On the afternoon of June 16, 2008, Alex and I had the great pleasure of being present at the San Francisco city hall while Del Martin and her partner Phyllis Lyon were the first lesbian couple to legally get married in the city and by the mayor that defied a nation to bring a new era of civil rights to the GLBT community.

We stood outside the Mayor’s office waiting for Del and Phyllis to emerge as a married couple. There was energy in the air. The crowd cheered when Del and Phyllis along with Mayor Newsom walked out of the Mayor’ office. It was an exciting and proud moment.

Del and Phyllis had been partners since meeting in 1950. Their activism for and journalism about the gay community changed countless lives over the years. They helped to pave the way for Alex and I to live together as we do today.

Del was born on May 5, 1921 and she passed away yesterday, August, 27, 2008 at the age of 87. Del will leave a void in our community and she will be missed.

Rest in peace, Del.

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_10320317
http://lesbianlife.about.com/cs/herstory/p/DelMartin.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Del_Martin_and_Phyllis_Lyon
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/08/28/MNGI12JDIS.DTL