For gay men of a certain generation, coming out to family and friends posed serious risks. Oral histories and interviews tell heartbreaking stories of estrangement, abandonment, professional ruin and worse.
Edward McKitrick was one of the lucky ones. Unlike many gay men his age, he and his gay brother, Chuck, grew up feeling loved and supported by their late mother, L. Frances McCaulley-McKitrick, at a time when this was more the exception than the norm.
“My mother was a product of a conservative working-class upbringing in the confines of rural West Virginia,” Edward says. “Much of her life proved problematic, but she never compromised her principles and never forgot her duties and responsibilities as a mother.”
According to Edward, his mother saw him and his brother as “gifts.” So it was no surprise when she joined the Akron, Ohio chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) as a founding member.
“Many years ago on my last visit to Akron, my brother and I attended a PFLAG meeting,” Edward recalls. “I was so pleased to hear her say that she was the proud mother of two gay sons.”
His mother’s dedication to PFLAG, as well as to her local community, made a deep impression on Edward. Although he did not attend USC, Edward understands the tremendous importance of the ONE Archives at USC Libraries. The largest repository of LGBTQ+ materials in the world, the ONE Archives houses millions of items, including periodicals, books, films, videos, audio recordings, photographs, artworks, organizational records, and personal papers. In addition to making these historical materials accessible to the public, the archives also promotes new scholarship on and public awareness of LGBTQ+ history and culture.
As a gay man who knows how essential it is to bring LGBTQ+ history out of the shadows, Edward has generously included a gift to ONE Archives in his estate plans. He has established an endowment fund to support a portion of the salary and related expenses of a faculty position—to be known as the “L. Frances McCaulley-McKitrick Director”—at the archives. His gift, donated in the name of his courageous mother, will help ensure the future of the collections.
His mother would be very proud!