EPISODE #2 | Dusty Childers

Pronouns: He/Him

TMI Project storyteller Dusty Lynn Childers grew up in Gaffney, South Carolina. As a kid young Dusty felt pressure to fit in and that meant assuming a masculine persona that didn’t quite ring true. Dusty’s story is about the day his straight-talking mother, who he calls a “rainbow dipped witch,” called him out on it.

My journey to Queer was fraught with anorexia, Nair, and plaid. Lots of fucking plaid.

Episode Notes:

This is Episode 2, Season 1 of The TMI Project Story Hour, Tragedy + Time = Comedy.

It was produced in partnership with Radio Kingson with production assistance from Ida Hakkila, Nate Brogan, Marlan Barry and Manuel Blas.

We met Dusty through our partnership with the national LGBTQ suicide prevention organization, The Trevor Project, in which ten storytellers from around the country convened in NYC for a marathon week of TMI Project storytelling workshops culminating in Life Lines: Queer Stories of Survival, a live performance at the Signature Theater off Broadway.

Resources/Links:

https://jezebel.com/dusty-childers-entertainer-and-tarot-enthusiast-gives-1842294816

Episode Contributors:

Eva Tenuto (she/her), TMI Project Co-founder, Executive Director, & Podcast Co-host
Micah Blumenthal (he/him), TMI Project Workshop Leader & Podcast Co-host
Hayley Downs (she/her), TMI Project Story Hour Producer, Storyteller
Blake Pfeil (he/him), Operations Manager, TMI Project
Sara DeRose (she/her), External Affairs Director, TMI Project
Dusty Childress (he/him), Storyteller
Dusty’s Mother Vanessa Jean Williams Childers
Reba McEntire
Mariah Carey
Whitney Houston
Loretta Lynn
Tammy Wynette
Dolly Parton.
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Tracy Chapman

Photos:

Storytelling Prompt:

Write a story about a time you tried to seem cool.

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