I was 15 years old when Watermark published the very first issue of what would become a bi-weekly staple for the LGBTQ+ community in Central Florida and Tampa Bay.
It was August 1994, and I had just moved with my family from St. Petersburg to Plant City. A move that took us less than an hour away but for anyone who has been to both cities, it felt like moving into a completely different world.
The high school I would enter that year did not have a Gay-Straight Alliance, it did not have “Safe Space” stickers placed in the corner of the doors and it did not have stories in the school newspaper that would make a closeted gay kid like myself feel seen or heard.
It amazes me to think that just a short drive up I-4, a team of queer leaders, led by Watermark founder Tom Dyer, were assembling a publication that over the next few decades would make all the things I didn’t have as a kid much more attainable and achievable for other kids.
Watermark is in the midst of celebrating its 30th anniversary, something that has been spotlighted with an exhibit at the Orange County Regional History Center in Orlando — running through Dec. 15 — and something we focused on in the previous issue of this publication. If you haven’t seen it yet, I encourage you to read through our last issue as we started something that we plan to carry through each issue until the end of 2024.
In the issue, our current owner and publisher, Rick Todd, wrote about how he came to work here and his time in the community since doing so. We also reached out to several of Watermark’s previous editors, as well as its founder, and asked them to look back and reflect on some of the headlines, stories and moments that defined their time at Watermark. Each one of them added stitches to the larger tapestry that is the history of Central Florida and Tampa Bay’s LGBTQ+ community, and we will continue adding to that tapestry with each of the next eight issues.
We will be reaching out to former Watermark contributors and asking them to share their favorite headlines and moments from their time with this publication and feature them in the newspaper. Starting with this issue, myself and Watermark’s Managing Editor Ryan Williams-Jent in his Editor’s Desk will share some of our moments.
While I wasn’t far from where the first issue of Watermark was created, I didn’t learn of the publication or even read an issue until 14 years later. I moved to Orlando in 2008 and discovered my first issue of Watermark at the end of the bar at Savoy Orlando. As someone who wanted to be a journalist when I was in high school, this newspaper became my favorite thing to read.
Five years later, I was working at Watermark. First, as an account manager selling ads but my sights were always set on being a part of the editorial team. Roughly two years — and a five-month exile to North Dakota — later and I was a part of that team, writing news for a living. In March 2025, it will be 10 years that I have been covering the news and sharing the stories of our community. Over that decade, the world has changed a lot and I have had the great honor to cover life-changing events and interview some of my personal heroes.
One of the first stories I got to cover was an announcement from this inspiring activist who was running for political office for the first time. Carlos Guillermo Smith met with me at a Panera’s where we had lunch and I learned why he was running for Florida’s House Representatives. I remember being in awe of his passion and his love for this city and community.
It wasn’t but a few weeks later that another historical moment happened as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that marriage equality was the law of the land. I remember gathering with the Watermark team in the Orlando office and toasting with champagne as we heard the news.
A year later, in the very same room, I remember gathering with the team again but this time to shed tears and share pain as we worked to piece together the issue of Watermark that covered the Pulse tragedy.
I’ve had the chance to chat with celebrities that I’ve admired through TV and movie screens and over radio airwaves. Some standouts include Leslie Jordan, Melissa Etheridge, John Waters and Dolly Parton.
The last 10 years break up in my mind into two-week chunks, moments designated with an issue and page number, but those moments piece together one of the best and most important times of my life and I have Watermark to thank for that.
Cheers to everyone who has made Watermark what it is today, and I can’t wait to see what the tapestry looks like 30 years from now.
