Lynn Ann Conway, January 2, 1938 – June 9, 2024
Lynn Ann Conway was an electrical engineer, computer scientist, and an activist on behalf of transgender people. She died in Jackson, Michigan on Sunday, June 9, 2024 of heart trouble.
Category: Obituary
Fare thee well, Jennell
Jennell Jaquays passed away early on Wednesday, January 10. She was 67. She was recovering from Guillain-Barré syndrome. Sophie recalls how she got to know Jennell through the gaming world and how they bonded over common gaming interests.
Katie Ward Passes Away
Katie Ward, a member of the TransCentralPA support group and one of the many women who put effort into producing the annual Keystone Conference, passed away in June. Her friend Jennifer Latham wrote the following tribute to Katie and has allowed us to share it here. My good friend Katie Ward, passed away on Monday, […]
For Rebecca
Rebecca Lohr former Renaissance Transgender Association Chapter Leader, of what was the Greater Philadelphia Chapter of Renaissance, passed away last week of complications from leukemia. Rebecca was a musician, writer, editor of vintage science fiction, a major fan of Star Wars and a friend to many members of the Philadelphia region’s transgender community. Sophie Lynne has written a tribute to Rebecca.
Babs Casbar Siperstein has Died
A tireless activist who has fought for transgender rights for several decades has passed away. Babs Casbar Siperstein was TGForum’s political correspondent with an unapologetic liberal bias. She was also the Deputy Vice Chair of The New Jersey Democratic State Committee. She helped to pass several laws in New Jersey, and at the federal level, […]
Obituary: Alison Laing
After a long battle with cancer, Alison Laing, a founding member of The Renaissance Education Association, Inc., board member and then executive director of IFGE, director of Fantasia Fair, author, and wine expert, passed away peacefully on January 22, 2019 at the Elizabethtown Masonic Village in Pennsylvania. She was surrounded by loved ones. Dallas Denny worked with Alison’s daughter to write this obituary. Many thanks to Dallas.
Classic Female Impersonator Lavern Cummings Passes Away
Paul Lavern Cummings, a contemporary female impersonation performer of David de Alba’s, passed away in Las Vegas, Nevada last week as the result of an auto accident. He was born on August 17, 1927. David de Alba wrote the following tribute before Paul/Lavern passed away and Paul/Lavern picked the photos we present above. For more […]
Obituary: Merissa Sherrill Lynn, 1942-2017
Merissa Sherrill Lynn, 1942-2017 Merissa Sherrill Lynn was born in Exeter and lived in North Hampton, New Hampshire. She graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1971 with a BA in Philosophy. She entered the United States Army in 1961 and served with a Ranger Battalion in Germany from 1961-1963. She was honorably discharged […]
R.I.P. Rick Stafford — Fought for LGBT People
In 2008 the Democratic Party platform was trans inclusive for the first time. A big part of how that happened can be attributed to the chair of the Democrats’ LGBT Americans Caucus, Rick Stafford. Stafford was a gay man, HIV+ and a real fighter for LGBT inclusion in the political process. He passed away on September 2 and our political correspondent Babs Casbar Siperstein sings his praises. Babs worked with Stafford for many years and today she reveals all of the contributions he made to the advances the community has seen in the past few years.
Farewell to Liz Walters
Elisabeth Walters, who served as the TGForum night life correspondent for many years, passed away on February 25. Liz started going out in the early 1990s. At ETVC she met TGForum founder Cindy Martin and they became friends. It took several months for both to realize that they shared an office cubicle as newspaper reporters at the San Francisco […]
Obituary: Christine-Jane Wilson
Our contributor, cartoonist Christine-Jane Wilson, passed away suddenly in her sleep on February 26. We just learned of her passing last week when we were contacted by her widow. Christine-Jane first crossdressed openly in the early 1980s after shaving off a beard she had worn for 27 years. She, like many crossdressers, started to experiment with […]
Obituary: John Warrener, Glamour Boutique Owner
John Warrener, the owner of the Glamour Boutique in Auburn, Massachusetts and the TGFashions website, passed away on June 19, 2015. He established one of the first trans oriented websites in 1996 and then opened brick and mortar stores in Auburn, Las Vegas, and Studio City, California catering to the clothing and accessories needs of the […]
Jim Bailey Has Passed Away
Renowned gender illusionist Jim Bailey passed away on May 30 due to complications from pneumonia. He was 77. Bailey was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born on January 10, 1938, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Sara and Claude Bailey. He had one brother, Claude. As a teenager he studied opera at the Philadelphia Conservatory of Music. In the 1960s he […]
Trans Americans Lose a Champion of Equality
On Saturday May 30, Joseph Robinette “Beau” Biden III, the eldest son of Vice President Joe Biden died after battling brain cancer for several years. Beau Biden was a vibrant supporter of marriage equality and transgender civil rights when he was the state Attorney General of Delaware. Beau Biden was the rising star of a […]
Sleep Well, Cerise
The trans community was stunned recently by the announcement that Dr. Cerise Richards had passed. She had been battling leukemia for eighteen years, and it resurfaced, taking her quickly. I met Cerise many times. And every time she took the time to talk with me. She read this blog and seemed to know everything going on in […]
