Sue

Sue is the founder of Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents blog, established in 2005.. She has an MSW from the University in Pittsburgh and a BA in Political Science from Marymount University. Her undergraduate claim to fame is a six month stint as an intern with then Congressman Rick Santorum in 1991. Born and raised in West Mifflin, Sue attended college in Washington DC, then graduate school in Louisiana and ended up in Kentucky doing social service ministry. She returned to Pittsburgh in 1997. She now lives on Pittsburgh’s Northside with her wife, Laura. She was among the first out LGBTQ people named to Pittsburgh’s 40 Under 40 in 2004 and is a graduate of Leadership Development Initiative Class VII. After being fully and permanently disabled in 2010, Sue has continued to serve the community. She founded the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project to address hunger and environmental issues. In 2015, she launched the #AMPLIFY LGBTQ archive in conjunction with a two-year artist in residence stint with Most Wanted Fine Art. Sue and her wife have fostered over 25 kittens through Pittsburgh CAT and Homeless Cat Management Team, and now manage multiple community cat colonies in their neighborhood. In 2020, Sue cofounded the Pittsburgh MasQUe ProjecT to support the queer and trans community during the pandemic, distributing tens of thousands of face masks and other supplies throughout the region. In 2021, Sue created the #PghCatFolx projects to support neighbors working with community cats. Under that heading came the Dr. John P. Ruffing DVM Pet Food Projects, memorializing one of her very best friends who died in 2007. In 2021, Sue worked with community leaders to develop and establish a 501c3 nonprofit organization, Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities (PLC) where she currently serves as Board President. PLC absorbed the #PghCatFolx projects. Also in 2021, Sue was the first person in history appointed to the City of Pittsburgh LGBTQIA+ Commission and was unanimously elected as one of three inaugural co-chairs. Her blogging has garnered numerous awards Favorite GLBT Media Publication - 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016 (Keystone Alliance Gaylife Newsletter Reader’s Poll) Favorite GLBT Social Media - 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 (Keystone Alliance Gaylife Newsletter Reader’s Poll) Best Local Blogger - 2016, 2019 (Pittsburgh City Paper Reader’s Poll) LGBTQIA Pittsburgh’s Best Blogger - 2020 (SisTersPgh, People’s Pride of Pittsburgh) Outstanding Blog - 2019, 2022 (GLAAD Media Awards) Sue has also personally been honored Person of the Year - The Advocate Magazine, 2022 15 Lesbian Icons - LGBTQ Nation, 2023 LGBTQIA Pittsburgh’s Best Lesbian Activist - SisTersPgh, People’s Pride of Pittsburgh 2022 Sue believes in identifying and filling gaps in supports & services rather than recreating the wheel. She uses both her undergraduate and graduate degrees on a regular basis as a blogger and activist and regularly circulates her 1991 internship photo just to shake things up on her social media feeds. Her own experiences with cPTSD, bipolar disorder, anxiety, and other health challenges have fueled her health blogging and activism. She also writes extensively about her family history, drawing on her amateur genealogy hobby. The blog regularly reviews arts and cultural events as well as exploring restaurants, soap opera storylines, and hyper-local news. Sue and her wife Laura have been together since 2003. They were married on a very cold February 2, 2021 in their backyard at a very small ceremony co-officiated by their pagan priestess friend, Anne, and then-Mayor Bill Peduto. They have six niblings, four in Pittsburgh and two in Philadelphia.

Posts by Sue:

HealthMedia

A New Page in My Passionate Affair with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

October 1, 2024 by

Last week, I attended a town hall meeting organized by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh. It was invigorating, but I had to work through some stuff to step out of my skin and into my role as a supporter. As I headed out the door to the meeting, imposter syndrome wrapped me in familiar tendrils. […]

OtherScience

It is arduous and ardently driving us all mad

September 28, 2024 by

The humidity, this version of humidity seeping into our sanity right now, making us uncomfortable in our own skin. Everything, every word, every glance weighed down by the dew that lingers into all of the corners. It’s oppressive, slowly sucking daily activities into unfamiliar langorous rhythms. It is arduous and ardently driving us all mad. […]

CrimeIn MemoriamInternationalTransVideo

Watch This Video: Somali Born Trans Woman Fought To Tell Her Story After Being Shot and Paralyzed in 2022. She Died Earlier This Month Ohio.

September 27, 2024 by
Somalia trans woman shot in Columbus, Ohio, Kassim Omar.

When I first learned about Kassim Omar, I saw a video embedded in story by the Columbus Dispatch. She had been fully paralyzed in the 2022 shooting, relying on a trach tube that should have prevented her from speaking. But she trained herself to speak. Kassim was not interviewed by law enforcement before the trial. […]

About the Correspondents

This is ‘My List of Desires’ instead of ‘My Bucket List’ Because Desire is a Better Focus Than Death

September 24, 2024 by

A list? So we open up a quarrelBetween the present and the pastWe only sacrifice the futureIt’s the bitterness that lasts So don’t yield to the fortunesYou sometimes see as fateIt may have a new perspectiveOn a different dayAnd if you don’t give up, and don’t give inYou may just be okay Living Years, Mike […]

#PghCatFolxPLC

The Tail End of the Manchester (back)YardSale and Pet Stuff Distribution

September 24, 2024 by

Saturday’s sale and distribution turned out differently than I thought. Backyardsale Outcomes The solid news is that we had eight rescues and three colony caretakers participate in the distribution of free pet stuff. Everyone was gracious about sharing and helping each other load up on towels, blankets, collars, bed, etc. One rescuer volunteered for two […]

#PghCatFolx#ProtectTransKidsPLC

A Kitten Named Johnny Pickles, the Cat Rescue Ecosystem, and #PghCatFolx

September 22, 2024 by

Long time readers, but not first time callers might know that I established a non-profit, Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities in 2021. to raise community awareness and promote grassroots engagement for neighborhood quality of life, animal welfare, anti-poverty, and LGBTQ+ issues in Western Pennsylvania. Currently, we have two main project areas. Protect Trans Kids distributes yard signs […]

CrimeTrans

Here Are Recent Incidents of Anti-Trans Violence Across the US

September 22, 2024 by

There seems to be a new trend in reporting to report anti-trans attacks as ‘anti-LGBTQ’ without further detail on the victim. That’s according to Anna-Jayne Metfalfe. Further details often reveal the victim was either trans or perceived to be trans. This is a disturbingly misleading trend in media as well as the seemingly increase in […]

ImmigrationIn MemoriamRacial JusticeTrans

Columbus Trans Woman Dies from Injuries Sustained in 2022 Shooting

September 21, 2024 by

The Crime Kassim Omar, 29, was a trans woman and former refugee born in Somalia. She died in adopted home of Columbus, Ohio on September 6, 2024, two years after being shot and paralyzed by two teenagers. Earlier this year, Kassim told the Columbus Dispatch that on that fateful night, she was sitting on the […]

Political Q&A

2024 Political Q&A with Jay Costa: What You Need to Know About This Incumbent Candidate for PA Senate District 43

September 20, 2024 by

It’s my hope that Dems will control the Senate when we move into 2025, and then we can get to work on the hundreds of bills that the House sent us this session and the Governor promised he would sign. Early on, we’d pass LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination, an increase in the minimum wage, measures to prevent […]

BisexualPansexual

Here are 82 First Person Bi+ Stories From Western PA To Honor BiWeek

September 19, 2024 by
Bisexual Pittsburgh

Some of the contributors to #AMPLIFY whom identify as bisexual. Since 1999, the community has honored and acknowledged the bi+ community via BiWeek Bisexual+ Awareness Week seeks to accelerate acceptance of the bi+ (pansexual, fluid, no label, queer, etc.) community. #BiWeek draws attention to the experiences, while also celebrating the resiliency of, the bisexual+ community. […]