24, POLITICAL ACTIVIST

Jamie Citron born in Evanston and raised in Highland Park, graduated from Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass., where he was deeply bitten by the activist bug. His studies covered everything from cultural studies and queer theory to modern dance and socialist European architecture. After graduation, he returned home to work for the Joint Action Committee for Political Affairs. During this time, he also sat on the Board of Directors for Stonewall Democrats Illinois. From there, Jamie took part in the Human Rights Campaign's Youth College program, after which he was shipped off to central Minnesota to work for Patty Wetterling's congressional campaign. There, he was introduced to political fundraising, lutefisk and Garrison Keillor. Upon returning home, he spent three months unemployed on his parent's couch, moonlighting as his mother's activist advisor in her crusade against the Illinois Family Institute, until Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., offered him a spot on his presidential campaign's finance team. Jamie has not had a day off since.

DID YOU KNOW? Jamie's real name is Jamison. His parents named him after the Irish whiskey, but changed the 'e' to an 'i,' hoping that no one would notice.

JARED FOX

20­­, STUDENT

Shortly after coming out, Jared Fox began a career in activism when he was being harassed by classmates at his Cleveland, Ohio, Jesuit high school. He was 13. Jared began working with the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network ( GLSEN ) on a local level, rising to become a youth organizer. He was quickly recruited by the national office of GLSEN for their Jump Start Student Leadership Team, serving as a Midwest Co-Chair. He, along with two other students, chaired the Midwest component of the leadership team, empowering 25 students across 12 states to work toward making schools safer for GLBT youth.

Jared is enrolled at Lake Forest College, where he is majoring in politics with a minor in metropolitan studies. He continues his commitment to equality, serving as the current president of PRIDE ( GSA ) , as well as an active member of student government and the college's judicial board. Off-campus, he is an active volunteer with the Test Positive Aware Network and other non profit organizations.

DID YOU KNOW? During the summer, he is working as a public affairs intern at Center on Halsted.

MICHAEL MCFADDEN

30­­, CASE MANAGER

Michael McFadden, a Chicago native, has been working with social services for over 10 years. Michael graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 1999, where he studied theology and the interconnections of socio-political issues. He was inspired by Latin American liberation theology and active, non-violent resistance movements as a means to overcome oppression.

He recently obtained his Master's in social work from Loyola University Chicago, focusing his reseaarch on mental health issues within the GLBTQ community. Through his master's program, Michael worked as a therapist at both Infant Welfare Society and Center on Halsted. In 2006, Michael was inducted into Alpha Sigma Nu, a Jesuit Honors Society for scholarship and service.

For the past two years, he has worked at Howard Brown Health Center as a case manager for individuals living with HIV, and recently began co-facilitating the Newly Diagnosed HIV+ Support Group. He provides weekly drop-in counseling at Steamworks through Test Positive Aware Network's ( TPAN ) Mr. Sexx Program. In addition, Michael volunteers as a crisis worker with the Anti-Violence Project's 24-Hour Crisis Line for GLBTQ victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, discrimination, hate crimes and police misconduct.

DID YOU KNOW? During the summer, he is working as a public affairs intern at Center on Halsted.