Compassion & Choices Celebrates Pride Month

End-of-Life Care Advocacy Group Hosts Q&A with Award-Winning Filmakers Of Documentary of Gay Man Who Used Compassionate Law To End his Life Peacefully in Seattle

Jun 9, 2021 Bob Fuller Bob's Choice LGBTQ Pride Pride month

To celebrate Pride Month, Compassion & Choices this Thursday June 10 at 6pm ET/3pm PT hosts a Q&A community forum with the filmmakers of the award-winning documentary “Bob’s Choice.” The powerful film followed the life of Bob Fuller, a 75-year-old gay Seattle man who accessed the compassionate option of medical aid in dying in his home state of Washington.

“Bob Fuller lived life to the fullest. He chose to use his last days of life to help make people aware of the importance of medical aid in dying laws that help terminally-ill people avoid unnecessary suffering,” said Amy Sherman, Compassion & Choices Midwest Advocacy Manager. “An active member of the LGBTQ+ community, he raised his voice in support of this compassionate option.”

Hundreds of individuals from throughout the country have registered for the online Q&A with filmmakers John Sharify and Joseph Huerta, winners of the 2021 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award, which honors excellence in broadcast and digital journalism in public service, and is considered one of the most prestigious awards in journalism. Attendees can register at compassionandchoices.org/events.

Bob was an active member of Seattle’s LGBTQ+ community, running the voucher program with Peer Seattle, which offers support services for residents impacted by addiction, mental health, HIV/AIDS or other illnesses. Music was also a big part of Bob’s life. He was one of the founding members of the Seattle men’s chorus, singing with the group from 1979 to 1984. Bob died peacefully on May 10, 2020.

This event is -co-sponsored by Howard Brown Health, GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ Equality, Prairie Pride Coalition, Uniting Pride of Champaign County, Rainbow Cafe LGBTQ Center – Carbondale and the Illinois Eagle.

Compassion & Choices will also mark Pride Month with a national email campaign highlighting LGBTQ+ advocates and storytellers who died over the past year, and a chance for recipients to add the names of their loved ones to the list.

LGBTQ+ storytellers will also share powerful testimonies and talk about the history of the AIDS epidemic and how it led to the fight for the full range of end of life options at a virtual event scheduled for June 29- from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET. Attendees can register at this link.

Compassion & Choices will also offer users a “Power & Purpose” Facebook frame to help mark the month, and will feature blogs and newsletter articles highlighting the organization’s resources and advocacy efforts that impact the LGBTQ+ community.