A plan to move long-term patients at the San Antonio AIDS Foundation to nursing homes took a toll on the relationship of two residents who have been roommates and companions for the last 16 years. On September 18, the two men, Rogelio Saucedo and Armando Castro, were separated without being given an opportunity to say…
How LGBT-friendly is the visiting Namibian president?
Starting September 17, Mayor Ivy R. Taylor welcomes Namibian President Dr. Hage Geingob to San Antonio for a two-day visit that includes a welcoming ceremony at the airport, a visit to a City Council meeting, a photo op at the Alamo, a business breakfast at the Plaza Club and a speech at the University of…
BEAT AIDS banquet theme: ‘It takes a village’
The theme for this year’s BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust’s Annual Awards Banquet, slated for October 16, will be “HIV/AIDS: It Takes A Village.” “Now in existence for over 28 years, BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust continues to expand its programs and services to the community in our aggressive effort to end the spread of HIV/AIDS,” BEAT…
Most Influential 2015: Justin P. Nichols
Many readers may recognize Justin P. Nichols as the cover model for last year’s inaugural issue of this magazine. However, it is his advocacy as an attorney that brought him to local prominence. In January 2014, Nichols filed the first complaint under the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance claiming AT&T fired his client, Matthew Hileman, because of…
Most Influential 2015: Neel Lane
In February 2014, Neel Lane, along with litigation partner Barry Chasnoff, led a team from the San Antonio office of Akin Gump on behalf of clients Nicole Dimetman and Cleopatra De Leon and Victor Holmes and Mark Phariss. The two couples were seeking a preliminary injunction to bar Texas from enforcing its same-sex marriage ban.…
Most Influential 2015: Robert Salcido
On the afternoon of June 26, the day the Supreme Court made marriage equality the law of the land, Robert Salcido, Jr. was standing at the pulpit of the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd speaking at what would be the first church wedding in San Antonio. He was there as a representative of Equality…
Most Influential 2015: Lauryn Farris
You may have seen Lauryn Farris and her family in a recent interview that appeared in the Huffington Post as part of their Let Love Define Family series. The occasion for the interview was the final adoption of a 17-year-old transgender girl by Farris and Kerry, her wife of more than 40 years. Farris and her family…
EL Paso LGBT youth center named for state Rep. Mary González
A new transitional center for LGBT youth set to open in October in El Paso, Texas will be named for state Rep. Mary E. González (D-El Paso), the first pansexual legislator in the country. “Every young person should have access to not only a safe environment, but a place that can set them up for…
Grand opening for SAAF testing center
Although the San Antonio AIDS opened their new testing center last July, the official grand opening will be observed on Saturday, September 12 with an open house. “We want everyone to come out, have fun and see what we have to offer,” says Regina Villalobos-Perez, vice president of marketing at SAAF. “We encourage people to…
Christus Health opens benefits to employees in same-sex marriages
The Christus Health system announced this week that it will now offer employee benefits to same-sex couples who are legally married. Christus has hospitals in Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mexico and Texas. In the San Antonio area, Christus operates nine hospitals and clinics including the soon-to-open Children’s Hospital of San Antonio. Last summer before…