I’ve told the story before, and probably will again in six months when I hit my 20-year anniversary, about how I only took the administrative assistant position at Watermark to hold me over while I looked for something that paid more money. I’m still here. It’s not because I couldn’t find a job that paid more, trust me. It’s because I found something at Watermark that I didn’t expect, that couldn’t be found anywhere else.
I can talk about finding purpose, family and home, but it was bigger than that. I can talk about finding a lifelong mentor and friend in the founder, Tom Dyer. Again, it was bigger than that. I have always felt that Watermark was an entity greater than any one person. It’s a collective of staff and community, of business and community service and of our past, present and future.
That may sound like a delusion of grandeur, and maybe it is a little, but within the pages of Watermark you can find the history of our community. We cover our community from hyper-local business openings to major national breakthroughs like marriage equality. We do it with passion and integrity because of our love of this community and this entity we work for.
The reputation of Watermark and protecting this paper’s history has always been at the forefront of my mind, probably instilled in me out of respect for the founder and his mission. I’m not always successful and sometimes I can go a little overboard, like being a helicopter parent with the staff’s social media engagement. My motto for years has been that we report the news, not create it. Lately though, I feel that has morphed into too much concern about getting canceled and that is something I need to work on.
We need to ask hard questions if we are going to get to the truth. We need to have open communication if we are going to better ourselves. We need to provide the space for each other to have a dialogue and grow together.
I recently attended a virtual town hall hosted by Come Out With Pride. They were approached by a group asking that police be banned from Pride, including marching in the parade. It was a difficult, heated conversation. I want to applaud Come Out With Pride and, specifically, Executive Director Tatiana Quiroga for not only providing the space but for doing so with respect and professionalism.
I heard from others on the call who were angry at Come Out With Pride for entertaining the conversation that directed so much anger and hatred to the police, and they may be upset that I am dedicating space to that conversation. I saw it as a learning moment. It was clear that some on the call were victims of police brutality. They were angry and afraid and they spoke their truth. It’s difficult to give commentary because I don’t feel like it’s my place. I haven’t had their experiences. All I can say is I hear what they were saying and I have a greater understanding than I did before that town hall.
Giving space to these stories, however, does not align me with their cause. I can have an appreciation for their conversation while disagreeing with their choice of words at times, and their desired outcome.
I personally know many of the officers who also sat on that call. They are members of the Gay Officers Action League (GOALcfl). These officers understand the LGBTQ community because they are members of it. They work with organizations like The Matthew Shepard Foundation to educate the police about hate crimes and police brutality. They are working to fix systemic problems from the inside.
I am in awe of their poise as they listened to anger for bad policing being directed at them and I am grateful for the community that stood up for the work of these officers. I understand there is work to be done in policing, but the answer is not to ban those working to strengthen our community from a Pride parade that is designed to elevate all LGBTQ people. We do not have to tear down people to elevate ourselves. Let’s work together with everyone fighting the good fight to stop those who wish to do us harm. You can read more about this story in our Central Florida news section.
In this issue of Watermark we talk LGBTQ money. We take a deep look into generation wealth within the LGBTQ community and we talk to some local financial planners about how to best focus your money for the future.
In local news, the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus endorses Ken Welch for St. Pete Mayor while Leigh Shannon launches his campaign for Orlando City Commissioner – District 3. Our arts and entertainment section features “Chess in Concert” at The Abbey in downtown Orlando. In Tampa Bay we check in with author Kristen Arnett about her latest work, “With Teeth.”
We strive to bring you a variety of stories, your stories. I hope you enjoy this latest issue.
