Jennifer Hughes / Candidate for THE ROYAL CAMPAIGN OF FANTASY FEST 2018

Jennifer Hughes / Candidate for  THE ROYAL CAMPAIGN OF FANTASY FEST 2018

Jennifer Hughes, who prefers the more casual Jenn, knows too well how past and present informs the future of HIV, and it’s those very personal stories that define her Queen candidacy for FANTASY FEST 2018.

It began with her grandfather, expelled from the Army in 1949 for sexual misconduct with a fellow soldier. The family’s shock was all-consuming. Jenn’s own mother never had contact with him again. It was only through an Ancestry search that Jenn learned the bitter coda to his story: he died in San Francisco in 1977 of complications from pneumonia, the generic phrase used before the acronym AIDS had emerged. Flash forward to now: Jenn has three sons. One is gay. “I am so grateful Damien could come out in in a kinder, more accepting world. My grandfather didn’t have that option. He faced hated, stigma, shame.”

He also identified as a gay man in a world that offered healthcare options unheard of in the late 70’s. The social responsibility Jenn raised Damien with extends to his sexual life. “He knows about getting tested for HIV. He knows about prescribed prevention, like PrEP. He is my hero and one of my best friends. The chance to belatedly honor my grandfather and salute my son inspired me to run this year.”

A Chicago native, Jenn, 43, is as frank about her own life’s challenges: pregnant as a high school Senior…the struggle to earn a diploma…the dark depressions that led to two suicide attempts, one at 17, the second in her 20’s.

“Acknowledging it is the key,” she says. “For me, medications didn’t work. What worked was talking about it, alerting others when I was falling into what I call the ‘rabbit hole’. It helped me understand myself.”

Community service has been one balancing factor. Coming to the Keys four years ago, she and her husband Joe, the high school sweetheart she reunited with after over after a decade apart, became involved with The SMART Ride, working as road crew for the Key West Miler Markers, which they’ll undertake again this year. Rider Tommy Ryan, 2016 Duke of FANTASY FEST, was an inspiration; from his campaign, she learned about AH and the evolving array of Health and Housing services offered to Monroe County.

When not working to better her community, Jenn’s found at Denny’s, 2710 North Roosevelt Blvd., improving everyone’s outlook with a cool adult beverage –- hence, her logo — in one of the 16 Denny’s nationwide that feature full bar service.

“And there’s a 2nd one down here in the Keys. Makes sense, doesn’t it?” she laughs. She’ll balance her September-November shifts there –- pulling doubles to compensate for time off -– thanks to what she calls “the best boss on the island”.

“Raising money to improve my community’s health…to expand everyone’s opportunities for affordable housing?” Jenn remarks. “I’ll drink to that!”

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