Saunders Research Building, University of Rochester, School of Medicine and Dentistry
Crittenden Blvd, Rochester, NY 14642
Evelyn Bailey [October 27, 1946 -July 13, 2022] was a beloved member of our Rochester community for fifty years, but her accent always let you know she was really from Roslindale, Boston. She was off-the-charts warm and kind – and passionate about supporting Rochester’s LGBTQ+ community.
”Italian, Irish, Catholic”, Evelyn moved out of her parents’ house when she was 24. She ”didn’t come out as a gay woman unti I she was 26 or 27” years old. Hers was an ”attraction to women; strong women”. Evelyn was ”always someone who cared for the underdog” and felt she was ”someone to break the mold” – which contributed to her leaving the Sisters of St. Cenacle convent in 1978, to pursue a life with her partner, Claire Parker. By 1986, she and Claire were ”going to funerals every weekend”, as the HIV pandemic took hold.
Subsequently, Evelyn devoted herself to recording and memorializing Rochester’s LGBTQ+ community. That pursuit led to the standing-room-only premier of her documentary film, ”Shoulders to Stand On”, in 2013.
More recently, she was a key advisor to the Memorial Art Gallery’s ”Up Against The Wall” exhibit of the UR’s Atwater AIDS posters collection. She also received many honors, including the UR’s Susan B. Anthony Champion Award in 2022.
On July 13, 2022 at the age of 75, Evelyn passed away, leaving a gap in our community and our lives.
