In the midst of these unsettling times, here’s a story of inspiration from someone who triumphed over health challenges, and she managed to do it all with a smile on her face.  Meet Rajee Narinesingh.

By Mike Jeknavorian

Where did you grow up?  I was born in New York, but I grew up in Philly.  What do you miss about it there?  I miss the season of fall.  It’s usually so hot here in South Florida.  I love fall because it’s not too hot and not too cold.  How long have you lived in South Florida?  I arrived in South Florida in January of 1989.  So, it’s been 31 years.  Why did you move here?  It was time for the birdy to leave the nest and spread my wings and fly.  My dad and I were clashing horribly.  He said that I needed to get the hell out!  What part of South Florida do you live in?  I live in Hollywood, Florida.  I always said that I would make it to Hollywood, but I should have been a little more specific (laughs).  What do you like most about living here?  I love the cultural diversity of the area and the sunshine.  The palm trees are beautiful, too.

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What South Florida venue do you miss that’s gone?  In the 90’s the clubs down here had a certain electric energy to them, but after the internet advanced, the energy is gone.  For LGBTQ people it was somewhere we gathered to be ourselves and connect. The great thing about the internet is now you can literally talk with someone across the world.  Where do you hang out in South Florida?  I usually hang out in the LGBTQ city of Wilton Manors.  It’s where a lot of the outreach organizations are that I do my activist work with, and I also feel pretty safe doing social outing there.  Which one of your old jobs least prepared you for what you do now?  I’m a firm believer that everything that I have gone through makes me who I am at this moment.  What’s the best performance that you did so far?  I think my performance in Bella Maddo as the character “Aunt Norma.”

What’s the best movie or TV show that you’ve been in so far?  I would have to say the reality show, Botched.  It’s given me a platform around the world.  What’s your dream gig?  I would love to have my own show.  Will you ever retire?  Because a lot of my work now is activism, I think that I’ll be an activist until I die.  What’s the weirdest question that a fan’s asked you?  If I have a porno I can send them.  What other celebrity did you act like a “fan” around?  David Bowie on a flight coming back from England to the U.S. in 1986.  What’s the last thing that you looked at online?  My Facebook inbox, which is flooded (laughs).  How do you take your coffee or tea?  I am a coffee girl.  And it’s usually the coffee-flavor Starbuck’s in a bottle.  When I wake-up in the morning I put one in the freezer to get it cold and slushy.  I love the rush of the coffee with the coldness.  It really wakes me up.

What’s the best place that you’ve ever visited?  I’ve been to Canada, Trinidad, England, New York, and Los Angeles.  I think that my recent trip to Washington, D.C., for the Trans March was the best in the sense that it was a full-circle moment for me.  Growing up my family would go to D.C. in the summertime to visit.  I have some fond memories of being with my family together there.  And here I was so many years later marching for my rights as a transgender American.  Who would play you in a movie?  I’m not sure?  What are you superstitious about?  Nothing really.  Do you believe in aliens?  We would be pretty arrogant to think that in this big universe we are the only beings.  What’s the gayest concert that you ever went to?  I have not been to many concerts.  I went to the Prince’s Purple Rain concert.  And the Jackson 5 Victory concert (laughs).  If God were to take you tomorrow, how would you like to be remembered?  For the love that I gave to the world.

What do you want to live long enough to see?  I want to live long enough to accomplish my spiritual mission here and to touch at least seven billion people with my love.  What’s something that you learned in life only when you got older?  That you can’t please everyone and that you hurt yourself trying to.  What corrective surgery that you had was the roughest?  The fourth facial surgery I had.  They pulled back both sides of my face, and I was on the table for about six hours.  What did you learn from your parents?  From my mom, that niceness goes a long way.  From my dad, to be precise.  Who’s your favorite performer?  Bruno Mars.  What’s your best characteristic?  My kindness.  How do you enjoy spending your time?  I love being in front of a camera filming.  I also like to be home watching Locked Up Abroad and To Catch a Smuggler.

What celebrity do you have crush on?  Drake, Prince Royce, Dev Patel, and Rick Gonzalez.  Who do you admire?  The fact that Nelson Mandela went from prisoner to president.  Princess Diana’s global appeal. Harriet Tubman’s determination.  Kyle Jenner’s wealth and social media following.  And Dr. Ernest Holmes.  If you could bring one person back from the dead, who would it be?  My dad, so we could have a conversation about the relationship we had and life, since he’s been on the other side.  Also, Jesus, Marilyn Monroe, and Gandhi.  Where would you go in a time machine?  I would go back just for a little bit to when Jesus was born to see how the story really played out.  And then I would go 1,000 years in the future just for a little bit to see how the world will be then.  What would your last meal be?  A Korean bulgogi platter.  What do you worry about?  That I’m doing what I came here to do.  What are you afraid of?  That one day hate will conquer love.

If you were a musical instrument, what would you be?  Probably a choir instructor.  Are you more like a sheep or a wolf?  A sheep that has toughened-up through the years.  Who depends on you, and for what?  My mom, and the LGBTQ community, for the activism that I do.  Who are you closest with?  My mom and a few close friends.  What would your autobiography be called?  How A Botched Beauty Touched the World!  What’s on your bucket list?  That I only go after I have completed everything I need to do and that I can die with the feeling of divine completion!  What’s your greatest regret in life?  That I started to believe “the haters” from a very young age.  What’s something secretive about you that people don’t know?  Damn, so much of my story is out in the world, but I don’t think that many know that I had sex behind a church once.  Where can we see you?  Google “Rajee Narinesingh” and you will see me all over!