MIKE JEKNAVORIAN Local Interviews

GARY KEATING

Gary Keating—the founder of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus—is back, and he’s better than ever.  Take a peek at what’s on Gary’s mind, before seeing him this weekend in the chorus’ annual holiday show.

Where did you grow up?  I grew up in Swanzey, New Hampshire.  It’s a wonderful, small town near Keene, in the southwest corner of state.  What do you miss about it there?  I do miss the seasons.  Especially the Fall.  How long have you lived in South Florida?  Since 1979.  Why did you move here?  To do my master’s degree in music at the University of Miami.  What part of South Florida do you live in?  I live in Oakland Park now.  But I lived in Wilton Manors for 17 years.  What do you like most about living here?  South Florida has been wonderful to me, both professionally and personally.  It allowed me to come out and meet my husband of 36 years.  It let me work to help thousands of people living with AIDS and to educate thousands of kids who didn’t get the disease.

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What South Florida venue do you miss that’s gone?  I regret the loss of some of the classic, historic homes lost to high-rises on Brickell Avenue, and now in Broward.  Where do you hang out in South Florida?  I love my hometowns of Wilton Manors and Oakland Park.  They remind me of small-town New Hampshire.  What’s your claim-to-fame?  I’m the artistic and founding director of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus.  I also helped found choruses in Fort Myers, Orlando and Tampa.  Who’s your favorite composer?  Sondheim and Palestrina.  Who’s your favorite conductor?  Jo-Michael Scheibe at USC.  If you had to choose one, do you think that music or dancing could heal the world?  Music.  Everyone can join in without embarrassment!  Which one of your old jobs least prepared you for what you do now?  All of my jobs have been so totally different, but there’s no regrets.  I’ve done teaching, fundraising, marketing, artist management, running a performing arts venue, and running a symphony.

If God were to take you tomorrow, how would you like to be remembered?  As someone who cared and loved and didn’t sit on the sidelines.  What do you want to live long enough to see?  All people in the U.S. treated equally, and veterans treated like the heroes that they are.  Oh, and my nieces and nephew married, if that’s what they choose.  Will you ever retire?  Not likely!  I hope the Lord still has things for me to do. What’s your guilty pleasure?  A great Manhattan.  What’s your favorite band?  It’s still The Beatles.  What’s your fondest childhood memory?  Camping with my family.  What were you like in high school?  Involved, but shy.  What’s your favorite quote?  “Love the person you look at in a mirror first.  Then you can love the world.”  What celebrity did you act like a “fan” around?  Nell Carter.  She was amazing.  What’s the last thing that you looked at online?  Facebook, to follow my family and friends, and to “like” their adventures and successes.

WITH HUSBAND

What’s the best place that you’ve visited?  New York City.  What’s something that you learned in life only when you got older?  That alienating anyone for whatever reason is a terrible thing!  People need to feel accepted and respected.  What did you learn from your parents?  To be a hard worker, and to have total love and acceptance.  Who’s your favorite performer?  The great Leontyne Price.  What’s your best characteristic?  I hope that I’m caring and kind.  How do you enjoy spending your time?  With family, being around music, and anytime that I can be around horses.  What celebrity do you have a crush on?  I’ve had a lifetime crush on Pat Boone.  Who do you admire?  Barack Obama and Cory Booker.  If you could bring one person back from the dead, who would it be?  Selfishly, my auntie Irene Woods.  She knew who I was long before I did!  Where would you go in a time machine?  To the night that I met my husband.  It was magical.

What would your last meal be?  A lobster with good clam chowdah.  What do you worry about?  That violence is a solution for anything.  What are you afraid of?  I experienced more loss working for an AIDS agency than anyone should in a lifetime.  I’m afraid that too many Americans are experiencing that kind of loss today, especially those that are under 20-years-old.  If you were a musical instrument, what would you be?  An organ.  Are you more like a sheep or a wolf?  People see me as a sheep, but there’s a wolf in there.  Who depends on you, and for what?  My former students still do for support, and my friends do for love and support.  Who are you closest with?  My husband and my brother.  What would your autobiography be called?  I Tried to Live Life, Not Watch It Go By.  What’s on your bucket list?  More travel abroad.  What’s your greatest regret in life?  That I hurt people when I came out.  Where can we see you?  About town as a new realtor, and always with the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus!

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MIKE JEKNAVORIAN Local Interviews

ANTHONY TIMIRAOS

With a new career photographing men in stylized states of nature, Anthony Timiraos—one of main founders of South Florida’s Our Fund—is always on the go.  But he still has time to do this every week with his 92-year-old mother. 

Where did you grow up?  In Cuba.  I left in 1962, when I was eight—don’t bother doing the math, I’m 65.  My family was part of the Pedro Pan Exodus.  Me and my 11-year-old brother came to the U.S. first, and my parents and younger brother came two years later.  Me and my brother lived in several locations during those two years, including a catholic orphanage in upstate New York.  What do you miss about Cuba?  I was too young when I left, so I can honestly say that I don’t miss anything.  How long have you lived in South Florida?  Since 2003.  Me and my husband moved here from Connecticut.  Why did you move here?  For the lifestyle and weather, but not necessarily in that order. 

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What do you miss about New England?  Living close to New York allowed us to drive into the city anytime we pleased.  It’s hard to replace what New York has to offer.  What part of South Florida do you live in?  Fort Lauderdale.  What do you like most about living here?  I love the weather and the sense of community in the LGBT community.  Where do you hang out in South Florida, and why?  At home, in the photo studio, on the beach during sunrise, at that gym, and at tai chi lessons.  What’s your claim-to-fame?  I don’t have any specific “claim-to-fame,” but I’m hopeful that through my philanthropy, including Out Fund, that I’ve helped to make this community a better place to live.  Which one of your old jobs least prepared you for what you do now?  Newspaper delivery at 5:00 a.m. during my early teens.

WITH HUSBAND, ARTHUR CRISPINO

How would you like to be remembered?  I’m a member of the Legacy Society at Our Fund, and me and my husband have designated an endowment there from our estate.  I hope the endowment will continue to help our South Florida LGBT community, forever, and I hope that others will do the same.  Will you ever retire?  Probably not, as long as my health allows me to remain active.  I consider that photography is my new job, but, unfortunately, the financial rewards are minimal at best.  What’s the last thing that you looked at online?  My Instagram page.  What’s the best place that you’ve visited, and why  Barcelona and Madrid, because the quality of life in both cities is impressive. 

WITH ARTHUR CRISPINO (LEFT) AND MICHELLE OBAMA

Who would you like to be for a day, and why?  President Obama, because he taught this country many lessons, but, unfortunately, many were not paying attention.  Do you believe in an afterlife?  It’s hard to believe in anything that I don’t understand.  Do you think that this is the most amoral time that’s ever existed?  Yes.  Who or what is the greatest love of your life?  My husband, Arthur.  How long have you been married?  We’ve been together since May 8, 1970, and we got married in New York in 2013.  What’s your recipe for success in a relationship?  Hard work and honesty.  What talent would you most like to have?  Concert pianist.  What’s something that you learned in life only when you got older?  That life’s too short. 

WITH MOTHER, MARIA, AND BROTHERS

What did you learn from your parents?  Hard work and honesty.  What’s your best characteristic?  Patience.  How do you enjoy spending your time?  Doing photography.  What celebrity do you have a crush on?  There’s too many to list.  Who do you admire, and why?  The Obamas, because they’ve set a new standard for honesty, service to our country, and compassion.  If you could bring one person back from the dead, who would it be, and why?  Everyone who died from AIDS, because they were all taken away from us too soon.  Where would you go in a time machine, and why?  I would turn the machine off and walk the other way.  What would your last meal be?  Tapas in Barcelona.  What do you worry about?  A constitutional crisis in the USA.

What are you afraid of?  A constitutional crisis in the USA.  If you were a musical instrument, what would you be, and why?  The fiddle, because of its simple and playful sounds.  Are you more like a sheep or a wolf?  A sheep on one end, but a wolf on the other.  You decide which end is which.  Who depends on you, and for what?  My 94-year old mother depends on me and my husband for her Saturday lunch at a local restaurant.  Who are you closest with?  My husband.  What would your autobiography be called?  Move Along.  I’ve lived in 26 different locations during the past 65 years.  What music do you listen to when you’re upset?  Classical music.  Where can we see you?  On my website!