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:

Family

This Winter’s Night

January 30, 2019 by

It is 12:10 am and I should be asleep. But Ledcat had to go into work from 11 pm until 1 am tonight. She has to interview someone in one of her cases and has to meet them while they are on shift. She’s too fair to shirk work even in frigid temps. She would […]

HistoryQ&AThe Arts

Q&A with Susan Stein, Playwright Offering Another Glimpse into the Holocaust Through the Diaries of Etty Hillesum

January 29, 2019 by
Etty The Play

Intersectionality is how to understand Etty Hillesum. She insists on not being defined by her circumstances (the Holocaust, yet unnamed), by her gender, by her religion, race, age, class, sexual orientation, political leanings. And yet she identifies herself as a woman, as a Jew, as a 28 year old middle class Dutch student. She is a truth seeker and digs deeply into her own self to work herself out. – See Etty the Play at Carnegie Stage February 7-10, 2019.

Activism

Gearing Up For a Cold Week in Pittsburgh

January 27, 2019 by

According the meteorology folks, we are heading into the coldest ‘snap’ in twenty years. temperatures Tuesday will drop from a high in the lower 30s to a low of zero at night, with wind chills forecast to be 10 below zero. Wednesday and Thursday will be more of the same, with highs forecast to be […]

Pets

Formerly Homeless Kitties Endure Winter Conditions On The Inside

January 26, 2019 by
Activism

We’ve Been Named a Finalist for ‘OUTstanding Blog’ in 30th #GLAADAwards

January 25, 2019 by
GLAAD Media Awards OUTstanding Blog

So pleased to share that Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents has been selected a finalist in the category of #Oustanding Blog by GLAAD for their 30th GLAAD Media Awards. It is our second nomination. I get a lot of credit (and blame) for what we’ve accomplished here, but there is a literal village of people who make […]

ActivismAMPLIFYGay

Jason, 38, Talks About Workplace Discrimination as a White Gay Man #AMPLIFY

January 24, 2019 by
white gay male Pittsburgh

  Marriage equality is great, but it has overshadowed our greater fight. Name:  Jason Age: 38 County of Residence: Allegheny, raised in Warren, Warren County, PA; lived in North Haledon, NJ and Bay Shore, NY (Long Island) Pronouns: gay male How do you describe your identity? white gay male Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? […]

Q&AThe Arts

Q&A: Theater Artist Taylor Meszaros on Her Role As Stage Manager with City Theatre

January 23, 2019 by

 I tend to have two favorite aspects of stage management. The first is seeing a production through from start to finish. I love the process of making a play from first table read until closing day. Theatre evolves and is different each performance, and in that way it’s truly a living, breathing art. Every once in a while, a production comes along that just sticks with you. I’ve been fortunate enough to experience several of those shows at City Theatre.

The second favorite aspect is successfully calling difficult cues. I get a sense of small victory after I tackle a particularly challenging sequence, and I appreciate that it keeps my senses sharp.

ActivismAdvocacy

How To Be An Ally To Indigenous Peoples

January 23, 2019 by

  Two Row Campaign and Syracuse Cultural Workers. The full color poster features an Onondaga Gustoweh (headgear) by Onondaga artist Josephine M. Cook. You can order a copy either as a poster or a notecard by clicking on the image above if you like.

Q&AQueerThe Arts

Q&A: Rad Pereira Queers Prince Ferdinand in Pgh Public Production of The Tempest

January 23, 2019 by
Rad Pereira

How do you describe your identity? In a nutshell, I’d say I’m a brown queer genderfluid immigrant. My gender identity varies day by day. Style has been one of my most consistent modes of self-care because I can fully express myself through it, especially when I’m working in institutions where I’ve felt silenced.

ActivismMedia

Block Family, Post-Gazette Refuse (Again) to Publish Letter from Newsroom Employees

January 22, 2019 by
Block Family Foul

You’ve probably read this elsewhere, but I wanted to show my solidarity by publishing this letter here. I also want to point out that there are a lot of members of the Block family who derive financial benefit from the operations of Block Communication, Inc (and the Post-Gazette) which affords them a degree of financial […]