Earlier in the week LGBT residents of Hampton Roads lost an amazing straight ally. Her name was Susan Bentley Joseph and although I only got to know her briefly, she epitomized how all of us should treat one and other and be able to see our common humanity. "Sue" as she was known to friends, put her beliefs into action and served on numerous boards and committees, including the Peninsula Aids Foundation. The City of Hampton and all of Hampton Roads has lost a truly great lady. The boyfriend - he served on committees with Sue in the past - and I attended a memorial at her home yesterday evening which was truly moving and symbolic of her love of life. It was a beautiful event in honor of a beautiful person.
Fortunately, Sue's legacy of acceptance and civic mindedness will live on in her children, including Hampton's current mayor, Molly Joseph Ward. Molly is up for re-election next month and the boyfriend and I support her without reservation. As Mayor, she has represented all of the people of Hampton and "gets it" that inclusion and diversity make a city stronger and that the same old failed approaches cannot simply be repeated over and over again in a changing society and rapidly changing world with the unrealistic expectation that somehow a positive result will be achieved. In terms of the LGBT community, Molly is a sponsor of this year's Out in the Park event in August and she has embraced HRBOR and its mission to take the LGBT business community and the larger Hampton Roads community to new heights and openness.
Please keep Sue's family in your thoughts - and prayers if you believe in prayer - as they go through this difficult time of loss.
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