquette, graduated from Ishpeming Public Schools, earned her B.A. from Northern Michigan University, and received an M.A. from Wayne State. In the 1980s, she was active in Lesbian Sisters Building a Network and served as treasurer of the Detroit Area Gay/Lesbian Council. Sundberg was also active for many decades in the National Organization for Women.
July 24, 1975 – June 25, 2018
Holly resident Steven Craig (Evans) Fischer spent his early life near Millington in rural Tuscola County and graduated from Vassar High School in 1993. Fischer was employed with Delta Tube and Fabricating in Holly and Hairplay Designs in Fenton. He married his husband Christopher Fischer in November 2015.
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.
April 17, 1934 – January 31, 2010
A native of Parkersburg, West Virginia, Suzanne “Suzie” Dowden majored in physical education at Miami University of Ohio and earned her Master’s from the University of Michigan in 1966. She taught at Eastern Michigan University and had a varied career of teaching, counseling, and coaching in Detroit, Ferndale, and Kalkaska. Dowden lived in Traverse City with her partner of 42 years Connie Riopelle.
Michigan LGBTQ Remember 