Ken Screven (1950-2022)
Ken Screven made history as the first Black and out man hired as a reporter for a Capital Region news station. In a 2022 Times Union article, LGBTQ+ activist Libby Post praised Screven for setting “the standard as an example for generations of LGBT people to see that you could be out on the job.”
After he retired from reporting, Screven was an active member in the LGBTQ+ senior community. He funded programs to provide seniors with accessible technology in order to combat their feelings of isolation or provide them with better resources.
Jasán Maurice Ward (1972-2021)
Capital Region native Jasán Maurice Ward was a community leader and advocate. He worked for fifteen years as a Youth Development Specialist before becoming the Director of LGBTQ+ Health Services for In Our Own Voices. Between 2012 to 2014, Ward was invited to the White House to address issues affecting LGBTQ+ people of color. His work around dismantling the stigma of HIV/AIDS continued throughout his career. At the time of his death in 2021 Jasán was working as a program administrator for the New York State Department of Health, AIDS Institute.