Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Wolf.
Hi Brandon, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Until 2016, my life was normal in every way. Paying bills. Going to work. Spending time with friends. I’m a child of rural Oregon who packed up and moved 3500 miles to Orlando over a decade ago in an effort to find a community that affords normalcy to all who seek it — no matter who they love or how they identify. And so, that “normal life” felt like a badge of honor. An arrival. A defiant resistance to the small-mindedness that I’d grown up around. But in the early hours of June 12, 2016, what had been the most normal night during the most normal period of my life, everything was turned upside down.
I escaped Pulse Nightclub just before 2:30a as a man filled with hate charged through the front door and opened fire. Before he was finished with his rampage, he had killed 49 of our friends and family members, injured 53 more, and left our entire community rocked to its core. Among those stolen from us were my best friends — my chosen family.
Healing takes many forms and is a deeply personal journey. Some discover hidden talents, soothing their souls with art, music, or a deeper connection to the natural world. Some seek refuge in the comfort of relationships, leaning on friends and loved ones for support. Many accesses mental health resources (I highly recommend!). But finding new purpose has been a central component to my healing journey. In the wake of the shooting, I began speaking out and fighting to change the climate that ultimately ends in violence. I joined gun violence prevention organizations to push for legislative solutions to our uniquely American epidemic. I left a career at Starbucks to join the team at Equality Florida, committing myself to the fight for LGBTQ equality. And in the summer of 2016, I joined friends in honoring the legacy of Drew Leinonen, among those taken from us, by launching The Dru Project, a nonprofit organization that has now given over $100,000 in higher education funding to emerging LGBTQ leaders, has supported LGBTQ student groups at schools across the country, and works to keep the best qualities of Drew alive: tenacity. Courage. Authenticity.
Until 2016, I imagined that normalcy was the ultimate aim in life. We find our little slice of the status quo and cling to it for as long as we can. Now, I’m fueled by those who dare to imagine a better, more inclusive world than the one we’re living in today and inspired to help them make that world a reality. It’s a world that I know my best friends would be proud of.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
This journey has been fraught with pitfalls for me. There have been political setbacks, dangerous regression, and the cropping up of hate and bigotry in an increasingly hostile climate. Cynical leaders who seem to have drawn targets on the backs of the most marginalized in our community in exchange for a few cheap political points. There have also been personal ones. I spend every day wishing I could trade it all in for another few moments with those I loved more than anything. But I’m immensely honored and grateful to be here today. To inhale and exhale each morning. To have been gifted with beautiful memories. And to have the opportunity to do rewarding, critical work each and every day — the kind of work that fills the cup and, hopefully, makes the world a little easier for others along the way.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am the current Press Secretary for Equality Florida, the state’s LGBTQ civil rights organization. I get to spend my days helping craft the story of the fight for full equality in our state and lifting the voices of those at the center of that fight. I have long said that “words are my art form”. Some are deft with a paintbrush, turning blank canvas into a masterpiece with ease. Others are a whiz with a potter’s wheel, forming a lifeless lump of clay into a ceramic treasure. Language has always been my preferred medium. I thrive on taking complex issues with intersecting impacts and making them digestible for the average passerby. I get excited about the digital performance data behind one headline vs. another. And I feel a personal sense of accomplishment when a talking point I workshopped ends up in the hands of a master communicator, being brought to life in a state legislative hearing or on a nightly news show.
I am at my most proud when our community is equipped with the language necessary to tell a cohesive, compelling story that shifts hearts and minds. And I feel humbled to be able to do that work every day.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Authenticity is a game-changer and your uniqueness is your secret weapon. In a world often shaped by our constant need to perform for a social media audience, I think people crave authenticity. They’re desperate to know that they’re not the only ones figuring it all out. They are drawn to others they naturally connect with, those they see as “real”. Being authentic and leaning into what makes your lived experience and perspective unique will set you apart, whether that is as an advocate, a communications professional, or otherwise.
We are at our most powerful when we are able to live authentically in our skin and harness the fuel that is our uniqueness. Yours will take you wherever you want to go.
Contact Info:
- Website: brandonwolf.us
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandonjwolf
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/realbrandonwolf
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/bjoewolf
- Other: https://medium.com/@brandonjwolf
Image Credits
Albert Harris
Jonathan Ernst
Amanda Dennison
