Sue

Sue is the founder of Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents blog, established in 2005.. She has an MSW from the University in Pittsburgh and a BA in Political Science from Marymount University. Her undergraduate claim to fame is a six month stint as an intern with then Congressman Rick Santorum in 1991. Born and raised in West Mifflin, Sue attended college in Washington DC, then graduate school in Louisiana and ended up in Kentucky doing social service ministry. She returned to Pittsburgh in 1997. She now lives on Pittsburgh’s Northside with her wife, Laura. She was among the first out LGBTQ people named to Pittsburgh’s 40 Under 40 in 2004 and is a graduate of Leadership Development Initiative Class VII. After being fully and permanently disabled in 2010, Sue has continued to serve the community. She founded the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project to address hunger and environmental issues. In 2015, she launched the #AMPLIFY LGBTQ archive in conjunction with a two-year artist in residence stint with Most Wanted Fine Art. Sue and her wife have fostered over 25 kittens through Pittsburgh CAT and Homeless Cat Management Team, and now manage multiple community cat colonies in their neighborhood. In 2020, Sue cofounded the Pittsburgh MasQUe ProjecT to support the queer and trans community during the pandemic, distributing tens of thousands of face masks and other supplies throughout the region. In 2021, Sue created the #PghCatFolx projects to support neighbors working with community cats. Under that heading came the Dr. John P. Ruffing DVM Pet Food Projects, memorializing one of her very best friends who died in 2007. In 2021, Sue worked with community leaders to develop and establish a 501c3 nonprofit organization, Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities (PLC) where she currently serves as Board President. PLC absorbed the #PghCatFolx projects. Also in 2021, Sue was the first person in history appointed to the City of Pittsburgh LGBTQIA+ Commission and was unanimously elected as one of three inaugural co-chairs. Her blogging has garnered numerous awards Favorite GLBT Media Publication - 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016 (Keystone Alliance Gaylife Newsletter Reader’s Poll) Favorite GLBT Social Media - 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 (Keystone Alliance Gaylife Newsletter Reader’s Poll) Best Local Blogger - 2016, 2019 (Pittsburgh City Paper Reader’s Poll) LGBTQIA Pittsburgh’s Best Blogger - 2020 (SisTersPgh, People’s Pride of Pittsburgh) Outstanding Blog - 2019, 2022 (GLAAD Media Awards) Sue has also personally been honored Person of the Year - The Advocate Magazine, 2022 15 Lesbian Icons - LGBTQ Nation, 2023 LGBTQIA Pittsburgh’s Best Lesbian Activist - SisTersPgh, People’s Pride of Pittsburgh 2022 Sue believes in identifying and filling gaps in supports & services rather than recreating the wheel. She uses both her undergraduate and graduate degrees on a regular basis as a blogger and activist and regularly circulates her 1991 internship photo just to shake things up on her social media feeds. Her own experiences with cPTSD, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and other health challenges have fueled her health blogging and activism. She also writes extensively about her family history, drawing on her amateur genealogy hobby. The blog regularly reviews arts and cultural events as well as exploring restaurants, soap opera storylines, and hyper-local news. Sue and her wife Laura have been together since 2003. They were married on a very cold February 2, 2021 in their backyard at a very small ceremony co-officiated by their pagan priestess friend, Anne, and then-Mayor Bill Peduto. They have six niblings, four in Pittsburgh and two in Philadelphia.

Posts by Sue:

ActivismCultureOther

Guest Blog Post: The Enemy Is Us

October 17, 2012 by

Editor’s Note: This week, I’ll be sharing guest blog post from folks who identify as allies and what that means to them. Maria Lupinacci blogs at 2 Political Junkies” In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.  Most of us […]

Activism

Guess Blog Post: What Tribes Are You In?

October 17, 2012 by

Editor’s Note: This week, I’ll be sharing guest blog post from folks who identify as allies and share what that means to them. Christpher Whitlatch is the Manager of Marketing and Communications at The Pittsburgh Foundation. We met via Twitter and have gone on to connect across multiple social media forums.  It is important to […]

ActivismOtherPolitics

Happy Birthday To Me; Send My Present to The White House

October 17, 2012 by

I was so energized by the President’s stellar performance last night – defending MY family – that I set up a little fundraiser. Can you help me celebrate my 42nd birthday (Oct 22) with a modest $5 donation? That’s all I ask – the cost of treating me to a cup of coffee or a […]

Other

Penn State Continues to Defy Label of “Best University for LGBT Students”

October 17, 2012 by

I’ve mentioned this before. CampusPride included Penn State University among their Top 25 Universities for LGBT students. Praising the top 25 list was Campus Pride Executive Director Shane Windmeyer. “Every student deserves to feel safe on campus, and all of these colleges are committed to creating a more LGBT-friendly campus,” he said in a statement. […]

CultureOther

Guest Blog Post: Bullies are Jagoffs

October 16, 2012 by

Editor’s Note: This week, I’ll be sharing guest blog post from folks who identify as allies and what that means to them. Our friend Yajagoff Catcher from YaJagoff website weighs in and sums it up nicely. A few weeks ago, fellow social media-ite and new friend, Sue Kerr, let us know that, based on her online […]

CultureOther

Guest Blog Post: Things I’ve Learned as I Grew Into an Ally

October 16, 2012 by

Editor’s Note: This week, I’ll be sharing guest blog post from folks who identify as allies and what that means to them. Becky Willis of lil’ burghers  My daughter was tucked up on the couch looking at photos with one of my female (lesbian) friends. She, only being 4, realized that another woman kept popping […]

ActivismOther

Spirit Day – Oct 19

October 15, 2012 by

This Friday marks Spirit Day– a day when allies wear purple to speak out against bullying and support LGBTQ youth. You can learn more by visiting the Spirit Day page at GLAAD. Why is this important? Well, today I learned that a young girl in a local school took her life and I have to […]

ActivismPolitics

Post-Gazette Reminds Us That Most LGBT PA Residents Can Be Fired For Being Gay

October 15, 2012 by
Post-Gazette Reminds Us That Most LGBT PA Residents Can Be Fired For Being Gay

It is always worth repeating this mantra – we can be fired based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. The Post-Gazette took some time to do this. In nearly 70% of the state, there is no protection. Your boss can fire you for being gay. Your landlord can refuse to renew your lease. […]

Other

PA Charter School Does Not Bow to Rightwing Anti-Gay Forces

October 14, 2012 by

For 11 years, the Southern Poverty Law Center has organized “Mix It Up Lunch” day to promote kids meeting and spending time with a child they did not know, a child who isn’t  in their clique perhaps. Big shocker that the American Family Association is taking an opportunity to smack the SPLC – which recently […]

Culture

Another Soap Star Comes Out

October 13, 2012 by

According to SoapOperaCentral.com, former Guiding Light star Maureen Garrett – “HollyLinsey” – came out. After carefully cocooning her personal life from the media during her 35 years playing Guiding Light’s  Holly Lindsey, actress Maureen Garrett has chosen National Coming Out Day to reveal publicly to Out magazinethat she is a lesbian and has been involved in a 20-year-long relationship with […]