All around the world, people will observe a very special day on this Friday, November 20th. It is the eleventh annual observance of the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

The list of gifted and talented men and women who have surrendered their lives in a struggle to find their own God-given gender identity – even though outward appearances may have deceived them for years – continues to grow. To try to understand the magnitude of loss we have suffered, please visit the GLAAD Blog or Google the Transgender Day of Remembrance 2009.

But there is one such woman who will NOT be added to that list of sorrow and tragedy. During the annual Gospel Drag show held at St. John’s MCC as a part of our NC Pride Festival Celebration on Sunday, September 27, we crowned Jasmine Adams as our reigning Miss St. John’s.

I wanted to get to know Jasmine better, so she agreed to talk with our Senior Pastor and me a few weeks ago. Jasmine’s beautiful spirit continued to radiate from within her, just as it did at Gospel Drag.

Jason & deMarco sing to Pastor Belva
"The Italian Song"
in concert for Pastor's 7th Anniversary on
November 8th, 2008.

Jason & deMarco sing
"This Is Love"
in concert for Pastor's 7th Anniversary on
November 8th, 2008.