Advocate Without Pier

Jeff Ofstedahl became the Valley's most visible gay activist, turned Echo Magazine into a political force, and carefully planned his departure for four months of sailing and finishing a novel. Then his doctor called.

Comments (0) By Tony Ortega Thursday, Jun 11 1998

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In his columns, he's written about the wrenching psychological traumas of living with HIV. "When you come out with your HIV status, when you make it known, you think, 'Who's going to want me now?' You know, everyone wants contact, everyone wants to be touched."

The one love of his life, he says, "couldn't deal with the HIV issue." He doesn't say anything more about it.

"It takes years to come to grips with living with HIV," he says. He had hoped the voyage would have been a spiritual journey to help him cope, four months alone with several projects planned besides the difficult task of navigating solo against a strong north-to-south current.

But Ofstedahl isn't one to fall into self-pity. After another sip of beer, he dives into a discourse on what makes the Phoenix gay community different from those of other major cities. It's geography, mainly, he says, which has prevented Phoenix from developing a "gay ghetto."

"We're everywhere, in every part of the Valley," he says. "We're in bars in north Phoenix, South Phoenix, Glendale, Scottsdale. Gay people wherever you look," and it sounds half declamatory statement and half threat.

The agitator in Ofstedahl lives on.

Contact Tony Ortega at his online address: tortega@newtimes.com