Unveiling the 2026 class of Windy City Times’ 30 Under 30 honorees

Below are the individuals composing the 2026 class of Windy City Times 30 Under 30 honorees as well as members of the selection committee.

The honorees are queer individuals who represent a wide range of fields. Congratulations to them all! They were honored June 3 at a private ceremony at the Chicago History Museum.

—Aderinsola Akeju (she/her), 23, is an event coordinator for Pink Sappho, a social and wellness club for Black and Brown sapphics that hosts monthly events in Chicago.

A Northeastern University alumna, her event coordinating career began as a travel stylist for luxury designer brand Celine, where she hosted trunk shows and corporate events. She soon recognized the need for her queer community to have intentional, elevated experiences of their own. She has since coordinated monthly events with Pink Sappho for Black and Brown queer women in Chicago, expanding the experience internationally to London and Stockholm, Sweden.

And did you know? Aderinsola’s older sister once snuck a kitten home from a Nigerian military camp; the two named him Moose. She also learned Morse code during her time at a military boarding school in high school.

—Amari Amai (he/they), 27, is a Black nonbinary teaching artist, storyteller and worldbuilder who was born and raised in Chicago. Amari’s work is rooted in oral tradition and archival resurrection on and off the page, using poetry, folklore, soundscapes, and performance to bend time towards a queer pre-colonial past and decolonized future.

Their work has received support and fellowships from Tin House, Chicago Public Libraries, Chicago Poetry Center, Hyde Park Art Center, The Watering Hole, Vermont Studio Center and Celebration Theater of Los Angeles. Amari is the founder of Crossroads Writers Collective, a communal writing group for Black queer folks based in Chicago. You can find Amari anywhere around the city where stories can be found.

And did you know? Amari was the 2006 Young Chicago Authors book winner in first grade. Amari’s debut children’s book told a poignant story of a family’s joyful trip to Six Flags Great America; reviews say the book explores themes of lineage, home and the politics of amusement parks, employing a “visceral” reimagining of the nuclear family. 😉

—Frida Benitez (they/he), 26, is a multimedia artist who was born and raised in Chicago. Their work has been inspired by their gender identity and Mexican background to create a vibrant world of color. Frida has been sewing and screen printing for the past seven years, combining both mediums to make unique clothing and accessories that they sell at markets. Their artist name, Reina de Colores, comes from their passion for saturated hues and kaleidoscopic prints they create on textiles.

Frida currently works as a senior arts facilitator at Art Makers Outpost, showing adults and children how to make art with recycled materials. Frida immerses themself in Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities throughout the city, and they are extremely passionate about cultivating community and accessibility within their work.

And did you know? Frida has been a practicing artist since they were a child, when he started drawing and painting. In eighth grade, their design was chosen to be featured on the class graduation shirt.

—Arad Boxenbaum (he/him), 25, is an activist and elected official in the far west suburb of Geneva. He was elected to the Geneva Public Library Board in 2021 at the age of 19 and is now the board’s vice president.

Arad has long advocated in the areas of gun violence prevention, climate change and reproductive rights, and has served in state and local leadership for Illinois’ Students Demand Action, Moms Demand Action and Kane County’s Sierra Club.

He ran for state representative in Illinois’ 83rd House District in the 2022 and 2024 Democratic Primary, having personally knocked on 20,000 doors for the 2024 primary. Arad’s worked for various members of Congress in the Chicagoland area both on campaigns and in constituent services, and has helped raise hundreds of thousands for federal democratic candidates nationwide. He also oversees the organization’s presence in various states across the Midwest.

And did you know? Arad has a rescue dog named Toby that’s named after Toby Ziegler from The West Wing.

—Bri Cada (they/them), 26, is a licensed social worker who graduated from Aurora University in 2024 and holds a B.A. in sociology from Ripon College (2022). Bri is actively working to obtain their clinical license to better meet the needs of the populations they serve. Bri’s passion lies in being a fierce advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, which they pursue through their work in a dual capacity as a Health and Wellness Navigator and DeKalb Program Site Leader with Youth Outlook.

Bri serves the LGBTQ+ community by connecting them to affirming resources and providing a safe space for queer youth to thrive. In recognition of their dedication, Bri received the Excellence in Service Award from Youth Outlook in 2025.

And did you know? Bri is the proud parent of their fat orange cat, Racket, who is polydactyl—having seven extra toes!

—Keinan Carpenter (he/him), 25, is a Baltimore-born, Chicago-living Black man of trans experience. He holds a bachelor’s of social work from Clark Atlanta University and is a candidate for a master’s of arts in social work from the University of Chicago. He has experience in community engagement, case management, trauma-informed care, and advocacy. Keinan is the founder & CEO of the Trans Masculine Alliance Sports Club (TMASC), a space created to practice healthy healing through exercise for BIPOC transmasc individuals and their allies. Keinan also serves as the director of outreach for Trans UpFront IL, a statewide gender-affirming care navigation system that serves trans youth and families.

His work has been recognized through fellowships with the Human Rights Campaign’s Trans Justice Initiative, the Council of Social Work Education, as well as through publications such as the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Reader, and the Transgender Law Center. Keinan is committed to Afrocentric leadership, mentorship and trans-aligned wellness.

And did you know? Keinan is left-handed, loves Fortnite and enjoys astrology.

—Joseph Castro (he/him), 28, has worked for more than five years at Bottom Line, a national nonprofit that partners with degree-aspiring students from first-generation and low-income backgrounds to help them get into college, graduate and launch meaningful careers.

As a college access advisor and senior advisor, Joseph guided more than 200 Chicago students through the college application process before his current role as student recruitment & partnership manager, where he leads the organization’s external outreach and recruitment strategy. Through expanded partnerships with high schools and community-based organizations, he has helped scale student access and success across Chicago.

Beyond educational equity, Joseph is also a consultant at the Chicago Queer Latine Collaborative (CQLC NFP), where he advances Latine LGBTQ+ health research and advocacy.

And did you know? Joseph has a vinyl collection of more than 100 records. He started collecting them during the pandemic.

—Ken Cavanaugh (they/them), 27, is a 2026 graduate of Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, where they were a student attorney in the LGBTQI+ Rights Clinic. Ken provided free and life-affirming name change services and education on advance health care directives and identity documents through tabling and outreach. They also tracked legislation impacting people engaged in sex work with the Illinois Decrim Coalition, contributed to federal amicus briefs in LGBTQI+-rights cases, and researched judicial nominees’ LGBTQI+ track records for the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights’ Fair Courts Task Force.

Ken has presented their work at Creating Change, Lavender Law and a national HIV criminalization convening. This fall, Ken will join the Center for HIV Law and Policy as a post-graduate fellow to fight HIV criminalization through principled coalition-based advocacy.

And did you know? Ken is an identical twin who loves to quilt and sew in their free time.

—Kylie DeWees (she/her), 30, is an attorney for the Chicago Cubs and Chicago Stars FC, and is a passionate advocate for equity, inclusion and survivor justice within sports and beyond. A former college tennis player at Minnesota State University, Kylie founded the first LGBTQ+ student organization at her law school and has dedicated much of her career to advocating for others. She helped support legislative efforts to extend Kansas’ civil statute of limitations for child sex abuse survivors in 2023, allowing survivors more time to seek justice.

Kylie has also led DEI initiatives with her former MLS team (Sporting KC), and the Cubs, including Pride celebrations and community outreach efforts. In addition to serving on the Cubs DEI Council, Kylie is a singer-songwriter whose music shares her LGBTQ+ experiences and creates space for connection, visibility and authenticity.

And did you know? You can listen to Kylie DeWees’ music on all streaming platforms—and you can catch her performing live at Level Sporting Club in Wrigleyville on Saturday, June 20, at 5 p.m.

—Cam Finley (he him), 28, manages social impact programs at Link Logistics, an industrial real estate company. He partners with nonprofit organizations across the country that are focused on hunger and education, overseeing grantmaking, volunteer initiatives and in-kind donations that support their work.

Cam is an auxiliary board member at the Center on Halsted, where he serves on the Governance Committee. He has also held several leadership roles with Out for Undergrad, a national nonprofit dedicated to helping LGBTQ+ undergraduates access internships and full-time opportunities at top firms. He will begin his MBA program at Harvard Business School this fall.

And did you know? Cam spent a year at a boarding school an hour south of London and traveled throughout Europe during school breaks. His favorite stop was Porto, Portugal.

—Ainna Flaminia (any pronouns), 29, is a public health professional with the mind of an educator and heart of a nurse. Their work focuses on improving how young people experience health. Starting as a peer health educator at 18 years old, Ainna has since written medically accurate and inclusive sexual health education curricula for young people across Chicago and authored a chapter for a community health textbook.

Ainna has trained hundreds of school administrators on trauma-informed responses to bias-based harm and increasing menstrual hygiene management access for TGNC students. They have facilitated over 100 student-centered workshops on cultivating a sense of belonging and co-lead a youth advisory council. By making systemic changes, Ainna is dedicated to nurturing communities of health, abundance and connection.

And did you know? Ainna’s name is so unique because it has a typo.

—Molly Fulop (they/she), 26, has worked with the LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project since 2021. In this project, Molly has facilitated LGBTQ+ intergenerational artmaking, culminating in three public art exhibitions at the Center on Addison, each with more than 300 people attending.

Molly has presented on the impacts and benefits of LGBTQ+ collaborative artmaking at the National Art Education Association and the American Studies Association conferences. Molly, a doctoral student at University of Illinois Chicago, has also taught courses on LGBTQ+ art history at the Newberry Library and works as an educator at Wrightwood 659 to highlight queer art.

And did you know? Molly attended a pride parade in Rome in 2018 and traveled to New York City for WorldPride in 2019.

—Devin Gomez (he/him), 25, is an advocate dedicated to advancing sexual health equity and gender-affirming care for marginalized youth. He’s a fellow in Advocates for Youth’s leadership program, where he drives policy change at both local and national levels, ensuring the needs of trans and queer youth are centered in public health discourse. He serves on its Youth Resource Council (a coalition of LGBTQ+ youth of color) and Trans Youth Council.

Since graduating from UIC in 2022 with a B.S. in integrated health studies, Devin connects academic insight with community-based care. In his current role as a health navigator at CALOR, he provides life-saving HIV prevention and gender-affirming services to underserved Chicagoland neighborhoods.

Devin is the founder of TMasc Circle, a vital support space created to uplift and amplify the voices of BIPOC transmasculine individuals. As the group’s peer-facilitator, he empowers his trans siblings to recognize their own excellence.

And did you know? Devin collects U.S. wheat pennies. He will gladly take all your unwanted change to rummage through for hours.

—Allan Ayala Hernandez is a 22-year-old queer Chicano artist born and raised in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood of Chicago. Their work in film, photography and illustration centers the Latino-dominated spaces throughout the city as well as the underground scenes that exist on the outskirts of Chicago. Allan has been responsible for, and involved in, several political justice efforts and seeks to bridge the gap between art and community organizing.

And did you know? They have dyed their hair every color.

—As a queer Latina immigrant, Esbeidy Torres Hondal (she/they), 29, centers lived experience in designing culturally affirming and data-driven public health strategies in Chicagoland. In 2022, Esbeidy reached Chicago as a Fulbright Scholar and actively engaged in health equity research. They leverage data science, policy analysis and community-centered project leadership to reduce disparities and empower her community.

She has worked on strategies to promote HIV prevention both locally and internationally in Latin America. The unique blend of local and global experience enables her to contribute meaningfully to both public health and international development with approaches that are technically rigorous, contextually informed, and designed for real-world impact.

And did you know? Esbeidy enjoys exploring new hobbies, especially arts and crafts. So far, she’s tried more than 20 different creative mediums—but how many projects has she actually finished? (Let’s just say the journey is the best part.)

—Jahiem Elijah Jones, 23, is the youth outreach coordinator at Brave Space Alliance (BSA), a Black, trans-founded LGBTQ+ organization on the South Side of Chicago. Jahiem (who has had two articles about him published in Windy City Times) has been with BSA for two years but has been a youth mentor, dance coach, and health and wellness youth leader for three years. Jahiem—who has embraced being a mentor and valued being a mentee (to people such as Matthew J. Thomas and Pierre Lockett)—taught safe sex and wellness movement workshop to students in local middle schools, high schools and college. Multiple college students have focused their class projects and activities on Jahiem’s work at BSA.

Also, Jahiem is a certified HIV tester and part of the Chicago youth homeless committee. Most recently, Jahiem enrolled at Northeastern University to earn his bachelor’s degree in marketing.

And did you know? Last December, Jahiem was named a prince of the Chicago ballroom scene.

—Katia Klemm, 27, is a Filipino-Panamanian non-binary dyke from Florida. They are a member of the eight-person team behind the LGBTQ+ Intergenerational Dialogue Project (IDP) responsible for the program management, dialogue facilitation, research interviews, archiving and curating of the project’s annual public art exhibitions. They also co-host Coffee House, a biweekly queer gathering.

They presented their work cataloging the IDP exhibition archives at Gerber/Hart Library & Archives, and is writing a thesis on the role of networks behind queer affinity groups such as the IDP while serving as archiving lead for an intergenerational open studio art project exploring queer American identity.

And did you know? Katia has an affinity for the mail, mourns that glitter is beautiful little plastic bits and gets easily stuck on the dance floor.

—D Little (he/they), 29, is a Chicago-based textile and fiber artist, utilizing art to inspire feelings of play and inner child healing. They also currently Oversee Office of Student Health & Wellness’ Content Teams (Safe & Supportive Environments for LGBTQ+ & All Youth, Substance Use, Mental Health, School Gardens, and Sexual Health).

Prior, as the district’s inaugural LGBTQ+ student support specialist, they helped increase gender and sexuality alliances (GSAs) in the district by 466% between 2020 and 2023. During their tenure at CPS, they also founded the GSA Leadership Committee (GSALC)—a group of LGBTQ+-affirming staffers who meet to increase support for LGBTQ+ youth and for GSA advisors throughout CPS.

And did you know? After their recent diagnosis, D has begun sharing their story living with OCD, and is supporting others to access treatment and care.

—Maricela Lugo is a 21-year-old first-generation Chicana from Chicago’s Little Village. At 19, Maricela began her career in community care as an HIV testing counselor at CALOR, where she leads vital conversations on HIV awareness, prevention and harm reduction.

Currently pursuing a B.S. in biomedical engineering on a pre-med track, Maricela recently earned her EMT certification to further her impact in emergency medicine. As part of the community, she moves with intentionality to expand queer Latina representation in healthcare. Maricela is committed to dismantling systemic inequities by providing affirming, patient-centered care in the environments where it is needed most.

And did you know? In her free time, Maricela loves learning how to work on cars. This summer, she plans to modify her Subaru in a way that displays the connection between art and science.

—Tyris Manney, 28,is the founder and CEO of Tyris Manney Beauty, a Chicago-based skincare brand founded in 2019 from his kitchen with a vision of creating effective, confidence-boosting skincare products for all skin types. Built on resilience, passion, and purpose, the brand has grown into a recognized name in beauty and wellness.

Tyris has been featured in publications including Windy City Times, Block Club Chicago and Chicago Reader. He has also appeared on NBC Chicago Today, WGN Spotlight Chicago and Daytime Chicago, where he shares his expertise on skincare, entrepreneurship and confidence-building through self-care. Through Tyris Manney Beauty, Tyris’ mission is to empower individuals to embrace their true beauty and discover confidence through extraordinary skincare products that promote both outer radiance and inner self-worth.

And did you know? Tyris has managed to earn almost three degrees while building a business, earning a summa cum laude distinction each time.

—Angel Marquez, 28, is a proud Mexican-American trans woman and dedicated advocate for the LGBTQIA2S+ community. Her advocacy started in 2020, supporting youth of trans and gender expansive experiences through housing, food access, medical care and gender-affirming resources at the Broadway Youth Center, while creating safe and affirming spaces through trans-focused programming. Now, as a medical case manager at Howard Brown Health, she helps community members navigate healthcare systems that can often feel overwhelming and unsafe. Driven by her own lived experiences, Angel is committed to being the support she once needed for others in her community. 

And did you know? Angel loves to act, and graduated with a degree in theater and performance. Her dream is to be able to tell her communities’ stories through storytelling/performance.

—Cj Melendez (he/him), 26, is a community leader and youth advocate focused on building accessible, youth-centered spaces that support healing, and opportunity. As the founder of Break the System Project, Cj develops programs that combine wraparound support, spaces for creative expression, and systemic advocacy for young people. His work includes partnerships with local and national organizations as well as schools, to make resources more accessible and responsive to community needs. Through his leadership, Break the System Project supported more than 250 young adults within its first year of operation. Cj also serves on the National Youth Advisory Council with the National Network for Youth, helping shape conversations and recommendations with national leaders and decision-makers focused on shaping policies about youth homelessness and poverty as well as real support systems.

And did you know? Cj was the first male cheerleader at Chicago Public Schools’ John F. Kennedy High School on the South Side.

—Jessie Meltzer (they/he) is a 29-year-old staff attorney at Legal Aid Chicago on the Pro Bono and Community Partnerships team. Jessie designed and helms Legal Aid Chicago’s Name Change Project. Through this work, Jessie helps folks navigate the complex and intimidating process of name changes and identity documents and serves as a caring advocate to clients who are gender expansive. Jessie is not only providing legal services but also offering dignity and affirmation to clients at pivotal moments in their lives.

Additionally, they staff and organize walk-in legal clinics in underserved neighborhoods. Partnering with community centers, schools, and churches throughout Chicago, the clinics utilize volunteer attorneys to give Cook County residents without income or resources access to high quality legal assistance right in their neighborhood.

And did you know? Jessie is a competitive powerlifter and currently holds an Illinois state record in the bench press category. They also love doing nails and, as of May 15, he has read 50 LGBTQ+ romance novels this year. Also, Jessie is the parent of a fluffy, 9-year-old kitty named Kiwi.

—Rinley Parker, 28, is a passionate community advocate, organizer and peer support leader dedicated to creating safer, more inclusive spaces for LGBTQIA+ individuals and marginalized communities across Central Illinois. Through his work with Peoria Proud and JOLT Foundation, Rin has helped lead grassroots initiatives focused on advocacy, harm reduction, mutual aid, and community connection.

At just 20 years old, Rin adopted and raised his two younger siblings—an experience that deeply shaped his commitment to compassion, resilience and community care. Known for balancing heartfelt leadership with humor and authenticity, Rin believes strong communities are built through compassion, listening and showing up for one another.

And did you know? Rinley loves to educate people on betta fish (also known as Siamese fighting fish), advocate for them and spends his time caring for his ow

—Binx River Perino, 30,is a poet, activist, advocate and artist. They are the author of Roots (2026) and hold an MFA in creative writing from Emerson College. For the past five years, Binx has worked in city homelessness services with organizations such as Home-Start in Boston and the AIDS Foundation of Chicago. In both organizations, Binx has been a fierce advocate for the communities that they serve. Outside of their professional work, Binx has been an activist and organizer with the Democratic Socialists of America. Currently, they serve as a managing editor with Sundress Publications’ Craft Chapbook Series. Binx’s poetry, prose and photography have appeared in various literary magazines, journals and anthologies over the years. Based in Chicago, Binx is preoccupied with the intersection of art and activism, and they strongly believe that housing is a human right.

And did you know?  Despite being from Texas, they love snow. In fact, they can’t stop saying, “I’d take a Chicago winter over a Texas summer any day.”

—Elexis Richardson (they/them), 26, is the affirming care education specialist for Youth Outlook, a youth services agency that works to meet the ever-evolving needs of LGBTQ+ youth and their families in north and central Illinois; Elexis has been with Youth Outlook for two years. Elexis provides LGBTQ+ inclusivity training to various audiences including but not limited to medical providers, mental health professionals, religious communities, education professionals and the general public. Within this role, they create supportive spaces for adults to learn how to better support the LGBTQ+ youth in their lives by leading with knowledge and compassion.

And did you know? Elexis has a tattoo sleeve of queer cartoon characters and has started another of queer animals as reminders that queerness belongs everywhere.

—Josue Rivera, 25, is a proud gay Latino Chicago-based graphic designer, photographer and visual artist whose work is deeply influenced by his Puerto Rican heritage and the vibrant communities of the Windy City. Through digital graphics, portraiture and storytelling, Josue explores themes of identity and representation, focusing on the dynamic, introspective interactions between individuals, their environments and their self-image. His art seamlessly blends personal experience with diverse cultural narratives, aiming to engage viewers in profound conversations about the human experience.

As a graphic designer, he dedicates his talents to promoting safe sex resources, HIV awareness, and mental health advocacy.

And did you know? Josue is currently developing a brand aimed at amplifying Latinx voices through a fusion of storytelling, photography and visual arts. This vision will come to life under the name Bendición—a homage to his Puerto Rican culture and the enduring belief that life is a blessing.

—Cicilia Robison (she/her), 29, has spent her career building the financial backbone of organizations working at the intersections of wellbeing, justice, and day-to-day life, most recently as director of development at Brave Space Alliance, Chicago’s Black-led LGBTQ+ center on the South Side. Homeschooled in rural Montana, her roots stretched to Vermont and her career has bloomed in Chicago, where she has raised millions for LGBTQ+ and youth-serving organizations. That same spirit drew her into her current Master’s program in clinical mental health counseling at Northeastern Illinois University and to her board seat at Kiki Queens, Chicago’s only live-singing charity drag show, where sequins and spreadsheets fuel community support for local queer orgs.

And did you know? Despite a constantly packed schedule involving work, volunteering and school, Cicilia manages to read more than 100 books per year—mostly sci-fi and fantasy, and often by the lake with her rescue dog, Ellie.

—Troy Taylor, 25, is a development professional and LGBTQ+ advocate who has made waves this past year in Chicago. While working as the development manager at Brave Space Alliance, he directed the Dignity Dash 5k campaign, raising more than $107,000 for the organization.

In addition to fundraising, Troy has also founded the Transmasc Society of Chicago (TMS), an organization centered on fostering connections for transmen/transmasc folks in the city. TMS is setting its sights to incorporate as a nonprofit soon to provide financial support to trans men in the Chicago community, in addition to social connections.

In addition to his trans advocacy, Troy is a planning member of the Chicago Dragons Rugby Club’s North American Trans Rugby Match, an expedition match in June highlighting trans rugby athletes from around the country.

And did you know? Troy is an amateur bodybuilder and is currently prepping for his first competition this November.

—Tichike Tumalan (he/they), 24, is a Chicago-based trans Latine drag performer, artist, community organizer and graduate student at the University of Illinois Chicago. Their work centers trans Latine embodiment, performance and storytelling as sites of survival, refusal and care.

Alongside their research and artistic practice, Tichike works as a program coordinator supporting trans youth and organizing community-centered initiatives rooted in mutual aid and collective care. They curate markets, performances and community events that center trans/queer BIPOC communities. Drawing from queer and decolonial methodologies, their research examines how trans Latine communities cultivate intimacy, movement, opacity and alternative forms of knowledge under conditions of anti-trans violence, displacement, and surveillance. Through performance, organizing and scholarship, Tichike explores the contradictions, vulnerabilities and potentialities shaping trans Latine communities.

And did you know? Tichike loves animal print and is a father to three cats.

—Skai Underwood (she/her), 27, is a youth engagement specialist at TaskForce Prevention and Community Services, where her professional trajectory stands as a powerful testament to the organization’s mission. Her journey began as a participant in the TaskForce Vogue School, and she has since evolved into a lead facilitator and a cornerstone of the agency’s youth advocacy efforts.

As a legendary member of the LGBTQIA+ ballroom community, Skai expertly bridges the gap between culture and clinical care, serving as a certified HIV/STI tester and the lead contact for the PrEP4Teens initiative. Her impact extends directly into the classroom through her collaboration with Chicago Public Schools (CPS), where she develops and teaches curriculum focused on ballroom history and “Vogue Bootcamp” classes.

And did you know? Skai was the first vogueur from the Midwest to win a latex ball in Mecca, New York, and she also won the first 5k Fem Queen OTA vogue performance in Chicago.

*****

SELECTION COMMITTEE

—Andrew Davis (he/him) is a senior writer for Windy City Times, having returned to the media outlet after a brief hiatus; before then, he was a general-assignment reporter, managing editor and executive editor for WCT. A graduate of Randolph-Macon College and the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, Andrew also writes for the Chicago Sun-Times and Reuters, and has interviewed celebrities such as Nick Jonas, Janelle Monae and Rachel Maddow in addition to others from every walk of life, spotlighting LGBTQ+ people and issues. A self-proclaimed foodie, Andrew also has a column called SAVOR with Andrew (future3733.substack.com) that’s about the Chicago culinary scene, and has written about the food scene for WCT for more than a decade.

—Dansen Mayhay (she/her/hers) is a queer first-generation Filipina-American from Chicago’s Southwest Side. A graduate of Whitney Young Magnet High School and Virginia’s James Madison University, she began her career supporting survivors of domestic, sexual and LGBTQ+ violence at YWCA Richmond and Center on Halsted. In 2020, she founded “Kimchi for a Cause,” selling homemade kimchi to benefit Third Wave Fund, which supports sex workers of color. Her first pop-up was celebrated in 2024 at Side Practice Coffee, an AAPI-owned shop. Dansen later entered the financial sector, blending trauma-informed advocacy with public health education. In 2025, she was named to Windy City Times’ 30 Under 30 for her impact, guided by the belief that “advocacy doesn’t only live in social work.” She is a current advisory council member at Pride Action Tank. Dansen enjoys cooking for loved ones, rollerblading along DuSable Lake Shore Drive, and dancing.

—Christopher Pazdernik (any) is a Jeff Award-winning director and producer who has been active in Chicago theater since 2007. Described as having “a near encyclopedic knowledge of musicals,” they were recently named to NewCity Stage’s Players 2024: The Fifty People Who Really Perform for Chicago. In addition to their creative pursuits, Christopher has held staff positions at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Porchlight Music Theatre, Refuge Theatre Project and, most recently, producing director at Theo Ubique Cabaret Theater. An openly HIV+ artist, Christopher is also active in AIDS advocacy work, producing the annual benefit concert Belting for Life and leading a team at AIDS Run/Walk Chicago for the past decade. He is currently the managing director at Season of Concern and a proud Windy City Times 30 Under 30 honoree (Class of 2016).

—Markus Pitchford (he/him)—a 2019 Windy City Times 30 Under 30 honoree—is the chief policy officer of Glenhouse and president of Glenhouse Strategies. Prior to joining Glenhouse, Markus was the director of legislative and external affairs in the Waukegan mayor’s office, working with multiple federal and state agencies on economic development, transportation, and environmental and sustainability policy. Markus was also a senior advisor to Kwame Raoul during his successful bid in becoming the Illinois attorney general, and as an advisor to the Illinois Senate Democratic Caucus. Markus is a graduate of Hampton University, with a B.A. in history. He serves as the treasurer of Men4Choice, a 501(c)(4) group that advocates for women’s reproductive rights and the access to affordable healthcare. Moreover, Markus sits on Congresswoman Robin Kelly’s LGBTQ Task Force.

—José Wilson (he/him)—better known as “Che-Che” in the community—is a Chicago native who was born and raised in West Town. Since coming out at 14, he has constantly fought for the LGBTQ+ community. He has been at every level of the movement: from providing direct client services as a Linkage to Care Coordinator and fighting to help defend LGBTQ+ lives through the court system as a paralegal, to now organizing with community partners throughout Illinois to ensure the state increases protections for LGBTQ+ people and fight back against the hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ laws across the country. As a Brown, Indigenous, Latino, gay man, José is proud to be a leader in his community and beyond.