Member Spotlight

Darrel Waters

Volunteer

When first meeting Darrel Waters, you may be fooled by his gruff exterior, direct language, and wicked sense of humor, and altogether miss his more tender, caring side. But for Darrel, the fears and feelings of being alone that he experienced while growing up in Austin, Minnesota, in the ‘40s impel him to support and champion others. “As a gay person, you felt you were the only one in the world. You didn’t have any role models to look up to—in fact, being gay was never even spoken about.” These memories drive him to fight for those who are unable or too afraid to stand up for themselves.

After four years of military service in Korea, Darrel completed his college degree and began working at IBM in Rochester in 1956.

Not long after, Darrel began mentoring and championing youth, through HI Y, a high school group affiliated with the YMCA, where George Gibbs and other community leaders often spoke.

Darrel also served as president of the PORT board, which advocated for people as they moved through the probation and rehabilitation process.

He is best known in the community for his work as a champion for GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender) issues. He began the first GLBT AA group in Rochester, helped facilitate his church’s process of becoming a welcoming congregation, and worked with the Diversity Council to include a lesson on gender roles, identity, and sexual orientation in the Prejudice Reduction Workshop curriculum.

Caring for people continues to be the common thread in Darrel’s volunteer activities. He is an active mentor for Gay Lesbian Youth Services and continues volunteering with the Diversity Council, Gay and Lesbian Community Services, and other community groups.

On February 16, 2006, Darrel was recognized for making a difference in Southeast Minnesota by Philanthrofund, which awarded Darrel its Power of One Award.

Darrel is encouraged by how much has changed today for youth questioning their sexual orientation. “It’s different today; people are talking about their orientation. Kids are now more accepting of themselves, and they get better peer support. My frustration is that I still hear about all the negative slurs in the hallway and how some teachers are not taking action. Some even join in.”

Darrel says he is most proud of his work with families of AIDS patients as a founding member of the Rochester AIDS Volunteer Project. Darrel was saddened that sometimes people were too scared to tell their families they had HIV/AIDS, even though that’s when they most needed family support.

“It was difficult to understand how a parent could tell the child they weren’t welcome to come home. Sometimes they were worried about their standing in the community, or religious beliefs, or were scared themselves.”

When asked what brought these families together, Darrel grinned.“My stubbornness and persistent talking with them. No matter what was said, we just had to keep talking.”

As Darrel looks at recent events, like the state and federal marriage amendment acts, he sees many similarities to the time when HIV/AIDS was first identified. And his strategies are much the same: “Keep talking—and hope others will too.”

Darrel points out the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., on his t-shirt. “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

To read more about Darrel’s award, go to http://www.philanthrofund.org/powerofonecurrent.htm

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