 |  | David Aaron & John Bash David Aaron (below) and Johnny Bash are live entertainment promoters in Chicago, with long ties to the club scene, going back to the 1970s.
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|  | Carmen Abrego & MariBeth Welch Abrego and Welch live in Oak Park and support various LGBT causes. Abrego is a long-time Chicagoan also known for her poetry. | |
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|  | David Boyer Boyer has been a fixture on the gay bar scene for decades, including at Carol's and Touche. | |
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|  | Evette Cardona & Mona Noriega Noriega and Cardona are one of Chicago's power couples, active on a wide range of GLBT and Latina issues, including thru Amigas Latinas. | |
|  | Evette Cardona Cardona is active in a wide range of GLBT and Latina issues.
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|  | CC Carter Carter is a poet, writer and cultural activist, especially known for her POW WOW poetry slams. | |
|  | Gary Chichester Chichester has been a gay activist since the early 1970s, serving in vital leadership positions. | |
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|  | Dr. Gladys Croom Croom, Psy.D., has worked on gay and lesbian mental health issues for many years. She was also active in Yahimba and Literary Exchange. | |
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|  | Teresa Dobbins Dobbins is active on a wide range of African American lesbian and spiritual issues. | |
|  | Murray Edelman Edelman was an activist in Chicago in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including with the Chicago Gay Liberation movement. | |
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|  | Ron Helizon Helizon has been active on gay issues since the 1960s, including as a bar owner, bar personality, and Catholic activist. | |
|  | Ted Hoerl & Steve Scott Both Hoerl (left) and Scott are active theater professionals in Chicago, with long ties to the gay community. They have been together since Nov. 1, 1 | |
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|  | Ted Hoerl Hoerl is an Actor-Director/ Adjunct Professor of Acting CCPA at Roosevelt University. In the 1980s he owned Opal Station, a popular gay bar. | |
|  | Sherri Jackson Jackson is a minister and healthcare practitioner with a wide range of gay and AIDS organizational involvement. | |
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|  | Phyllis Johnson & Barb Smith Partners Johnson (left) and Smith are supportive of a range of women's and African-American causes, including Affinity. | |
|  | Phyllis Johnson Johnson supports numerous gay, AIDS and African-American causes, including the AIDS Ride and Affinity. | |
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|  | Art Johnston & Jose A. Pena Johnston and Pena are co-owners of Sidetrack bar, which has been much-honored for its contributions to GLBT and AIDS charities. | |
|  | Art Johnston Johnston is co-owner of Sidetrack bar in Chicago, and a long-time activist on GLBT and AIDS issues. | |
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|  | Lola Lai Jong Lola Lai Jong has been important cultural and activist pioneer on lesbian and Asian Pacific Islander LGBT issues in Chicago and internationally. | |
|  | Nancy Katz & Janine Denomme Katz and Denomme were partners and both active on lesbian and gay issues. Katz is an associate judge, Denomme was director of the Horizons Youth Progr | |
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|  | Nancy Katz Katz is an Associate Judge, Circuit Court of Cook County, sitting in Domestic Relations Division. | |
|  | Bill Kelley & Chen Ooi Kelley and Ooi were long-time partners and activists. Kelley has been fighting for gay rights since the 1960s. Kelley died in 2015. | |
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|  | Bill Kelley Kelley was among Chicago's longest-serving and most important gay activists, having worked since the 1960s to secure gay rights. He died in 2015. | |
|  | Richard Knight Knight is a writer, musician, and all-around performer, working in and outside Chicago's gay community since the 1970s. | |
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|  | Danny Kopelson Kopelson has been a key staff member and volunteer for numerous gay and AIDS organizations, including AIDS Foundation of Chicago. | |
|  | Janice Layne Layne is a writer and activist, working on a range of LGBT and AIDS issues. It was Layne's idea for the LGBT community to march in the Bud Billikin Pa | |
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|  | Lynnell Long Long is a writer, performer and poet who was part of A Real Reed and a columnist writing on intersex and gender-identity issues for BLACKlines newspap | |
|  | Amy Matheny Matheny is an actor, radio host, and senior account representative for Windy City Media Group. She is executive producer of Windy City Queercast. | |
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|  | Pat McCombs McCombs has been an integral part of Chicago's LGBT community since the 1970s, when she first fought back against racial carding in the bars... | |
|  | Gwen Meyer Meyer is a long-time part of the lesbian community, including as co-owner of Razmataz bar. | |
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|  | Ifti Nasim Nasim was born in Pakistan and has been active on gay Southeast Asian issues in Chicago. | |
|  | Mona Noriega Noriega has been active on GLBT and Latina political and cultural issues since the 1970s. | |
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|  | Achy Obejas Obejas is the award-winning author of Days of Awe, Memory Mambo, and We Came all the Way from Cuba So You Could Dress Like This?. She was born in Hava | |
|  | Renae Ogletree Ogletree has been active on a range of youth, LGBT, AIDS and other causes in Chicago since the 1980s. | |
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|  | Dwight Okita Dwight Okita is an openly gay Japanese American writer in Chicago. | |
|  | Chen Ooi Chen Ooi has been active on gay Asian issues, and has also donated his graphic design service to gay organizations. | |
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|  | Jose A. Pena Pena is co-owner and video director of Sidetrack bar. He is a video pioneer, and donates his time and energy to numerous causes. | |
|  | Lisa Pickens Pickens is a co-founder of Affinity, a group for African-American lesbians, and is active on a variety of LGBT causes. | |
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|  | Jerry Pritikin Pritikin is an athlete and photographer who has documented the Chicago and San Francisco gay communities for several decades. | |
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|  | Kasey Reese Reese and his partner Javier Barajas were critical parts of numerous Chicago gay groups when they lived here. | |
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|  | Julio Rodriguez Rodriguez is a critical activist working on LGBT, AIDS, Latino and anti-violence issues, including as a founder of ALMA. | |
|  | Wanza Rowe Rowe and her partner Jean ping have been partners since April 9, 1971. | |
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|  | Wanza Rowe & Jean Ping Ping (left) and Rowe have been partners since April 9, 1971. They have supported lesbian social and service groups. | |
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|  | Norma Seledon Amador and partner Norma Seledon support a range of Latina lesbian and other causes. | |
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|  | Starla Sholl Sholl is a social worker in full-time private practice, with a large LGB clientelle. She has volunteered with several LGBT groups. | |
|  | Larry Simpson & Ed Zasadil Zasadil (left) and Simpson have been partners since 1962. Since their retirement they have been active on gay issues, including on gays in the militar | |
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|  | Art Sims Art "Chat Daddy" Sims is a relationship advice expert who helps both straight and gay people. As an openly gay man, he breaks down barriers.
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|  | Barb Smith Smith has been active in the community since the 1960s, when she was raising her daughter Chris. She is a key supporter of Affinity and WACT. | |
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|  | Chris Smith Smith is co-founder of Affinity, a South Side-based group for African-American lesbians. | |
|  | Max Smith Max Smith has been a gay activist since the 1970s, including on media, health and political issues. | |
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|  | Kathleen Thompson Thompson's involvement in the lesbian community includes opening the city's first feminist bookstore in the early 1970s. | |
|  | Pat Tomaso & Linda Palm Tomaso (left) and partner Linda Palm live in Barrington, Illinois. Tomaso is a retired teacher with many years of activism on behalf of gay teachers. | |
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|  | Pat Tomaso Tomaso is a retired teacher who works to make change for gay teachers in the Chicago schools. | |
|  | Steve Wakefield Wakefield spend many years in Chicago working for and heading up various gay and AIDS agencies. | |
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