We had the good fortune of connecting with Jo Ivester and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Jo, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
I come from a politically active family. As a child, I was inspired by my parents who moved our family to Mississippi so my dad could manage a clinic for the underserved African American population and my mom could teach. I was the only white student at my junior high. It was the 1960s and our very presence pulled us into the heart of the civil rights movement. That experience gave me an awareness that there are far too many people and communities that are discriminated against, the courage to do something about it, and the recognition that I could really make a difference. That served as a fantastic background when over forty years later I learned that my son Jeremy is transgender. In his mid-twenties, after a childhood in which we called him a tomboy and were clueless as to what it means to be transgender and how we could best support him, Jeremy had top surgery, changed his name and pronoun usage, and began taking the testosterone that would lower his voice and give him a beard. With my first book, “The Outskirts of Hope,” a memoir of my family’s time in Mississippi, I had developed a platform from which I could help readers and listeners to grow more comfortable about racism and prejudice. As I learned more about our transgender community, I realized that I could do the same with a second book. That’s why I wrote “Once a Girl, Always a Boy.” It is not only my son’s story of growing up in a world not quite ready to accept people like him, but also that of the entire family as we struggled to understand what it meant to have gender dysphoria. My hope is that once the pandemic is over, I will be able to once again travel about the country addressing groups of listeners and sharing our family story. By building awareness, my hope is I will help people to accept not only my own son, but also everyone in the LGBTQ community.
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I didn’t start out to become an LGBTQ advocate. My educational training was in civil engineering and business. I worked for the San Francisco transit system and for a high tech firm in manufacturing. I taught statistics at a local university. But there was always a literary side to me. I loved reading and acting as a child and pursued both in college, taking classes in Shakespeare right along with my technical coursework. Through it all, I loved to write. At first it was short stories and plays that nobody saw except me. Then my mother decided to write a journal of her entire life, a gift to the family that ensured that the family stories going back to the 1800s wouldn’t be lost as her generation passed on. When she was done, she handed me her pile of notebooks and asked me to get them published. At first I was her typist. Then I became her editor and eventually her co-author. We printed out copies and distributed them to friends and family. Then I asked her if I could take her pages about our time in Mississippi and try to turn them into a publishable book. She graciously agreed to let me do so. That was the origin of my first book. I didn’t set out to become an author, but simply to help my mother with a project that was important to her. What a gift she gave me. It wasn’t long before I realized that as long as I was teaching classes, I wouldn’t get that first book finished. So I stopped teaching and focused on writing. That was over ten years ago. By the time my first book was released in bookstores, I couldn’t stop writing.
Any great local spots you’d like to shoutout?
I lived in Miami for only four years, from just before I was twelve until just after I turned sixteen. Many of my favorite spots from those days no longer exist. It’s a different city than it was in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but I’ve been back many times. Almost every time I’ve returned, we’ve walked the gardens of Vizcaya, something I did many weekends with my parents when I was a teenager. In the evenings, we’ve attended ballet at the Arsht Center and seen some of the finest dancing of our lives. Walking along the waterfront, whether at a quiet beach like Matheson Hammock or at the bustling South Beach. With more time, we’d head out for a walk in the Everglades or even a short boat ride. With even more time, we’d drive down to Key West, listen to music, enjoy a sunset cocktail.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I couldn’t have — wouldn’t have — written my book without the express permission from my son Jeremy. He understood from the moment I first described my idea that we had the ability to make a real difference. Despite his shy nature, he was willing to be the focus of a book and all the publicity that would entail, because he believed, as I did, that we could really help. His journey has required immense courage. To now shine a spotlight on that journey is nothing short of phenomenal. I couldn’t be more proud of my son. I’m actually in awe of him. I also need to thank the community of advocates that have supported this project, individuals who are transgender themselves or who are involved with organizations that protect transgender rights. They are true heroes.
Website: www.joivester.com
Email: jo@joivester.com
Instagram: @joivester
Linkedin: Jo Ivester
Twitter: @joivester
Facebook: www.facebook.com/joivesterauthor
Other: https://www.amazon.com/Once-Girl-Always-Boy-Transgender-ebook/dp/B07VJX9PKV/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1RI66H0K04DWL&dchild=1&keywords=once+a+girl%2C+always+a+boy&qid=1588421653&sprefix=once+a+girl%2C+always%2Caps%2C241&sr=8-1
Image Credits
Susan Risdon