GLSEN INTRO FOR SOL

Introductory words for Sol Kelley-Jones upon her receipt of an award from the Gay/Lesbian/Straight Education Network, Madison, Wisconsin, in 2005

First of all I’d like to take a moment to thank GLSEN, not only for the scholarships and awards that you are presenting tonight, but also for the long history of support that you have shown for our community’s youth. I have seen the impact of the organization on countless young people with whom I have worked and I can assure you that you do make a positive and lasting difference.

I have the honor tonight of introducing one of the youths being recognized, Sol Kelley-Jones. And while I am grateful for the opportunity, I am humbled by it as well. It is difficult to use words appropriately when talking about a young woman of such eloquence. It is difficult to talk about achievements when it’s a life that is still really just beginning, because while I believe that Sol’s past accomplishments are astounding I believe that her future is limitless. It is difficult to try to summarize Sol because of the depth and breadth of not only what she has done, but the person she has been while doing it.

My first exposure to Sol was likely shared by many of you. It was at a hearing on a cold, gray day in Wausau, a place that a legislative committee had decided would be a good location to hold a public hearing on an anti-gay, anti-family bill. Out of that gray day came the voice of a young girl, ten years old at the time, who spoke eloquently and honestly about herself and her two moms.

While I did not meet Sol that day I never forgot the impact of her speech on the large crowd who had turned out for the hearing. Her confident expression of truth deeply moved those in attendance and the stark contrast between her words and the mean-spirited words of those in opposition was very telling.

Since that time our paths have crossed often. I was there taking photos when she delivered a main stage speech for the Millennium March on Washington. I was there at the beginning of Proud Theater. I was there recently for her 18^th birthday. And what has impressed me over and over again is not what she has done, but who she has been and who she has become.

Yes, Sol founded the local chapter of COLAGE, Proud Theater, and other organizations and has contributed to countless others. Yes, she has appeared in Teen People, in myriad newspaper articles, on 20/20, radio, and elsewhere. And yes, she has garnered award after award—OutReach Ally of the Year, the Golden Brick Award, NOW’s Young Feminist of the Year, the ACLU’s Young Activist of the Year, and now tonight’s recognition. These things were all deserved, but they were never sought. She has never done anything for other than altruistic reasons.

I could talk all night simply by listing Sol’s achievements. But it is not the achievements that matter. It is the gift of love that Sol brings to every one of them. I have seen her unselfishly blend into the background and give the spotlight to someone else when it could have and should have been on her. She has the consummate actor’s skill of knowing when to shine and knowing when to let someone else shine. I have seen her act kindly to those who spew hatred and venomous words at her. She is among the most generous and most genuine of people I have ever met. I know that her two Moms, Sunshine and JoAnn are as proud of her tonight as they are every day, and as proud of her as she is proud to have come from such a loving and dedicated family.

Sol’s gift is her love. Every one of her accomplishments has come from that well of love, from that deep caring, concern, and compassion she has for the people in her community and people around the world. This is why she is not only a leader in the LGBT community, but in the peace community, the women’s community, the youth community, and more. She has an innate sense of what is right and what is wrong and she has the audacity and the courage to point it out and to do something about it. This is what I have seen more than anything in the years that I have known Sol.

She feels profoundly for all those who suffer in the world. She sees injustice and works tirelessly to fight it. She notices divisions between races, orientations, genders and does her best to build bridges to bring them together. She sees darkness and shines a light.

That is why I think this recognition tonight is not about all of the things that Sol has accomplished in the past. It is about who she is as a person, and the gifts she has given our community for 18 years and is now taking even further into the larger world. It is about the love that inspires her to act and that inspires those who are touched by her to march alongside her into a future where there is equality and justice for all. Sol, I thank you for letting us walk with you.