Lali Safavi saw a gap in South Florida’s queer media scene and filled it with a new publication known as SkirtSoFLo that is focused on arts and culture for LGBTQ women. She is from DC and was inspired by their community publications such as the Washington Blade. Another inspiration was Curve Magazine, a lesbian publication founded in 1990.

Diane Pappafotis is the Women with Pride coordinator for The Pride Center at Equality Park in Wilton Manors. Women with Pride is a program at the center that creates spaces for a queer women’s community. Pappafotis is also the marketing director for SkirtSoFlo, a local publication focused on LGBTQ+ women.

Avion Goordeen serves as the Outreach Director at PRISM, a nonprofit focused on education and sexual health resources for LGBTQ+ youth in South Florida. He’s a first-generation immigrant, identifies as bisexual, and has been involved with nonprofits since 2018.

Alexis Fernández is a self-described "entertainer and comedian in entertainment." Fernández is a drag veteran with 25 years of experience as a performer. Fernández is best known as his alter ego, Marytrini el Huracan, whom locals call 'the empress of transformism.'

Q-Mitch Jones is a true showman who loves bingo and has a big heart.

As the Director of Marketing and Sponsorship for the Gay Men's Chorus of South Florida (GMCSF), Edward Otto Zielke combines his life's passions of marketing and music. A New Jersey native, Zielke spent his formative years performing in theater productions, national tours, and summer stock. He majored in musical theater at New Jersey City University.

In “Fallen Fruit,” filmmaker Chris Molina presents a relatable story of starting over again. 

Gen-Z and Gen Alpha LGBTQ are under attack. They’re not only bullied in schools, they’re being bullied by the government. Safe Schools South Florida’s Tom Lander is working to put a stop to it.

Alison Burgos and Michelle Alexis Gaber are not a lesbian power couple. They are a hands down power couple in the truest sense of the phrase, no qualifiers needed. Their impact on South Florida’s LGBTQ community, and especially the lesbian community, is immeasurable.

Kim Blandon has an extensive history in community organizing and activism that goes back to their childhood growing up in Hialeah. They are Two-Spirit and pansexual.

Before he became SunServe’s Vice President of Programs, Alex Spriggs' career took him from Australia to Japan and, finally, South Florida. 

Maddox Max hails from Los Angeles and made his way to South Florida looking for a change of scenery after his divorce, “I just decided I would come out here. I was visiting [my best friend] often, and I loved South Florida. I would always end up extending my trips.” 

Robert Cole is a native Floridian that serves as the Executive Director for Our Sister’s Place, a thrift store that supports victims of domestic violence.

Jason R. Hughes is the executive director of ArtServe. For more than half of his life, he’s been at the cutting edge of LGBTQ art and media. Prior to living in South Florida, Hughes was the first director of marketing and sales for Pride Vision TV, now known as Out TV in Toronto. 

Miami is back for the LGBTQ community, and much of that is due to the work of Edward Summers. He’s nearing the end of his first year as executive director of Pridelines. Over the past few years, its influence and impact were contracting. Since taking the reins, he’s moved the group back into the city and rallied support.

Terry Dyer has lived in South Florida for five years and supported institutions like CAN Community Health, SunServe, and the World AIDS Museum, among others.

Stephen Kitsakos found his artistic home in Key West at The Studios of Key West, which he noted is the largest interdisciplinary arts organization in the Florida Keys.

Maxx Fenning has accomplished much beyond his years - he recently graduated with his bachelor’s in business administration from University of Florida while also leading PRISM, a nonprofit focused on sexual education for LGBTQ+ youth in South Florida. 

Justin Jones is a problem solver. He's also the President of the Rapha Center of Miami. In the Bible, the Hebrew word Rapha translates as healing. 

Legacy is more than a word to LaTonya Hopson. It is a vision, a mission, and an imperative. Not for herself, but for her community. She founded a nonprofit, The Legacy Project, with the goal of building bridges in BIPOC and LGBTQ communities as change agents through arts and culture to provide holistic care.

A quick glance at Doug Evans’ résumé reveals a man for all seasons.

Husbands John Mather and Ryan Maloney are the founders of North Beach LGBTQ+ & Friends, a social group serving the LGBTQ community of North Beach and Galt in Fort Lauderdale. 

He’s a leather daddy and a cake daddy and he’s quickly becoming the godfather of Wilton Manors. Chuck King is a leather legend and more, taking his community involvement to the next level.

David Jobin is the President and CEO of the Our Fund Foundation. The organization creates positive community change and addresses urgent issues facing the LGBTQ+ communities.

She’ll sing, hold space for you, make you laugh, and just when you thought she was done, she’ll flip drag on its head for her own amusement and yours. 

Her smile makes others smile. Her skills make others better. Michelle Santos is a Senior Youth Therapist at SunServe, a job that allows her to connect with members of the community in a one-on-one setting.

Steven Butterman understands the LGBTQ community on an academic level. He is a tenured professor at University of Miami who works in gender and cultural studies, immigration, the queer diaspora and queer theory.

Jenn Stefanacci Portier likes to make things happen. That’s how 22&Co. came into existence when Portier, clad in a tutu, hopped into her mom’s golf cart to deliver birthday greetings around Key West.