I first heard about the Hetrick-Martin Institute a few years ago on Kimora Lee Simmon’s show “Life in the Fab Lane”. She was donating monies to the school, and what caught my attention was that it was an LGBTQ high school. Back then, around the time that I was a freshman going into my sophomore year of high school, I was exploring my sexuality and in the midst of it all I concluded that I was bisexual and soon I realized I’m a lesbian. Hearing about an LGBTQ high school piqued my interest and so I took to the internet researching Harvey Milk and the Hetrick Martin Institute and I wanted to attend the school so badly but I had one of those strict parents so that was out of the question. But the research went on and I grew more and more aware about what HMI is all about and that made me long for some place or someone to accept me and not just tolerate me because I’m their daughter or niece or friend.
Sophomore year started and I had yet to begin my community service requirements for graduation. While talking with my friend Emauni she told me I should visit HMI to go: Newark; the acronym HMI made my eyes light up and the questions rolled off my tongue so fast. I took a trip to Science High School where I met Juan Williams who did my intake and I also met Kara Odlige who at the time was the site supervisor at HMI Newark and since then I’ve been a faithful member at HMI. That was when I was only sixteen, I am now 20 and my outlook on life has done a complete 180 since then and I believe that HMI has had a lot to do with that. A place that has taught me to “keep it cute or keep it mute”, a place that has fed me