Kal Gajraj, OutSFL’s 2024 most eligible single, is officially off the market. The job market.

Gajraj, 42, began Aug. 6 as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of CAN Community Health, a Tampa-based national health-care and wellness organization focused on ending epidemics including HIV, Hepatitis C and other sexually transmitted diseases.

“I’m part of the senior leadership team, basically overseeing the strategy of all the marketing outreach, public relations and community outreach for CAN Community Health,” said Gajraj of Plantation, who’ll be “stationed in the South Florida market and travel where needed.”

“We're not only growing the brand, but developing a national strategy for CAN Community Health from a marketing and communications perspective to grow our brand presence nationally,” he told OutSFL two days before beginning his new job.

CAN Community Health operates 40 clinics across Arizona, Florida, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia that offer services including medical and dental care, HIV/STD testing, counseling and therapy, in-house pharmacies and education and awareness programs.

In South Florida, there are eight locations: Coral Springs, Fort Lauderdale, Lake Worth Beach, Lighthouse Point, Miami Gardens, Oakland Park, Plantation and South Beach.

“Originally, CAN started as the Community AIDS Network – that’s what CAN stands for. Since then, they have significantly grown from just being prevention for HIV and AIDS to the prevention and care of epidemics in general,” Gajraj said. “They've expanded their business model to be an all-inclusive health-care company to provide the health care to marginalized communities that need access to the care they need for specific infectious diseases.

“Besides HIV and AIDS, there's hepatitis. They've done a lot with the COVID vaccines and making sure that a lot of communities like Black and African-American communities, and the LGBT communities, were getting access to vaccinations throughout the pandemic. And also other sexually transmitted diseases, as well.”

Gajraj, born in New York to Guyanese parents, moved to Davie at age 5. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from DeVry University; a Master of Business Administration in Nonprofit Public Administration from Keller Graduate School; and a Doctorate in Ethical Leadership from St. Thomas University.

He has held high-level positions in both health-care and arts organizations including Teladoc Health, Vitas Healthcare, Florida Grand Opera and Peter London Global Dance Company.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Gajraj to the CAN Community Health team,” Dr. Rishi Patel, the organization’s president & CEO, said in an Aug. 16 news release. “His extensive experience and visionary leadership will be instrumental in advancing our mission and amplifying our impact. Dr. Gajraj’s commitment to innovative strategies and community engagement aligns perfectly with our goals, and we look forward to the exciting developments that lie ahead under his guidance.”

Gajraj – who is still an eligible single – graduated in 2001 from Western High School in Davie and came out shortly after.

“It wasn't the storybook story that you normally see on Bravo and Logo today, where all these kids come out, and it's a welcome, celebrated occasion,” he said. “I grew up Muslim and my parents are very conservative. So when I came out, it was a very difficult process because they immediately blamed themselves for doing something wrong. And I remember having to tell my mom that you didn't do anything wrong. This is just who I am.”

Gajraj said that as a child, “I didn't know what gay was.”

“I just knew that I was different, and I knew that from an early age – since I was in elementary school.”

More than a decade passed before Gajraj’s family fully accepted that he’s a gay man.

“It took years. It took a very long time. It wasn't something that was overnight or weeks or months. It did take years. We’re now in 2024 and this was back in 2002.”

Family life became easier, Gajraj said, when his parents recognized the vast amount of activist work he has done since his 20s.

“I'm very involved in my community and I think that seeing the amount of advocacy work that I've done, especially in the LGBTQ+ community,” he said. “A lot of the diversity, equity, and inclusion campaigns and events that I've been a part of. I've always been about giving a voice to the voiceless and representing communities where we need to speak up for them.”

Gajraj is an adjunct professor at Miami Dade College School of Global Business and an advisory board at the University of South Florida MUMA College of Business.

He recently served as a senior adviser for the U.S. Institute of Diplomacy and Human Rights. “I've worked with several organizations on empowering acceptance in a global workforce, developing inclusive communications, creating equitable policies and procedures, and just creating workplaces of belonging,” he said.

Throughout, Gajraj has maintained his commitment to Islam.

“I'm a person of faith, and I was born a Muslim, and I've grown up as a Muslim. And even though the Islamic community has essentially turned its back on me and hasn't accepted me, I still carry that faith in my heart,” he said. “It's something that I've dealt with my entire life because I feel as though religion isn't confined to a building – it’s your relationship with God, what you feel in your heart. And at the end of the day, I truly live my life as a person of faith and as a good person, and I do good.”

Journalist Steve Rothaus covered LGBTQ issues for 22 years at the Miami Herald. @steve.rothaus on Threads.