Topic: People

Originally appeared in Transgender Tapestry #103, Fall 2003.

by Maxwell Anderson Robert

Allen Eads was born December 18, 1945, in a tiny no-nothing of a town in West Virginia. The middle child of three, he had an older and a younger brother. Until the day he died, his mother called him Bobby.

Robert himself used many names. When I met him, he called himself Bob. At times he used Ray, and for those hillbilly times, he called himself Ray-Bob. As he matured, Robert became his name of choice. Robert grew up poor, as did most in West Virginia at that time, but this didn?t necessarily mean he was unhappy. He wasn?t. There were rough times, of course, but all-in-all, he was loved and cared for. His mother was a stay-at-home mom, and since Robert was a ?she? growing up, the bond was strong between them. Although his mother had difficulty with the transition to Robert, she continued to love him, and is with him now, since her death in the early part of 2001.

Originally appeared in Transgender Tapestry #102, Summer 2003.

First Event and My Emergence as Sylvia
by Sylvia Jane Wojcik

This above all: to thine own self be true...
- Shakespeare's Hamlet, I, iii


We each arrive at self-awareness in our own way and in our own time. We can?t always pin down why some of us bloom more quickly than others. Guilt, self-denial, fear, misunderstanding, and more play into it, until something happens that gives us the courage to break out and go for it. I guess what?s most important is that we eventually do emerge rather than stay confined in that dark closet. Taking a long time to come out is mere inconvenience compared to the real tragedy of living an entire life without ever having known fulfillment.

Originally appeared in Transgender Tapestry #101, Spring 2003.

With great sadness, I must relate to you the death of Helen Garfinkle on November 7th after a long illness. Helen was a tireless worker bee and longtime organizer of the Washington DC Transgender Community. She was best known as the President and Vice-President of the Washington-Baltimore Alliance, the oldest continuous transgender support group in the area. She was a volunteer for many, many national transgender conferences, including Fantasia Fair, Southern Comfort, the IFGE and True Spirit Conferences. She also was a staunch member of It?s Time, Maryland!, lobbying openly as a crossdresser from 1995 to 1998 for four different pro-transgender bills introduced in the Maryland General Assembly.

Originally appeared in Transgender Tapestry #99, Fall 2002.

We?ll All Miss Her
by Nancy Cain

I remember meeting Candy Scott in the fall of 1994 at one of the Innvestments meetings in Hyannis, Massachusetts. She spotted me as a newcomer and immediately latched on to me. She wanted to know all about me. I was flattered.

Originally appeared in Transgender Tapestry #99, Fall 2002.


Lessons From my Year as President
Or How to Survive with your Sense of Humor Intact

It was little more than a year ago that I was approached by friends who encouraged me to run for President of the TransGender Education Association (TGEA), one of the social/support groups in Washington, D.C. At the time, there was a palpable sense of apathy rising in a group that once numbered over 90 members. Over the years, the pool of regulars?who always found a way to stay involved?began to dry up or burn out. As elections approached, there were more open positions than there were nominations or incumbents.